National Floor Covering Association (NFCA) of Canada is pleased to welcome Tramex as a new National Education Leader, sponsoring and supporting quality assurance and best practices in Canada’s floor covering industry. https://tramexmeters.com/
Professional salespeople ensure that their clients’ expectations are accurately set with good sampling. The alternative… the client will set their own often unrealistic expectations. Result… client dissatisfaction, holdbacks, restocking fees and wasted time (literally months with today’s supply chain challenges) stuck getting the project back on track. Wood flooring products, in particular, can have a wide range of color across the spectrum from ‘clear’ (cle […]
Expansion gaps matter but are so often overlooked when installing moisture or temperature sensitive floor covering products. Wood, laminate & LVT floating floors expand and contract as site conditions (relative humidity and temperature) change through the four-season cycle. T-Caps, overlap nosings and transition strips are designed as a finishing detail (for doorways, stair landings etc.) to cover necessary expansion spaces that enable seasonal movement. T-Caps and other ove […]
It’s not just mix, pour and go! Prior to pouring Hydraulic Cement Underlayment (HCU), test the slab for correct surface temperature, water absorbency and contaminants. Conduct ASTM moisture tests, confirm a concrete surface profile (CSP) of 3, remove all dust, apply primer, mix HCU product with correct water ratio, paddle revolutions per minute and for the correct length of time. Once poured, if in doubt, perform a Mat Bond (Pull) test using a 3’x3’ piece of the scheduled […]
Are you wondering how to finish resilient (vinyl, rubber, linoleum) flooring over construction joints on your project? No one wants the ugly cover plate solution that sits proud (high) of the flooring, adds a trip hazard, maintenance issues and interferes with rolling loads. Yet concrete construction joints are a necessary part of slab placement and must be honoured through the floor covering system (including any cementitious underlayment) due to independent slab movement which stresses the flo […]
Successful construction requires everyone to be on the same page. Getting on that page starts early and must be supported with correct specifications. To this end National Floor Covering Association (NFCA) is pleased to have worked with the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) to align the Resilient Flooring specification sections in the Canadian National Master Construction Specification (NMS) with NFCA standards for general use. This important update makes the latest information available […]
So much of what effects the floor covering installation at the end of a build happens in the early stages when slabs are poured. One example that leads to a common problem is the installation of drains in wet areas such as shower stalls and kitchens. Drains, including clean outs, trench drains and grease traps must be specified correctly to ensure long term flooring performance. Once installed, these mechanical components are not easy to replace as they are set into concrete. Therefore, specifyi […]
Avoid the problems, start the conversation early. Concrete slab flatness and preparation are critical to avoid delays when delivering a quality product. Minor discrepancies in new or existing subfloor surfaces can be adjusted by using patching compounds. This is considered, within reason, part of the flooring contractor’s work. Where discrepancies do not meet NFCA or floor covering manufacturers tolerances (Straight Edge Method, 3/16” over 10’), floor levels must be corrected by grin […]
Are you managing the risk or rolling the dice? Just because a concrete slab is 20 years old doesn’t mean it’s dry. Sure, it’s likely to be dry, but anyone who says it IS without proper testing, will do so until they are told to put it in writing and accept full responsibility for any floor covering issues that may develop later. Floor coverings and related materials such as leveling cements and adhesives can be negatively affected by moisture present in a slab. Bond failure, bubbles, […]
Installers beware! SPC flooring is simultaneously strong, fragile and not as forgiving as LVT or Laminate when installing. While SPC flooring comes with durability benefits, it also presents challenges that installers should consider when planning an installation. Extra care when engaging the locking joint, understanding its weaknesses & how to tap it together will make the difference between a satisfied client and just another claim.The tell-tale ski jump (in this photo) at the bu […]
Being clear about who is responsible for what when it comes to sub-floor preparation is not easy considering the endless scenarios that can present on site involving surface flatness, porosity, contaminants removal, profile, etc. When specified, NFCA minimum industry standards help to remove the confusion. The following is an excerpt from ‘PART A12 Substrate Preparation’ of the Floor Covering Reference Manual, which helps to clarify related trade scope of work for the floor covering […]
Right trowel notch size, right coverage. To ensure a long term successful bond of the floor covering product (in this case sheet resilient) to the subfloor surface, it is important to use the recommended adhesive in strict accordance with the floor covering and adhesive manufacturers installation guidelines.For example, trowel notches that are too large will place too much adhesive which can lead to trowel-marks showing through the material and/or excessive indentations (as seen in this image). […]
‘Minimal Prep’…part of the problem! Resilient (vinyl, rubber, linoleum) flooring tends to follow every contour of a substrate, essentially forming a skin. Joints, cracks, depressions, protrusions, and seemingly insignificant imperfections on a substrate surface may telegraph through and become very obvious after the product is installed. ‘Minimal prep’ is an overused term in flooring that creates ambiguity in the process of preparing a subfloor. A preferred alternative is to reference availabl […]
In-floor, hot water (hydronic) radiant heat systems work well with hardwood floors when site conditions are managed according to manufacturers’ recommendations. The opposite is true when conditions are not managed properly. Ambient relative humidity; air, surface and product temperature; subfloor and product moisture content, all must be maintained within specific ranges. Thermostat temperature controls for rooms must be connected to regulate heat 24/7. Without proper management and site control […]
Flooring systems can be complex, involving concrete slabs, moisture barriers, primers, leveling cements, adhesive and finally a floor covering product. Multiple products are often used to complete one flooring system and so the risk of being caught up in a question of failure between two unrelated manufacturers is likely. With fewer manufacturers involved in a system, there’s less chance of finger pointing and dispute if an issue arises. For example, switching products like adhesives from the or […]
Floors installed in poor lighting get inspected after installation in good lighting. This increases the likelihood of deficiencies, complaints and hold backs. Quality of workmanship depends on a number of factors, one of them being adequate lighting on site. Work Safe regulations separate different tasks/trades and designate onsite lighting requirements accordingly. All flooring installation work, for example, is in the same lighting category as ‘finish carpentry’ and therefore requi […]
NFCA in Print: Here’s our latest Coverings Magazine article – NFCA reflects on a year of success. https://bit.ly/2sMN6hd […]
Hospitals and mold DON’T mix, which underlines the importance of ensuring correct site conditions exist prior to floor covering installation. The NFCA commercial floor inspection service (Quality Assurance Program) protects building owners from the process of fast track construction which so often overlooks critically important details such as slab dryness, flatness, temperature, porosity, surface profile, approved testing to ASTM standards, and who should take those tests under contract, correc […]
National Floor Covering Association (NFCA) of Canada welcomes Armstrong Flooring as a new member supporting quality assurance and best practices in Canada’s floor covering industry. www.armstrongflooring.com […]
For the most part, building owners have no idea who is going to show up on site to install their flooring. This is not the case when NFCA is specified along with the Quality Assurance Program third party inspection service. As part of NFCA’s membership requirement, all NFCA member contractors must be able to provide Trade or Product qualified installers in accordance with PART A05 TRADE QUALIFICATIONS of the Floor Covering Reference Manual of Canada. They must also be able to provide their […]
The gap between Division 3 Concrete and Division 9 Finishes (flooring) is a terrible place to be for the General Contractor, Flooring Contractor, Consultant and Developer when connecting the divisions isn’t properly planned. For years, the construction industry has dealt with this issue by avoiding it until the flooring contractor arrives on site to reject (quite rightly) an unacceptable surface. Now what? Short cuts, arguments and threats of litigation for non-performance! For this […]
Seam sealer (adhesive) prevents cut carpet seams from unravelling after installation and is required according National Floor Covering Association (NFCA) specification, The Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) 104/105 standards and Manufacturer installation guidelines for warranty purposes. To save installation time, seam sealer is often not applied by the installer which leads to the problems such as shown in this image. Seams will quickly unravel in exposed areas as they are constantly tested by vac […]
Correcting concrete slab surfaces prior to floor covering installation requires time and money and is outside the scope of work for the trade of ‘Floor Covering installer’. This work can however, be taken on as a billable extra. The following is an excerpt from the NFCA Floor Covering Reference Manual regarding this… 2. The General Contractor (GC) shall provide a substrate surface acceptable for the installation of specified flooring materials. Unless otherwise defined by local trade jurisdict […]
National Floor Covering Association (NFCA) specifications for each flooring category (Carpet, Resilient, Hardwood, Laminate) include a pre-installation site meeting, and a review of the following; product acclimation requirements, indoor environmental conditions, moisture and alkalinity testing, sub-floor flatness requirements, bond testing, mock-up, installer certification and contractor bonding. All this takes place months before the floor installation starts allowing the General Contractor ti […]
Done once, done right. No ambiguity, no disputes on site – 30 storey tower, concrete construction, all suspended slabs left 3/8″ shy of finished height with a rough Concrete Surface Profile (CSP) of 5 or 6 (note: an open rough surface profile also facilitates slab drying). Hydraulic Cement Underlayment (3/8″ topping) planned and budgeted for well in advance, primed and poured 4 months later to build the slab up to finished height. 10′ Straight Edge tests measured 1/16″ over 10′ (2mm over 3m) eve […]