When it comes to preparing your work area, be conservative. Spending a little extra time removing items that may not be completely necessary to remove is almost always a better use of time than halting your work later on to, for instance, uninstall a toilet that’s in your way.

While you are working on your baseboards, take the opportunity to also remove any outlet covers that could be damaged by your linoleum flooring installation project.

Concrete floors: Level high spots with a grinder or masonry chisel. Fill in small holes or cracks with additional concrete. Wood floors: Use an embossing leveler to fix minor dents and indentations. For more serious issues, use plywood underlayment (see below). Existing linoleum floors: Repair worn sections of floor or indentations with an embossing leveler (apply with a straightedge trowel). If any sections are damaged or loose, remove the linoleum and work off of the subfloor.

For tight seams for your plywood pieces, use a pneumatic stapler about every 8 inches (20. 3 cm) along edges. Don’t forget that using an underlayment will raise the level of the floor slightly, which may require you to shave off a small amount of material from the bottoms of any doors in the room.

One option for measuring your floor is to lay down a large sheet (or sheets) of a heavy paper like butcher paper across the area of floor you intend to cover with linoleum. Use a pencil to precisely trace the edges of the floor area. Cut the shape of your floor area from your paper, then use this as an outline when you cut out your linoleum. Another option is to use a tape measure to obtain measurements for all of the sides of your flooring area. Sketch these results on a piece of paper and use your measurements to cut your piece of linoleum. This method is especially handy for square or rectangular sections of floor — all you need to do is measure two perpendicular sides and you’ll know exactly how much to cut.

It’s almost always a good idea to mark your linoleum floor pieces about an inch or two wider than they need to be. While it’s fairly easy to trim the edges of the linoleum to make it fit your floor space, there’s no way to make a piece of linoleum that’s too small bigger, so be conservative when cutting your linoleum.

To cut your linoleum, use a sharp utility knife or a hooked linoleum knife and cut along your pre-marked lines. Use a straightedge to ensure an accurate cut. If you have some handy, put an extra layer of plywood underneath your linoleum as you cut it to avoid gouging your floor.

Straight walls: Use a straightedge or straight piece of wood (like a 2x4) to crease the linoleum against the corner where the wall meets the floor. Cut along the crease. Inside corners: Use V-shaped cuts to shave excess material off of the linoleum where it meets the inside corner. Cautiously remove thin strips of material until the linoleum just lays flat against the floor. Outside corners: Make a vertical cut inward from the corner at a 45o angle. Shave material off from both sides of the corner until the linoleum sits flat against the floor.

Linoleum/flooring adhesive is almost always available at major hardware stores (often under the all-purpose name “flooring adhesive”). Always defer to the usage instructions included with the products you buy, including your adhesive. — if they vary from those presented in this article, err on the safe side by following them. For linoleum requiring adhesive all over its underside (rather than around the perimeter), leave a few inches along the edges without adhesive. Linoleum can shrink and expand slightly when exposed to glue, so wait to apply adhesive to the edges until this settling has occurred.

Pay extra attention to any seams in the linoleum — spaces where two pieces of linoleum rest against each other. If not sealed properly, these seams can become natural locations for peeling and water damage.

Many flooring adhesives will be sufficiently dry in 24 hours, but some may require longer drying times. Always defer to your manufacturer’s directions and err on the side of caution. Prolonging a minor inconvenience in the short term can save you problems in the long term.

Keep in mind that some of the items you replace (especially doors and baseboards) may need to be slightly raised or altered to accommodate the slightly higher floor level. For very heavy furniture and appliances, use a piece of plywood to slide the fixture into place, rather than dragging it across the floor, as doing this can damage floors even after they’ve set. For specific help re-installing some common room fixtures, see our installation articles on baseboards, doors, and appliances.

Though online calculators will vary, most (including the one above) simply require you to input the length and width of your floor section (or sections) to receive a total estimate. For floor sections that are square or rectangular, you’ll only need one length and width, but for a differently-shaped area of floor, you’ll need to divide your square into rectangular sections and find a length and width for each to get an accurate total.

For sheet linoleum: (Floor area)/9 = # of Square yards of linoleum needed For 9-inch tiles: (Floor area)/0. 5626 = # of 9-inch linoleum tiles needed For 12-inch tiles: (Floor area) = # of 12-inch linoleum tiles needed