How to update linoleum, spending no more than 1000 rubles

Many of us still have linoleum in our apartments. If you don’t have the money to replace it with laminate or parquet, or you simply don’t have the strength to make a full-fledged renovation, you can update the floor on a budget and without spending a lot of time on it. I will tell you exactly how in this article.

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The most effective remedy is wet cleaning. Most often, to return linoleum shine, it is enough just to thoroughly wash it. For this purpose, both self-prepared means and purchased ones are suitable.

1. Dilute milk with water in a 1: 1 ratio, the resulting solution should be slightly warm. Thoroughly wash the linoleum with it.
2. A decoction of potatoes will restore the lost shine to the flooring. To do this, boil a few potatoes for 30-45 minutes, drain the water, cool and rub the linoleum.
3. Among the purchased soft floor cleaning products, Forbo is the most popular. It must be diluted with slightly warm water in a ratio of 1:10, if the linoleum is very heavily contaminated, a high concentration is permissible - 1: 3. Apply the resulting solution to the floor and leave for 15-25 minutes, then rub with a soft brush or sponge and rinse with plenty of water.

The above products are well suited for washing linoleums made from natural materials (their composition: wood flour, linseed oil, pine resin, limestone powder, natural dyes).

If you have artificial turf (polyvinyl chloride), you need to use more active products.

1. Add some liquid soap or dishwashing detergent to the same milk solution.
2. Add 100 ml of vodka or 50 ml of alcohol to 1 liter of room temperature water with detergent, mix everything well. Rub especially tarnished areas with the resulting product and leave for 15-30 minutes, then rinse well with water and wipe dry.
3. Grate laundry soap on a coarse grater and dissolve it in 10 liters of water. With the resulting solution, use a brush to thoroughly scrub the floor, removing all visible dirt.

The following methods are good for removing various stains from the surface of linoleum:

• Dishwashing detergent, applied for 10-15 minutes, and then rinsed with water, perfectly copes with drops of fat.
• Black stripes left by shoes that are difficult to remove can be dealt with with a regular eraser. It is enough for them to rub the soiled place. You can also get rid of them with a solvent or gasoline applied to cotton wool.

Restoration of old linoleum with professional means

Sometimes it is often not enough to simply wash the floors, even with the help of prepared or factory products. In such cases, it is worth resorting to more effective methods. One of the most radical is the use of various mastics, which include wax. Before applying it, it is important to properly prepare the surface:

• first treat the linoleum with a stripper (a moderately alkaline low-foam agent, for example INTERCHIM 101, costs about 800 rubles per 5 liters), it will help get rid of accumulated dirt and remove old mastic.
• then take a polish and pour in small puddles 2 meters apart, which are then spread with a soft brush or mop throughout the linoleum.

To make the unevenness on the floor less noticeable, apply the product perpendicular to the window, which gives maximum sunlight.

The number of layers depends on how badly the linoleum is damaged, you may need 5-6. It is worth waiting about 30-40 minutes between each layer before applying the next one.

There are special machines on sale that help to more evenly distribute the means for rubbing the floor, but due to their high cost, not everyone can afford them.In addition, you can use a special mechanism for polishing the floor only on natural linoleums, they are not used for artificial ones.

After applying the last, final layer, leave the room to dry completely overnight (10-12 hours), only after that you can use the linoleum again.

Eliminating Serious Damage

To mask deep scratches, buy a putty (for 200 rubles 1.4 kg), which is most suitable in color to the color of linoleum. Using a wooden or other stick, apply the product to the crack in the coating, leave for a while (indicated on the package) to dry completely. Then take a fine sandpaper and smooth the surface, removing any excess filler. Only after these repairs can the floor polish be applied.

If a part of the linoleum has come off, but at the same time the defect is almost invisible from above, you should proceed as follows: remove the dirt and treat the lower part of the torn piece with any degreasing agent (for example, gasoline or solvent), grease it well with glue and attach it to the defect, press down on top with a load for better fixation. It is important to ensure that there are no dents when pressing, otherwise the appearance of the coating will deteriorate. After the glue has dried, wax the coating to make such localized repairs less noticeable.

If significant defects appear on the linoleum, cut out the damaged area and replace it with a similar one. Of course, if you kept the remnants of the coating after the repair, they did not throw it away. For a better fit, degrease and then attach the patch. After that, you can also treat the linoleum with wax.

If there is no piece that is suitable in size and color, you can replace it with an unsuitable one. But in order for the replacement to look harmonious, come up with a curly insert that will look like a design element and not stand out from the general concept of repair.

Prices for linoleum restoration products