FLOORING & FLOORCARE
IOBAC’s Ezy-Install magnetic rubber underlay goes down very easily
A compressed board laminate underlay was laid over the subfloor in order to raise the height slightly
As with any more traditional flooring, the planks are staggered and cut to length
The only tools required to lay the Ezy-Install flooring is a measure, Stanley Knife and Mawboards
Underlay in place complete with protective covering ready to have the floor covering
INSET: A curved blade is used to cut the planks
The end result provides a good looking and professional finish
magnetic backing they are heavier than a laminate plank, but being made mainly from vinyl they are more flexible and lot easier and cleaner to cut. This is one of the factors that really helps to speed up the installation, as the planks are simply scored a couple of times on top using a Stanley knife with a curved blade, before being snapped and then finally cut through from the back to leave a clean edge. This is the same method used for the long edges that fit up to the skirting boards or walls. All lengths were measured and cut with the help of Mawboard specialist flooring tools, which really help to get an accurate measurement and professional cut. There is lot less mess than when cutting wood or laminate and also less chance of chipping or damage during the process. I also found there was less waste as well, as the flooring is easier to work with and get right first time. This is also helped by the fact that the flooring is free laid without any requirement for joints, so more of the offcuts can be utilised.
The planks are easily laid down
on to the underlay and there is a fair amount of grab afforded by the magnetism. The secret to getting a clean, gap free finish is to really push each plank hard up against the previous one and almost ‘click’ it
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into place, something that becomes easier with practice.
Just like any other hard floor,
the planks should be staggered and once in place they provide a very professional looking finish. I took my time cutting around the door frames, in order to get them as tight as possible, just filling in any remaining gaps with some flexible caulk, which worked well and looks good.
End result I’ve put down various types of flooring over the years, but none have been as quick, easy and clean to work with as IOBAC’s Ezy- Install. The whole process is very simple and the magnetic system provides an easy way to obtain a very professional finish. The rubber underlay also provides some cushioning and insulation, so the floor has a softer and warmer feel, which is ideal for a bedroom. It also has some sound deadening properties, which again makes the room quieter with less echoing. Another benefit is that you can
take the planks up again very easily, whether that’s to repair or replace damage, something that takes a lot of work and effort to do with a more traditional hardwood or laminate floor, for access to the subfloor, or possibly to change the flooring
altogether, which helps make Ezy- Install a very environmentally- friendly option indeed. I found this particularly useful when installing a new threshold as I’d left the planks slightly too long and had to trim them back. Being able to just lift them, trim and replace was an absolute boon and made the whole process super easy. I’m really pleased with the end
result of this flooring installation. The fit and finish is excellent and it has provided a good looking and comfortable floor covering which should also prove hard-wearing and easy to maintain.
Further features
Another advantage of the Ezy- Install solution is that once the underlay is down, magnetic tiles, including timber, ceramic and LVT can be laid directly, or standard backed tiles, including carpet and +4mm LVT, can be fitted using IOBAC’s MagTabs. Therefore the whole floor can be changed easily to match new décor. IOBAC also offers an energy-
efficient and cost-effective heated flooring
solution which was
developed to overcome some of the issues commonly associated with conventional electric mats and
water-based underfloor heating systems. Crucially, this JANUARY 2021 DIY WEEK 13
is non-disruptive, so there’s no disturbance to existing pipe and/ or electric systems and adjusting floor height isn’t an issue as the product is just 0.5mm thick. On top of that, it’s easy to remediate by simply removing the floor tile and underlay. This special heated version of the Ezy-Install Underlay utilises super-conducting graphene technology to create an efficient underfloor heating solution. The heated
Ezy-Install underlay is
simply laid as before, connected to a power source in the skirting board and magnetic flooring tiles are installed on top. These latest products from IOBAC certainly offer something new and innovative to the flooring product category and I’m sure they will be become a popular DIY solution once customers are aware of the many benefits they offer.
• For more information on IOBAC’s Ezy-Install and magnetic flooring, or if you are interested in becoming a reseller, please email:
sales@floorplay.info
• For more information about IOBAC’s technologies please visit the company’s website at:
www.iobac.com
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