How To Remove Sheet Vinyl Over Wood Safely | Columbia MO

Safely removing a vinyl floor is a project many handy homeowners can do themselves. Pulling up linoleum just takes a little common sense and a few safety precautions.

After all the baseboards are removed you’re ready to start pulling up the vinyl floor. Many people
Will use a circular saw set about 1/4” deep to cut through the vinyl and underlayment in one step. While this works it also makes a mess. Using a hammer, pry bar and utility knife makes the job easy and a lot less messy.

We start by finding an existing hole in the floor, in our case a heat register. I’ll slip the pry bar in between the underlayment and subfloor and start prying. It usually doesn’t take long to find a seam in the underlayment and that’s where I’ll run the knife blade. Once the vinyl is cut through at the seam the underlayment will pull up easily.

Be careful of the staples that will pull up with the underlayment as they can hurt you. Also be aware that as you lift the underlayment up it will want to spring back down until all the nails are removed. If you must let go of it, let it down first. Don’t just drop it. Nails will go through your shoe if you aren’t careful.

A multi saw is a great tool to use to get the last pieces out from under door jambs. It won’t take much to cut through the staples and then the piece will slip right out.

Once all the underlayment and vinyl has been removed you will need to set the remaining staples down with a hammer. You could pull the staples out but that’s a lot more work. Just don’t waste a hammer blow on your hand. It hurts twice (the wasted energy and the pain!).

I hope this video has been a help to you on your demolition project. Comment below with your technique. Don’t forget to subscribe to our channel.

ejflooring.com
facebook.com/ejflooring
instagram.com/ejflooring