Significance of checking  flooring before Buying New Home

When you entire your probable dream house Flooring is the first element you feel. The flooring has to be solid, hard and comfortable to walk on it stand for some while. If not it will hurt your feet, eventually your legs and make you feel tiered easily.

Sometimes you may feel the flooring is hard, but you feel something not right. You feel uneasy to walk. Well that may be a Hollow Tile.

Hollow Tile!!!

What is Hollow tile? How do you check Hollow tile/flooring?

Have ever been tapped on flooring to check the sound that can be heard? A well bonded and not well bonded tile have a different sound on tapping it. A hollow tile/ flooring portion is that where you hear a hollow sound on tapping over it. You could also use a tool to check for hollow tile with a tool. A hollow tile means a tile or and any other flooring material, is not bonded to base.

Why do you hear this Hollow Sound?

  • Unbroken or deficient bed mortar under tile or any other flooring material
  • Poor cleaning of flooring bed before tile installation.
  • Improper tile installation.
  • Poor quality flooring material used.
  • If flooring is walked over before it is completely cured.
  • Using old flooring material. This could lead to improper tile fastening or chipping.

Consequences of checking for Hollow Tile/flooring material
Its very essential to examine flooring for hollow sound since it cannot be easily detected. Its a professionals job. It very difficult for a home owner to detect if tile is hollow or not. Well if not checked beforehand, home owner will have to face heavy consequences which you may repent later.

  • If left as it is, it could eventually lead to breaking, chipping or major damage for which you would have to pay more than what you spent on it before.
  • Also, water may ooze in the mortar bed causing dampness and leakages issues. This will not only incur heavy maintenance cost but also be annoy for you as well as neighbor staying downstairs.
  • Re-doing the flooring and changing tiles may show shade difference in tiles too.

To avoid any future troubles, it’s very essential to get flooring material fixed appropriately if you find more then 30% of the flooring having hollow sound or improper installation.

Well apart form Hollow Tile you need to look for other few features before you buy home, like –

  • Flooring /Tile Joints – Inspect for tile joints to be correctly done. There is no grouting space left or coming out. Also examine for tile are laid in straight line.
  • Flooring /Tile Level – Check for all the tiles are in one level. NO tile feels to be raised then rest or coming out.
  • Flooring Slope / Tile Slope – You need to check the flooring slope given in Dry Balcony and Balcony. The slope has to be towards the drainage hole.
  • Anti-skid Flooring Material / Tiles – Inspect for tiles installed in these areas are anti-skid flooring. If not you could have major accidents
  • Same Shade Tiles/ Wooden Flooring  – If flooring is covered with tiles, examine that there is no shade difference in each room. Usually this never happens but always be careful then to regret later. If you have wooden flooring i.e. either hardwood (which is very rare now) or laminate flooring, Look for no stains, shade difference or scratches seen.
  • Cracks or Stains – Check the flooring material for no chipping or cracks developed while installations. Check for no stains developed.

So, to avoid major cost and have hassle free homes and living, it’s very essential to check flooring and flooring material installation. And after having found any defects, its very important to convey the same to builder and get it rectified. Well, not only flooring, but checking different elements like Walls, Ceiling, Plumbing and other aspects too.