Hi everyone!
Hope everyone is enjoying the new 2011! I'm here today to chat with you about the great new product that The Home Depot already sells, Trafficmaster Allure plank and tile flooring. While many on the community have posted questions and answers regarding the product, this post is just to inform everyone the many accessories that can further enhance your new floor. While most stores won't carry all these products, they all can be obtained via special ordering them with a reasonable lead time to get them into your hands for your project. These products aren't just for cosmetic purposes; they are for protection, maintenance, and repair of your Allure flooring. Lets get started with some related products that will make your Allure flooring more efficient, stronger, and more beautiful for years to come...
1. Basement Proofer/Sealer For Concrete Floors
2. Allure Self-Adhesive Molding Trim
5. Allure UnderTransition Strip (not pictured)
With these products, your Allure flooring now has virtually no limits to the construction, design and performance!
Regards,
aboveaveragejoe
Hi I would like to use the Allure in my kitchen and I am new to this--just learning.
Can you please again give the Link for the Installation instructions for the Allure ( not the Ultra--the regular Allure Flooring) ?
Also can you recommend a cetain cutting Shears perhaps from Home Depo that I can purchase which would work well to cut the Allure around some irregular objects in places where I cannot use the Utility knife on the Allure flooring? --I asked what would be good at my local Home Depot store and they suggested I ask here. --Thanks so much for your Help.
Hey there djer,
Welcome to our community!~
Great to hear you've chosen Allure = ) You shall not be disappointed.
First off, here is the link to the instruction manual you requested. This is for the original, grip-strip Allure, not the newer Ultra style.
As for the shears, I can tell you that QEP makes a shear, the QEP Multipurpose Vinyl Trim Shears, that may be what you are looking for. It's a product that's only available online however, and I have never personally used it so I can't attest for how it works out. I know that the standard Allure should be able to be cut down with heavy duty scissors which you can find in our hardware department, but again...all my cutting has been by knife alone.
Pray tell, what is it that you are trying to cut that you can't do with the knife? Perhaps we can think up a better way of approaching it = )
I was thinking of using the regular Allure ( not the Allure Ultra) in my Kitchen . I presently have old Congoleum Vinyl on the floor now. Can I put the Allure right over that old Congoleum Vinyl or do I need to remove it first?
Also is it necessary to really Roll the floor with a heavy roller when you complete. the job ?
--Thanks much for your help.
Hey djer,
Good to hear from you again! Did you happen to decide on your cutting tool yet?
You can certainly put the Allure flooring over your existing floor, granted that it is in good shape. By this I mean no large dings or dents, no missing pieces and no peeling. Also, if your floor is noticeably un-level, then you'll want to address this first. If your floor has never given you trouble before and it's firmly bonded to the subfloor below, then go right ahead!~
As for your other question about rolling the floor; I'll post a snippet from the install manual that I think captures the answer best:
To complete your installation of allure you have one final “step”—walk on the floor. The chemical bond between the upper lip, lower lip and adhesive will get strong and stronger as you apply more pressure — professional’s will roll the floor, home owners can simply walk on the floor. For best results use a floor roller.
So in short, you aren't required to...but it definitely helps in ensuring that you have the strongest bond possible. Most stores have a flooring roller available for rental through our Tool Rental Center. Make sure to contact your local store to see if they have them available.
Hope this helps you out!~ Please let us know how it turns out, and post up pictures of the job as you go. It would be great to see how it all comes together for you!~
--Thanks for your Comments. ---Is there another LINK for another Install Manual for the Allure?-- because I did not see those comments about " Walking on the Floor" as a " Final Step" in the previous install instruction Link I got.--Just thought that you were probably reading that comment from another Link -- I could see.
--- Also -- I noted that there are a few spots where my old Congoleum Vinyl is Not firmly
bonded to the floor below --its "curling up" for example near my sliding glass windows where there is no quarter round to hold it down. Is ther something I can do to fix this problem before installing the Allure---?--like suggest type of Product at Home Deo to glue it down?
--- Also Is it necessary to remove Dishwasher completely --I would like to avoid this
if possible.
Finally ---in the previous instructions I saw it mentions "A Speccial Note" about Allure TILE---that
the tile has 2 sets of Grout Lines----( inner and outer) which which I am not sure about---One
grout line (? the outer) is thicker than the inner grout line-( Not sure)----Can you clarify this a little for me and how to install the Tradional way of Lining up grout lines.
--Thanks again
Sure. Here is a link to the installation manual that I was reading through. You can read about the different subfloor types that Allure accepts on pg. 4 and they discuss the roller on both pg.8 and pg.11.
The spots that are curling up are concerning, especially since you mentioned that it's near the sliding glass door. Are you sure that it's only due to no quarter-round being down and not from possible moisture leaks? Check this area out well and make sure that the bottom side of the congoleum isn't wet still or that you don't feel any dampness.
It's difficult to offer you a good adhesive to use, because I'm not 100% sure on what adhesive they originally used to put the material down. Sometimes when adding a new solvent adhesive over old adhesive, the two don't mix well. I know that Roberts makes a very decent sheet vinyl adhesive, but unfortunately we don't carry it at Home Depot. Liquid Nails are kind of hit or miss as most don't recommend being used on vinyl. If however this area is curling up due to moisture, you may be better off removing the floor and making sure that it hasn't traveled further in. You'd only be asking for problems later on down the road by installing over it.
No, you can cut right up to the dishwasher with no problem.
As for the grout line question, I took a look through the installation manual that you were browsing and I also found their wording to be a bit confusing as well. I'm going to attempt to sum it up visually, so bare with me and please let me know if it's still confusing to you--
Okay, so above we have two pieces of the Allure Tile Flooring put together in what they refer to as Traditional. Basically you're just lining the planks up side by side, no staggering. The staggered version or Brick design I will post down below so that you can visualize that as well.
What they mean by inside and outside grout lines are that there is a "hidden" way of aligning the planks that makes the floor look more even and complete. Basically, when you look at the tile plank in front of you, you may notice that the exterior grout lines vary in thickness a bit. What they're calling for you to do is to line the thicker up with the thinner, so that you give it a much more even look. By placing thick against thick, you'll end up with a bigger grout line then is in some other areas. I highlighted the areas that I'm referring to with the arrows above.
In all due honesty, I have installed the Yukon Tan style in that picture before in a basement. While yes I do normally prefer to do everything by the book, I completely bypassed that step. I didn't feel like sorting through the planks making sure I had them flipped properly. The room turned out looking great and I can honestly say I don't notice a thing. So I'll leave that step up to you to decide on.
Oh, and here is the brick design as well. Note that I did leave spaces between the planks in this picture so that you can see where I end one and begin another, as denoted by the orange line in between them.
I hope this helps clarify it for you!~ = )
---Sorry---but would you mind giving me AGAIN that LINK you just mentioned above for the Manual for the Allure---
you were quoting from regarding the "walking on the floor comment"--I was Not able to Open up that Link you just gave ----it said " File was corrupted". Thanks
--- I have not decided but was thinking initially of using that Allure Tile GOLD pattern---which is Model # 216112 -- if you look at it. Anyway in the first instuctions for Allure I saw they mentioned to stagger the planks and they even show a picture of that staggering as well. --But if I want a Traditional look of lining up the Grout Lines using this GOLD Tile Pattern --then as I understand it--from your prior comment that there is No staggering of the 12 by 36 inch planks----Is This Correct ? If so , does this make for any future problem in lack of strength --bec all the seams line up without any staggering.
Hi again -- Thank You for the LINK with the Owners Maual for the Allure ! ( I was having my own computer problem with My Adobe and it would not Open--but Now I got that fixed so can read the Manual--so Thanks.)
AS i mentioned previously I have Old Congoleum on my kitchen floor right now.
There are a few area near the edges where there is no quarter round where its "curled" up a little.
One spot is near a window but there are a few other spots under Cabinets like that too-far removed from the sliding window. I checked underneath and there does Not appear to be any moisture problem in those spots--perhaps the old glue just gave way in a few spots. I can tell that attempting to glue those spots down would not probably work bec the old Congoleum is brittle and in fact did crack off a tiny
piece when I was checking the floor below.
Anyway do you think it would be OK to Trim off these small edged curled areas with a Utility knife and just patch those areas with some kind of leveler compound ---and then put the Allure down over the Old Congolleum floor. I was trying to avoid pulling up the old Congoleum . If so could you suggest some product sold at home depot.
--Thanks much
I am looking for the transition tape. Where do I purchase this item? I recently purchased Trafficmaster Allure Bamboo Dark 7113, SKU 488-107 flooring. Looks very nice but I need to change the direction of the kitchen to the laundry room. Please let me know. Thank you very much.
Hey grater,
Welcome to the community!
I'm not sure if you read the original posting I authored in this thread originally. As I wrote, to get this special kind of tape, you'll need to contact or come down to your local Home Depot's flooring specialist who can order it for you.
They can get this, as well as the other items shown in this thread above.
Regards,
aboveaveragejoe