LVT stands for Luxury Vinyl Tile - sometimes also referred to as Luxury Vinyl Plank. It's a flooring product that looks like real wood and/or stone flooring, but provides many practical benefits. Available in a range of shapes, sizes and images, this helps create an authentic looking floor in your home, without some of the drawbacks of authentic, natural products.

LVT is made up of a series of layers:

1st Layer: The first layer is referred to as a Wear Layer. Most common wear layers are made of a urethane or aluminum oxide and can range in thicknesses of 6mil - 30mil. The wear layer protects the vinyl. The higher the wear layer, the more protection it adds to the product. A commercial grade wear layer is 20mil, which you'll find a lot of our products to be. 

2nd Layer: Under the wear layer, you'll find the image/graphic that mimics that of real stone or wood. Every product has a different image/graphic with different variant levels. Since it is an image/graphic, you may find a repeat pattern every 6 or 8 planks. This depends on the manufacturer, but you're installer should install planks in a patterned methodology so no one plank is touching the same style plank.

3rd Layer: The third layer is referred to as the "core," and there are three main types of LVT Flooring cores: PVC, WPC, and SPC. PVC is mainly a vinyl core, and is also the first generation of LVT flooring. WPC is made up of wood, plastics, and vinyl. WPC has added stability compared to the first generation PVC cores and are generally softer underneath the foot. One of the newest core technologies is referred to as the SPC core. It is made up of stone, plastics and vinyl. SPC is the densest of the three cores, which makes for a very durable flooring that's ideal for both residential and commercial applications. 

4th Layer: The fourth layer is an attached underlayment. Not all LVT floorings come with an attached underlayment, but many do. It's an added benefit for a few different reasons. The underlayment provides extra comfort underfoot, helps reduce sound for homes or spaces with two or more stories, and overall it improves the life of your floor. Attached underlayments can be made up of different types of materials, depending on the manufacturer. But all are created to accomplish the same thing. 

LVT Flooring Installation: LVT flooring includes three different types of installation: Floating/Click-Lock, Glue Down, or looselay. Always install you flooring according to manufacturer guidelines. You can find each product's installation guidelines in their product descriptions on our website. 

For more information, contact one of our flooring experts! Email info@hiflooringsolutions.com