My vinyl flooring is horrid -ideas help?

Question

Its my kitchen- its one huge piece that covers three rooms.
Its white with tears, cracks and discolors from under neath it and has uneven concrete under it.
I would love to remove it, yet there is every large appliance in the house ON it and its just me. HELP- that my problem, IDEAS please. I can cut up some of the floor, but I can't move that refrig. Its been their since 1985. God I would LOVE to tile, is that a project for a novice?

You guys are great! Thanks for all the wonderful ideas, my head is buzzing with excitement. I feel sure I can do it now!

Answer 1

You can actually redo the floor. I redid mine.
You need to pull up the old linoleum and try to even
out the surface. you may need to shim it some places
and use wonderboard to even it out.
Then you could install ceramic tile.

As for moving your fridge - does it have wheels or
could you rent a dolly to move it to another part of the
room while you work in one area?

There are many many references on the web and
there are a lot of home improvement books out
there that can give you more detailed instruction.

You also may wish to talk to a professional contractor
to get their opinion and an estimate (not that you have
to use them) to get an idea of what is involved.

Answer 2

Laying floor tile is not a job for a novice. It's too permanent, and everything needs to be perfectly flat or it will bug you forever. It's also difficult to clean the grout once it's in.
Laminate or wood flooring is nice, or you could just lay fresh Linoleum, which is easier. If you're sure you want to tile the floor, get a professional to do it.
To move the fridge, you can pay a college student or grab a friend, or try to do it yourself with a hand truck and some rope. If it weighs more than you do, definitely get some help.
While you're remodeling, how about replacing the fridge? Those in-the-door water dispensers they have now are really nice. Since yours is twenty years old, it might be a good idea anyway, and you could probably pay for it to be hauled off for a small fee if you pay to have it delivered. Two birds.

Answer 3

Use a product called rockite for leveling the uneven concrete. It is self leveling. Just pour it on. I would suggest a friend to use a dolly to move the refrigerator. I believe a novice could do it. I have done this many times as a mantainance person at a Nursing Home and know it can be done. New vinyl comes in large rolls. Just measure the length and width of the room to assure you have enough. Measure 4 inches over to make sure you have enough. All you should need is vinyl adhesive to make the vinyl stick. Good luck. Have Faith :-)

Answer 4

if you feel you can wrap a christmas present or if you can cut a paper where you wanna cut it then i would suggest removing the tile as close to the frig etc as possible then getting a tile that is called a peel and stick fiond them at home depot etc all you do is peel off teh back and stick down trim them to fit with a pair of scissors and when you first start laying down tile go from a wall out or from the center of the room if the concrete underneath is really bad you may wanna have it professionally redone if you are an older person then you can contact your city or town they have pepole that will do this work for free or a reduced rate also if you go to church ask at the church they may reccomend someone or tell you about someone good luck

Answer 5

This is a big job for anyone. I've been in the "business" for many years and would love to meet someone with your ambition.

The worst part is the removal. It's the messiest and the hardest part of the job. Once this is done, it's all downhill as long as you follow directions and procedures.

Go to Home Depot or Lowes, Manards or, other building centers. They all have a hands on how to department and will give you all the help you need.

Answer 6

If the floors are unevan, tile is not your answer unless you put down plywood first:( You may do well to get the thick tiles they use in supermarkets and they should help and they are probably cheaper. You may be able to put a long 2x4 unser the refrig and lift the front and slide an old peice of rug under it and slide it. But you should try to get help with it.
If you are in NJ, email me and I will help move it.

Answer 7

Use some spare bits for experimenting and practice. Try to reproduce the damage.y I would try using a soldering iron (with a clean, flat tip) to push the colored bits into the grooves and sort of smooth the area. Use a light touch. Another smoother might be a large spoon, heated lightly with a blowtorch, held with a glove. Armstrong might have a solution, or vinyl stain powders to apply with heat, that match the flooring. Did you talk with the store disaster recovery team? They might even talk warranty.

Answer 8

vinyl tile is easy to install....we did my kitchen in two days. Just rent a machine from Home Depot to pull up the old flooring and put the tiles on top....if you can just move the refridgerator enough so as to put 1'x1' tiles on the floor below it you should be fine.
hope this helps

Answer 9

anyone can do their own tiling job..its very easy..go to home depot or Lowes and they will teach you how to do it..if you cant afford ceramic tiles, the peel and stick are great..we did it in our kitchen and it looks great..although our kitchen isnt quite as big as your area to be done, but give it a try..you can also rent a hand cart or dolly to move the fridge..its not too hard it can be done alone. you can get someone from home depot or lowes to come over and help, but it will cost you..good luck..

Answer 10

I would say you could pay someone around your city/ county to move the refrig. probally offer someone you know 10 or 20 dollars.

You probally got a neighbor that will do it for free if you ask them to do it and you will pay them most likely they will not even charge you.