The article describes the reasons for the appearance of defects in linoleum coating and how to eliminate them in various cases. This method of repairing linoleum floors is very popular, but there are often problems with the choice of glue. It is usually labeled as "linoleum glue" or "cold weld". It is produced by Bostik Linocol (France), RICO Grace (Poland), Werner Muller Type C, FORBO 671 Noviweld (Germany), Homakoll S 401, CYCLONE H 44 (Russia) and others less well-known. The cost of packing glue, depending on its volume, is $ 8-15. Hot welding of linoleum seams is performed using a polymer cord and a construction hair dryer with a special nozzle. When heated, the cord becomes plastic, it is placed in a seam 3-5 mm wide, where, upon further heating, the material is vulcanized together with the edges of the linoleum canvases. After cooling, the molten cord forms a monolithic structure with the edges of the seams.
Removing holes in linoleum
In this case, the size of the damaged area of the floor covering plays a decisive role. If the area of the defect is more than 100 mm, such a section of linoleum will have to be replaced. To do this, you need to find a PVC patch of a suitable color in the scraps of the coating. If the drawing also matches, you can assume that you are very lucky - the patch will not be visible. The procedure for repairing linoleum with a hole is as follows:
- It is necessary to roughly determine the size of the patch and make the markup on a separate sheet.
- The donor sheet should be applied to the damaged area, aligning the linoleum pattern.
- After that, with a sharp knife, you need to cut through both layers of material at once.
- The damaged area should be removed, and the base should be cleaned with sandpaper.
- Then the edges of the patch must be trimmed a couple of millimeters so that it fits easily into the area of the coating to be replaced.
- If the linoleum canvases are glued, the patch should also be laid on the glue and pressed down with a small load for a day.
- If the linoleum is not glued to the substrate, use the “cold weld” method described above.
Small damage area less than 100 mm2 can be repaired with adhesive repair mixture. This method works especially well for blind damage to glued linoleum. There are special kits on sale designed for the repair of PVC coatings. They include: colorless repair mix, solvent, pigment, sticks, rubber spatula, small containers and color matching samples. The procedure for restoring linoleum in this case is as follows:
- Using the samples from the kit, you should choose the color of the repair compound.
- Then it is recommended to mix it after adding the pigment until the desired shade of the mixture is obtained.
- The finished mixture must be applied with a spatula to the damaged area, leveled and remove residues.
How to remove swelling of linoleum
If the room has not been flooded or overheated, then the blame for the formation of bubbles of linoleum and swelling of its base lies in 100% of cases on unscrupulous performers of flooring installation.
This means that the cover canvases were not given the opportunity to "lie down", but were simply pressed with plinths along the entire perimeter. In such cases, natural thermal expansion of the material becomes impossible, which leads to the formation of "waves" of the coating. Such areas of the linoleum surface wear out 5-10 times faster than those that were laid using the correct technology.
The way to eliminate this defect is quite simple, especially since it is the only one. In this case, the procedure for repairing linoleum will be as follows:
- It is necessary to take out all the furniture from the room.
- Remove the skirting boards to smooth out the linoleum.
- If the edges of the coating abut against the walls, in these places the linoleum should be cut by 20-25 mm.
- After this, the coating must be left alone for a day, and after this time it should be rolled with a heavy bag or roller.
- Those areas where the bubbles did not disappear after rolling must be glued to the base.
The swelling of the linoleum base can be eliminated without removing it. This defect often occurs in places where a new coating has been laid on top of an old one.
The order of work is as follows:
- Along the strip of the pattern, it is necessary to cut the linoleum with a knife and carefully open the bosom by 20-30 mm.
- After that, the base must be fixed in the bosom with a screw, and then closed.
- It is recommended to install a nozzle for crevices on a tube with glue, inject the compound into the resulting joint and remove its excess.
Sealing punctures and dents in linoleum
If punctures are found in linoleum, they must be eliminated, since during wet cleaning, water can enter through the holes under the floor covering, which ultimately will lead to its swelling. Small punctures less than 1.5 mm in diameter can be removed with PVC adhesive. You need to stick tape on the puncture site of the coating, and then make a thin hole in it just above the defect. In this case, the tape should not cover the edges of the linoleum puncture. Then, through this hole, it is worth pouring some glue into the puncture. When it hardens, the adhesive tape must be removed, and the excess adhesive mixture must be carefully cut off to the level of the linoleum surface.
If punctures larger than 1.5 mm in diameter are detected, a thicker glue should be used. In this case, no tape is needed. C-type "cold welding" is suitable as a binder.
Dents on the surface of linoleum can be repaired with putty, which can be prepared in two ways:
- Dissolve twenty parts of rosin in five parts of alcohol, add dry paint that matches the color of the coating and four parts of castor oil. Then all this must be mixed thoroughly.
- Dissolve one part of rosin in four parts of thick turpentine and add a pigment that matches the color, then mix the composition.
After sealing the dent, the mastic should be smoothed out with a spatula, and after drying, its surface should be sanded with sandpaper.
Restoration of torn linoleum
Elimination of tears, cracks and cuts in the coating can be done using "cold welding" in the form of a special C-type PVC adhesive. This substance has a thick consistency, and its composition is very close to the components of polymers used in the production of linoleum. Thanks to this property of the glue, it is possible to easily correct most of the coating defects.
In this case, the repair of torn linoleum is carried out as follows. First, you need to make a little preparation of the coating: gently clean the area of the upcoming gluing, sand the edges of the gap or cut with sandpaper to remove burrs from them, and then attach their edges to the floor using double-sided tape.
After completing this preparation, you can proceed to the main stage of work. To do this, squeeze the glue out of the tube and distribute it along the entire length of the gap. The glue is thick, so it will not spread over the outer layer of linoleum. The processed edges of the gap must be carefully connected and left to dry for the glue for a day. After this time, it is recommended to cut off the excess of hardened glue on the rupture line, and then mask the repaired area with a special mastic matched to the color of the coating.
Refreshing linoleum when burning
Probably, most often it has to be done by hookah lovers, and not only by them. The approach to solving the problem with a burnt coating depends on the depth of its damage. Small coals, as a rule, are capable of disturbing only the first two layers of linoleum - protective and decorative. Less often, the upper layer of the PVC base is also damaged, very rarely - when the coating burns through.
If only one transparent protective layer of linoleum is damaged by fire, when its pattern is not touched, the resulting defect after cleaning the burnt edges is practically invisible. And so that it does not stand out in the light as a dark spot, the border of damage can be slightly shaded with the edge of the coin. After that, the "burn" needs to be putty with a thin layer of linoleum mastic. In case of damage to the coating pattern and its base after removal of the burnt place, the burnt spot is very noticeable: this spot has dark edges and yellowness in the middle. Such a defect greatly spoils the appearance of the coating, especially when there are several such spots. In this case, it is possible to repair the linoleum, as in the case of its rupture, with the help of "cold welding" type-C glue.
In addition to it, you will need a pigment that matches the color from the store. Although you can make it yourself. To do this, you need to find a piece of the same linoleum, which is currently burnt on the floor. If this is difficult, try cutting it off from the floor covering somewhere inconspicuous - under a skirting board, for example.
Colored chips should be scraped off the outer surface of the found sample with a knife, collected and mixed with the repair mixture. With the finished composition, it is necessary to fill the burnt area of linoleum, and when the mixture hardens, you need to cut off its excess flush with the coating plane. As an additional measure, it is recommended to then treat the entire surface with a special wax.
If the linoleum burn through is through, you will have to put a patch on it. But in any case, it will be noticeable. Do not leave a hole in the coating. When water gets through it under the linoleum, a damp environment is formed, which promotes the multiplication of spores of fungus and mold. Therefore, when burning, linoleum repair is required.
The work is carried out in the following order:
- You need to pick up a suitable piece of linoleum and lay it on the burnt hole.
- Then, using a sharp knife, cut through the patch material and floor covering so that the defective surface is located inside the closed cut line. As a result, you should get a hole that is identical in shape to the cut out patch.
- After that, lifting the linoleum, you need to carefully glue the edge of the hole to the base, and then connect the joints of the patch and the holes with "cold welding".
- After the adhesive has polymerized, its excess at the seam must be cut off flush with the floor covering.
In addition to all the above repair methods, small defects in linoleum can be masked with applications, that is, contrasting patches in the form of roses, butterflies and other things can be glued onto the coating, creating a certain pattern. Then these places are usually covered with a special linoleum varnish. Everything turns out to be quite touching and original. How to restore linoleum - watch the video:
[media = https://www.youtube.com/watch? v = rlxLV7YdnO8] That's all. We wish you more creative ideas and less trouble. And even if spoiled linoleum does not create any special problems now, the more you already know how to get rid of them. Good luck!
