Flooring Installation

We open with substrate evaluation: slab flatness (1/8" in 10' for tile, 3/16" in 10' for LVP), moisture content (under 4 lbs/1000 sq ft/24 hr for glue-down LVP, under 3 lbs for engineered hardwood), and crack mapping. Demo and dispose of existing flooring. Subfloor patch and self-level where flatness fails. Install crack-isolation membrane under tile, vapor barrier under hardwood and LVP where slab moisture warrants. Acclimate flooring per manufacturer (typically 48–72 hours on site). Install per manufacturer spec — tile with thinset and 1/16" or 1/8" grout joint, LVP with click-lock or glue-down per system, hardwood with floating or glue-down assembly. Single room: 2–3 days. Whole-home: 1–3 weeks.

Slab moisture is the most-ignored issue — Arizona slabs without vapor barriers below them continuously transmit moisture vapor, and an unprotected glue-down installation will fail within 1–3 years. Slab cracks telegraph through tile if a crack-isolation membrane is skipped — common on slab-on-grade homes where minor settlement is normal. Hollow-sounding tile from inadequate mortar coverage (less than 80% bond) cracks under load. LVP buckling at room transitions when expansion gaps are skipped. We avoid all four with proper prep and manufacturer-spec installation.

Tile installation per ANSI A108 with TCNA-compliant thinset (modified for porcelain). Crack-isolation membranes: Schluter Ditra (ANSI A118.12) for tile over slab. LVP per manufacturer spec — Coretec, Shaw, Mohawk waterproof systems. Engineered hardwood from major manufacturers (Mirage, Mohawk, Shaw) with vapor mitigation when moisture exceeds 3 lbs. Grout: polymer-modified or epoxy as wet-area scope requires. All work warrantied under ROC #349454 plus manufacturer warranty pass-through.