UK Flooring Online are a web-based retailer of affordable garage floor tiles. Their Flexatile product is a 5mm thick pvc interlocking tile – ideal for use in garages. Installing a vinyl garage floor can brighten the room, make it a more comfortable place to be, but also impress your mates!

“I’m taking over the world one downstairs loo at a time,” said Louise Wakefield of Beware the Moon, the new design house she created in partnership with her dad. She contends that the feature wall has had its day: “Now I want to see my designs in completely papered tiny rooms, nice and busy, like wallpaper should be.”

Flooring plays a crucial role in small-space decorating. Long, narrow, striped or patterned rubber floor tiles can lengthen a hallway, and wide stripes make small  rooms look more spacious. Something on the lines of the modern classic studded rubber floor tiles (500mm x 500mm, £8.99; 085451 24 24 10, ukflooringonline.com). The truly adventurous looking to add sparkle to a dingy room should check out the new hammered-metal briquettes from De Ferranti in glowing gold (10cm x 30cm, £499 per sq metre; 020 7384 4424, deferranti.com). Or, perhaps, a silver floor in engineered oak from the Salsa collection by Tarkett (Silver Star, £60 per sq metre; 01622 854151, tarkett-floors.com).

‘Digital design plays an important role in looking for new visual options, as consumers and designers alike move towards digitally customizing their flooring. Computers allow innovative textures and shapes to be designed, a new form of aesthetic that cannot be created through traditional techniques,’ said Erno Nemeth of German floor manufacturer, Parador.

Recent trends have shown an increased individualization in interior and furniture design. Innovative printing of surfaces and components is becoming more popular in the Middle East. Leading sources say that manufacturers with digital production technology will play a key role in this growing trend.

There are an ever expanding range of materials and styles for modern consumers to choose from. Rubber Floor Tiles are just one such medium domestic buyers are turning to, and designers are looking to manipulate digitally to produce innovative floor solutions.

digital rubber floor tile design

However, the resilience of the underlay is also crucial in that it is no good being thick if the underlay flattens quickly in use.

There are a number of branded underlays on the market and your retailer may well stock some if not all of these. Remember underlay is essential to carpets in a number of ways

• It helps the carpet resist dynamic forces and assists in making the carpet more resilient, more springy underfoot.
• It helps insulate the floor reducing cold ingress and heat retention
• It helps reduce the impact of any subfloor imperfections on the look and wear characteristics of the carpet.
• It will help prolong the life expectancy of a carpet.

There are 4 types of underlay recognized under BS 5325. These are:
Felt usually made of fibres entangled or matted together. This is the traditional underlay that has been in use for many years. It tends to suffer from some natural settling over time and use.

Cellular formed essentially of a rubber or other polymeric foam. These are popular and have the advantage of lightness although the cheaper varieties will sag under heavy use. If this type is to be used it must be of good quality.

Composite Underlay composed of both fibrous and polymeric material.
Rubber crumb underlay composed of crumb rubber and often made from recycled car tyres
We do not recommend re-using existing underlay. A pre-used underlay may look unharmed but it will perform less well in protecting your carpet from wear and tear.

Not all flooring types require underlay of course. Studded rubber tiles are best adhered onto a clean, dry solid surface.

20% Of the flooring is infested with a fungus, making it unsafe for activity after the drains flooded. The village hall committee, which has looked after the building’s fabric and upheld its functions since about 1993, is prepared to rip out the floor themselves and pay up £3,000 from their savings.

They hope the Somerset Community Foundation will fund the rest of the £6,000 bill, but asked the council for their support and a token amount of money to help. The council agreed to donate £500 towards the cost. Perhaps the committee should consider a more practical flooring solution this time around like the pvc interlocking tiles or studded rubber tiles that UK Flooring Online offer. Either way we hope the village hall is up and running again in the near future.

Warm and quiet to walk over, rubber flooring is now obtainable in a variety of coloured and shaped tiles or room length rolls. The tiles are not usually sealed, but some have a protective layer of wax. This coating can be removed with white spirit once laid.
Rubber is a resilient surface covering, easy to cut and suitable for areas where complicated cuts have to be made.

Once you have decided on the tile, note its length and width and measure the room carefully. Measure its length and divide it by the length of one tile. Round up the number of tiles to the next whole number. Now measure the width of the room and divide that by the width of the tile, round up the number of tiles to the nearest whole number. Multiply the two whole numbers together. This will give the number of tiles required to tile the room.

It is always sensible to purchase several extra tiles to store as spares in the case of accidental damage later on.

Use the adhesive recommended by the manufacturer or supplier, as some require flooring adhesive, contact adhesive or self-adhesive methods. Follow the instructions vigilantly and take care to lay the first tile correctly, as its location will determine the position of all the other tiles on the floor.

Use a strip of wood nailed to the floor to give a straight edge to guide the positioning of the tiles. Use a spirit level to check the horizontal level and a straight edge to continually check the position of the tiles on the floor. Progress across the room and work towards the door. Then remove the battens and cut the border tiles and fix in a similar way.

Use an adjustable shape-tracing template to help with fitting around difficult shapes.

Did you know you that you can make a rubber tile floor look freshly waxed by adding 250ml of fabric softener to 1/2 bucket of lukewarm water?

The fastest method to clean a rubber tile floor is to utilise an all-purpose cleaning solution. Read the product label for precautionary measures, and always test it in a corner before using it on the entire floor.

It’s easy to remove heel marks or other indentations from a rubber tile by dipping fine-grade (000) steel wool in liquid floor wax. Rub the region gently, and wipe away with a damp cloth. Solvent-based products can soften and damage a rubber tile floor so please be careful. Also, keep scouring pads, strong detergents, and hot water away from rubber tiles.

Flooding the floor with water will cause big problems; excess water can loosen the adhesives that hold down the flooring.

Cleaning your rubber tile floor makes it shine

The product offering on UK Flooring has also been revised, with a focus on flexibility, durability and economy. Studded rubber tiles provide a tried and tested flooring solution that can be used to give any sized space a clean new look. From garages and bathrooms to receptions and airports, studded rubber floor tiles are both hardwearing and stylish.

Flexatile PVC Studded Flooring

Flexatile is a tough PVC interlocking tile. Designed to withstand light and heavy use alike, Flexatile can be quickly and easily be linked together to floor large areas and even commercial locations; and with two surface textures available and six colours to choose from you are sure to find a combination to suit your requirements.

As well as great new additions to the range, UK Flooring Online have improved accessibility and communication tools, making ukflooringonline.com the only choice for all your flooring needs.