If you’re looking for a cheaper alternative to wood or ceramic flooring options for your bathroom remodel, then look at vinyl plank flooring. Vinyl plank flooring is simple to install, but you might wonder how to cut vinyl plank flooring around toilet?
In this article, we’re going to talk about how to cut vinyl plank flooring around toilet, so you know exactly what to do when you install vinyl floorboards in your bathroom.
There are seven steps to cutting a vinyl plank floor around your toilet:
Lay the underlayment down on the existing floor
Lay a large sheet of paper down on your bathroom floor around your toilet
Trace the outline of your bathroom toilet on the large sheet of paper
Place planks around your toilet to make sure that you lay down enough to cover your toilet
Trace the shape of your bathroom toilet on the planks
Cut the shape out
Seal your toilet
These are the seven steps that you need to follow to properly cut vinyl plank flooring around your toilet. For a more in-depth look at these steps, keep reading!
How Do You cut Vinyl Floor around a Toilet?
If you’re installing vinyl plank flooring in your bathroom, you’re probably to the point of needing to cut the vinyl floor around your toilet. By following the steps below, you’ll be able to easily cut out the vinyl plank flooring and have it fit perfectly around your toilet.
1. Lay the Underlayment
The first thing that you should do is lay down the underlayment and measure the shape of your toilet. The best way to cut out your underlayment is to cut out half of the round shape of your toilet from one piece of underlayment and the other half from another sheet. Then, slide those two pieces together around the base of your toilet to fit up against each other and tape them into place.
It’s very important that you make sure that the underlayment doesn’t overlap.
Lay a large sheet of paper down on the floor around your toilet. Make sure that the paper fits around your toilet and tape it down to the floor. This piece of paper will also be used to indicate the distance of your toilet from the last row of vinyl plank flooring that you’ve installed. Cut the paper where it meets the end of the vinyl flooring you’ve already installed.
3. Trace Around Your Toilet
Use a pencil to trace around your toilet on the sheet of paper you’ve laid down on the floor. You’ll use this to draw the shape of your toilet on the vinyl plank flooring to ensure a proper cut.
4. Put Together Some Vinyl Planks
Click some pieces of your luxury vinyl plank flooring together, making sure that you have enough to fit the base of your toilet. You should also add a few planks for added stability while you cut. Once you have a sheet of planks together, take the paper you traced the outline of the toilet on and tape it down to the sheet of planks.
5. Trace the Shape on the Planks
Using a pencil, trace against the lines you’ve drawn on the paper to indicate where the toilet will go on the planks.
6. Cut the Shape Out
For the next vinyl plank flooring step, carefully cut along the outline that you’ve just drawn on the sheet of vinyl plank flooring with a utility knife. After you’ve cut out the shape, you can place the vinyl bathroom flooring down around your toilet.
7. Seal the Toilet
To prevent moisture from leaking into the vinyl plank flooring and destroying it, you should seal the cracks along the toilet’s base using silicone caulk.
Conclusion
Vinyl plank flooring is incredibly easy to install and can easily be installed around your toilet. By following the steps above, you’ll have installed and cut vinyl plank flooring around your toilet without any issues. Vinyl plank flooring is great in bathrooms because it’s extremely durable, waterproof, and is designed to withstand a lot of wear and tear.
You also won’t have to do much maintenance to vinyl plank flooring, which is always a huge plus. But if you take good care of your flooring, then you can expect it to last anywhere between five to 25 years.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Can You Put a Toilet on Vinyl Plank Flooring?
When installing vinyl plank flooring around your toilet, the best practice is to put the toilet on top of the flooring; this goes for all flooring types. Not only will this make the flooring look better, but it also makes it so the weight of the toilet isn’t held by the pipes alone but also by the flooring.
What is the Best Tool to Cut Vinyl Plank Flooring?
The best tool to cut vinyl plank flooring is a utility knife, also known as a box cutter. The best method for cutting vinyl plank flooring is to use the utility knife to score the vinyl plank and then folding the piece along the score line until it snaps off.
Do I Have to Remove the Toilet to Install Vinyl Plank Flooring?
Before you start installing vinyl plank flooring, you need to make sure that you’ve removed all of the old flooring from the bathroom floor. In most instances, you’ll need to remove the toilet from your bathroom to install the flooring. You’ll need to do this if the subfloor is unlevel, so you can fix the low spots with a self-leveling product or grind down or sand high spots.
It’s also a good idea to remove the toilet when installing vinyl plank flooring because you can then install the toilet on top of the flooring, which makes it look nicer and takes the weight off the pipes.
