Is Glued down Luxury Vinyl Plank flooring a good option

[J M.]

I am debating which type of floor to put on a living room, hallway, 2 rooms and 2 bathrooms. 

One flooring contractor is offering to install a 2mm mohawk Luxury Vinyl Plank that glues down. 

He will install new luan on top of the plywood that currently has carpets in order to make the floor smooth. 

This floor is rather thin and he is also saying that it will be fine installed in the bathrooms. 

Does glued down vinyl hold up better if there is a water spill or a leak or will it lift and bubble or deform from water?

And will this glued vinyl need transitions between hallway and rooms or bathroom if it is all the same type of floor? 

Appreciate any advise. 

Thanks

[Eric G.]

I have used vinyl glue down in my rentals recently. I chose it over traditional laminate or wood because it won’t get damaged by water. I see that all too often in bathrooms and kitchens.

That said, this is a new product for me, and it seems to be new throughout the industry. I do have my reservations about the long term durability. It seems to scratch and scuff easily. But then again, it’s glue down. Keep some extra planks on hand, and you can always rip up bad ones and glue down some new ones.

[Marian Smith]

Why not the thicker floating vinyl? Installation is the lions share of the cost. Home Depot and everyone else has solid core lvt that is snaplock, floating and rigid so no subfloor issues.

[Bjorn Ahlblad]

The thickness may dictate if you should use glue down or floating. Floating is double the thickness and may or may not be the way to go. I recently used the glue down 2 mil in an entrance way, laundry area and a bathroom. I can't answer the long term question it has only been down a few months; so far it looks and performs great.

[Christopher B.]

Floating is the way to go imo. Just a better product and I would worry more about a glue down in a wet area than floating. 

[Jason Patrizi]

I had a thicker glue down in a house in TX that had 10” of flooding from hurricane Harvey. It was the only floor in the house that did not need to be replaced and had no moisture underneath. Not a single buckle or anything. Just squeegeed it and cleaned it thoroughly. May not be typical but seems to be a great product.

[Grant Rothenburger]

@J M. What is this floor going in? (Flip, personal residence, rental, etc...)

[J M.]

Originally posted by @Jason Patrizi:

I had a thicker glue down in a house in TX that had 10” of flooding from hurricane Harvey. It was the only floor in the house that did not need to be replaced and had no moisture underneath. Not a single buckle or anything. Just squeegeed it and cleaned it thoroughly. May not be typical but seems to be a great product.

 This is very interesting. 

I called the company (mohawk) and they said that they do not suggest "against" installing this in the bathroom, but hey do suggest to clean any spills immediately to prevent damage to the subfloor. 

I wonder how it is possible that the flooring underneath had no damage from water in your case. I would think that the water would seep in where each plank joins and that the glue would end up breaking down from this and the floor lifting. What type of floor did you have under the vinyl planks? Also, maybe the installer was super good and placed each vinyl plank really tight against each other and somehow that didn't allow water in between? 

[J M.]

Originally posted by @Eric G.:

I have used vinyl glue down in my rentals recently. I chose it over traditional laminate or wood because it won’t get damaged by water. I see that all too often in bathrooms and kitchens.

That said, this is a new product for me, and it seems to be new throughout the industry. I do have my reservations about the long term durability. It seems to scratch and scuff easily. But then again, it’s glue down. Keep some extra planks on hand, and you can always rip up bad ones and glue down some new ones.

 You have used it on bathroom floors and have seen no issues yet? 

Apparently this type of floor has a 6mil wear layer which is what the lifeproof from home depot (interlocking system) has. So despite being 2mm apparently this would do relatively well with scratches. 

I just wonder what happens to this vinyl when you have heavy furniture sitting on it for years, will it dent or get damaged?

[Eric G.]

I do have it in bathrooms. So far so good, but it's only been a year or so. Not going to truly understand the long term wear until many years down the line.

[J M.]

Originally posted by @Grant Rothenburger:

@J M. What is this floor going in? (Flip, personal residence, rental, etc...)

 Personal that will probably be sold this year. (I also wonder if this vinyl is a good selling point at least definitely over carpet I think?, this is the grey type of color wood like)

[Sam Shueh]

No such thing as 2 mm thick vinyl plank. Sorry. They come in flimsy 8 mm(not recommended), 13 mm, 25 mm plank with plywood backing. Must need under-layer bubbling underneath on subfloor. There are 3 different types of bubbling, materials to pick from.  The floating type is recommended. Must rip off the carpet underneath. Sorry.

Not recommended in bath or laundry room. Plywood will swell underneath thru seams. Certain types of glue can outgass smell like natural gas for weeks causing nauseating and vocal complaints. Suggest fit together. 

The vinyl is made most from recycled cars plastics mixed with lime stone.  It is tough but no high quality material. It is relatively new so people think it is good stuff. Gray is popular today.

Sam Shueh 

[Peter M.]

I love the stuff and have had it in my rentals for over 6 years. Most of it is glued to concrete slab and it fine if installed correctly. I also have it installed upstairs on wood subfloor and haven't had major problems but I am transitioning it to tile as the tenants move out. But that is an aesthetics decision, not because it has been a problem. The vinyl will be fine but the subfloor would be the issue it it got really wet. 

Posted about this on another thread yesterday with much more detail. Not sure if this is the best way to share the link but feel free to take a look. 

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/758/topics/54...

[Karen Margrave]

I own a house in Redding, CA. It was built in 2004. It's on 20 acres. At the time we built our son was 14 years old. He and his friends practiced freestyle motocross on our property. I needed something that was extremely durable, and would hold up to motorcycle boots forgetting to be taken off, and very heavy traffic. Aside from large groups of teenagers, I held get togethers at my house hosting 50 people at a time. The Shaw flooring representative came over and said that their vinyl strips would be the best bet. 

It was glued down to wood subfloor on raised foundation

Since 2009 I've leased out the house to groups of 15 people (ministry students, families, etc.) 

That flooring is still on the floor, and in perfect condition. I had it in the foyer, kitchen, hallway, and kitchen nook.  As you can see from below, sometimes running in the house with all that gear on .. boots weren't always easy to remove! 

The Kitchen

The backyard

[Anthony Rodriguez]

I’ve work in “water mitigation” field for over a year. I dealt with all kinds of water damage issues. From roof leaks to sewage back ups.

Most houses we went into that had floating or glue down floors had to be pulled up. Water does go through the cracks and water will travels to the walls and down into the subfloor. I would suggest to tile in the bathrooms and in the kitchen if you can afford it.

Remember insurance companies will pay for water damage issues. You pay for insurance so might as well use it.

-A Rod

[Brian Ploszay]

I've had good and bad experiences with some of this flooring.  One time the glue  just wasn't strong and it came up in places.  The flooring is actually quite durable.  And looks great.  Perfect for a rental.  Not for a renovation / flip.

[Richard Fields]

All I use is the floating click lock LVP. I put it in a kitchen 2 years ago in a first floor rental and a pipe burst in the unit above it flooding the kitchen a couple months later. No damage at all to the floor

[Grant Rothenburger]

Originally posted by @J M.:

Originally posted by @Grant Rothenburger:

@J M. What is this floor going in? (Flip, personal residence, rental, etc...)

 Personal that will probably be sold this year. (I also wonder if this vinyl is a good selling point at least definitely over carpet I think?, this is the grey type of color wood like)

 I personally like LVP. Really a matter of preference. I really don't like laminate.

[Chris C.]

Quote from @Bjorn Ahlblad:

The thickness may dictate if you should use glue down or floating. Floating is double the thickness and may or may not be the way to go. I recently used the glue down 2 mil in an entrance way, laundry area and a bathroom. I can't answer the long term question it has only been down a few months; so far it looks and performs great.

 Hey Bjorn, I wanted to follow up on this

[Bjorn Ahlblad]

OK. It has been 5 years since this post, I am an old man I do not recall where this particular work was done. We have had several units updated before and after and if I haven't heard anything it must still be OK. I hope that works for you. All the best.