Plastic floors are made of PVC plastic and are available in two finishes. The first type is an adhesive carpet and the second is vinyl flooring, also called LVT (Luxury Vinyl Tiles) or SPC (Stone Plastic Composite).
As early as 2002, our sister company Välinge Innovation AB invented and patented this type of plastic flooring, manufactured as planks with click joints. LVT has a softer core of PVC mixed with non-plastic filler material and SPC has a similar but stiffer core.
Vinyl floors often have attractive patterns resembling wood. The surface consists of a printed decorative PVC foil and a protective wear layer, usually a durable polyurethane lacquer. High-quality vinyl floors have two wear layers, a thin transparent PVC foil and a protective layer of polyurethane lacquer. When the lacquer is worn down, the floor will be damaged if the transparent foil is missing. Durability increases significantly when there is a transparent foil, but the transparent PVC surface becomes stain-sensitive if the lacquer layer is worn away. However, high-quality vinyl flooring generally has good durability and lasts a long time in home environments.
Another advantage is that many vinyl floors, especially LVT, are soft and quiet to walk on. They are also thin, facilitating installation over an existing floor.
Vinyl floors are marketed as being moisture-proof, but this is not entirely accurate. While both the surface and the core are moisture-proof, there is still a mechanical joint that can allow water to pass through to the subfloor. We have developed new moisture-proof click joints for vinyl floors, but they are not yet available on the market.