Your floors need special protection when undergoing remodeling, during new development, moving heavy furniture or equipment, and for different events past day-to-day use. Protecting flooring makes sense and saves money. A spill of paint, the drop of a hammer, a scratch from heavy furniture can value thousands of dollars in replacement and repair costs. This article describes surface protection products for floors as a way to make informed choices on the very best product to make use of on your needs.
Types of Protection Packaging:
Floor protection products are commonly packaged as either:
(1) Products by the roll: These embrace frequent adhesive films, rolled paper products and rolled textile protection. Protective materials bought by the roll are commonly measured in thickness by mils (e.g., 2.5 mils thick up to forty eight mils thick).
(2) Products by the sheet: These embody corrugated plastic, masonite, and other rigid protection. Protective supplies purchased by the sheet are commonly measured in thickness by the inch (e.g., 1/4-inch thick) and usually come as 4 ft by 8 feet.
Type of Flooring Protection:
Paper
Paper protection is suitable for all hard surfaces and resilient surfaces however does not work well to protect carpets as it can tear when flexing under footsteps. Paper products are breathable so that glue fumes and cement curing vapors can escape. One disadvantage to paper products as they require tapes to secure them to flooring and tapes can often depart adhesive residue when removed. Frequent paper protection products embrace:
· Kraft paper is a lightweight brown paper that is inexpensive however does not afford any impact protection and might easily tear
· Scrim paper may incorporate coatings or reinforcements to make them water resistant as well as scrim threads to reinforce the paper and stop tearing. These improved papers are longer lasting than common Kraft paper or rosin paper nevertheless they’re also too thin to supply much impact protection.
· Rosin paper is thicker than Kraft paper and may be very low cost. Rosin paper is recycled, felt paper that ranges from 9.zero to 11.5 mils thick. The large drawback of using Rosin paper is that it may cause a permanent stain if the paper gets wet. Rosin paper can even rip easily so it not normally really helpful for use
· Corrugated cardboard rolls or sheets can be used to protect flooring. Corrugate provides impact protection nonetheless it isn’t coated with a waterproof finish and ought to be kept dry at all times in order that it doesn’t disintegrate. Cardboard products are additionally available as single-, double-, and triple-walled corrugated cardboard sheets or as a fan-folded stack.
Polyethylene Film
Polyethylene (PE) films are sold as self adhesive rolled films varying from 2.zero up to 3.5 mils in thickness. They trap any moisture from escaping in order that they shouldn’t be used on any floors which are curing. Two of the good benefits of polyethylene films are that films will flex and contour to allow them to be used on carpets as well as hard surfaces. These films do not offer any impact protection and are normally rated for brief time period use of 30 to 90 days only. Polyethylene films are designed for one-time use and do not use recycled materials making them a poor selection in maintainable protection. Protection films are available in a variety of adhesion “tack”. Hard surface protection films will have a lower tack and color than carpet protection which wants a more aggressive glue to hold onto carpet fibers successfully.
Wood Products
Plywood and Masonite are commonly used as protection on commercial projects with lots of foot traffic. Masonite is a wood product made from wood fibers unlike plywood which is an actual sheet of thin wood. Both plywood and Masonite are sold in the standard measurement of four feet by 8 toes and are more expensive per sq. foot than paper or polyethylene products. Masonite is commonly 1/eight or 1/4 inch thick. Plywood is commonly 1/4 inch to 3/4 inch thick. Both products provide impact protection on a wide range of floor types and provide adequate protection towards heavy equipment use or furniture moving. Each plywood and Masonite are breathable and reusable nevertheless they’re bulky to carry and store. These wood sheets ought to be used on prime of a softer protection such as a rolled textile as they easily scratch flooring. These sheets work well to protect carpet as they stop wrinkles when rolling heavy loads over the carpet. Plywood and Masonite don’t supply moisture protection and will be harder to chop to dimension than other protection types.
Textile Products
Textile products are commonly manufactured from recycled cloth. In addition, these rolled protection products typically have added benefits reminiscent of skid resistant backings or breathable plastic liners. For wood floors, these specialty textile rolls are highly really useful as they’re breathable, skid resistant, reusable, usually leakproof and easy to cut to size.
To be able to get hold of the full benefits of utilizing surface protection, proper application is a must. The floors ought to be clean (vacuumed or swept) previous to covering with the protection products. The proper alternative of protection ought to be made in order that moisture shouldn’t be trapped on floors that are nonetheless curing. Trapping moisture can cause a full product failure and will invalidate a wood floor manufacturer’s warranty. For heavy site visitors or loads, a number of protection layers may be needed.
In abstract, there are lots of choices in temporary floor protection available today. When selecting a protection product, it is smart to consider the cost, period needed, breathability and potential to reuse the product. Successful floor protection also consists of proper set up and preparation of the floor. Always observe the manufacturer’s advice to be used so the potential for adhesive switch is avoided. Protecting valuable floors is a wise funding in time and money. Surface protection specialists are also available that will help you choose the best floor protection for your needs.
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