My old boss in Phoenix told me to always use a full trowel for glue-down vinyl plank, even on flat concrete.

He said a skim coat would fail within a year. So for like 3 years, I did it that way, dealing with the extra mess and squeeze-out. Then I got a job on a big commercial site where the GC's spec sheet specifically called for a 1/16 inch x 1/16 inch notch trowel on their perfectly leveled slab. I was nervous but followed the spec. That was over 18 months ago, and I just drove by that building last week. Zero callbacks, zero issues. Now I'm second-guessing everything I was taught. Was my boss just stuck in his ways, or is the full spread still the right call for residential jobs with less perfect subfloors? What trowel do you guys reach for first on a glue-down LVP install?

2 comments

2 Comments

cameron76311d ago

That part about second-guessing everything you were taught really hits home. I see this in so many fields, not just flooring. Someone learns one way to do a thing, it works, and it just becomes the law. They pass it on as the only right way, often because of one bad experience years ago. Your story is the perfect proof that specs and materials change, and what was once a must-do can become overkill. A full trowel on a perfectly flat slab is probably just wasting glue and making a huge mess for no reason now.

jason_robinson11d ago

Spot on, @cameron763. See the same rigid thinking with home maintenance advice or even cooking, where old rules stick around long after the reason for them is gone.