Vinyl Floor Installation: Tools You Need in 2025
By choosing the right tools for the job, you can achieve a professional finish, speed up installations or avoid errors when installing vinyl, whether you’re working with flexible sheet or rigid vinyl tiles.
Safety Gear for Vinyl Floor Installation
Any physical labour requires safety equipment. Of all the vinyl floor tools you need, safety equipment should be on every job.
Gloves
Protect your hands from abrasion, adhesive and accidents with robust work gloves.
Work Knee Pads
Your knees and back will thank you for investing in proper support. There’s a lot to consider when choosing the best knee pads for flooring, so take your time.
Safety covers for sharps
Most vinyl trimmers will come with safety covers to prevent accidents. Make sure you always replace these between use. Keep trimming knives in their holsters.
Dust mask or respirator
When installing vinyl planks you will inevitably have to cut planks to size. If you’re using a jigsaw, wear an FPP1 dust mask to avoid inhaling vinyl particles.
Subfloor Preparation:
Before you start laying vinyl sheet, you need to create a smooth surface to work on. If you’re working on top of concrete, you might need a filler to seal any cracks, or screed to fill any depressions. Laying on wood or tile, you’ll likely only need an underlay to provide additional comfort.
Tools for flooring prep include:
Browse flooring preparation tools.
Measuring and Marking
Measure twice, cut once: this old adage should be etched into the heart of every vinyl installer. Make sure your toolkit includes:
- Measuring tape to get an accurate distance
- Straight edge or T-square
- Dividers & Scribers
- Chalk line or flooring pencils for marking
For large areas or complex layouts you may prefer to use an infra-red distance instrument which can speed up measuring an extraordinary amount.
Browse measuring & marking tools.
Cutting Tools
Vinyl flooring or PVC can be cut in a few different ways, depending on the type of vinyl you are installing.
For vinyl sheet, use a standard lino trimmer to get a straight line. These are designed to help you cut using the skirting as a guide, without damaging the floor underneath. We also stock a PVC strip cutter for cove bases, strip patterns and stair work.
For vinyl planks or tiles, you can score both sides with a trimming knife and snap the tile, or cut with a laminate cutter to achieve a reliably straight cut. A quality beveling tool can achieve accurate finishing after cutting and help a smooth installation.
To trim door frames to create space for vinyl tiles, use an electric jamb saw.
Adhesive Application Tools
Many vinyl sheet installation jobs require adhesive or cold welding to join seams or fix the vinyl in place. Choose from:
- Adhesive trowels for spreading liquid adhesive
- Adhesive tapes or sprays to hold vinyl in place
- Cold weld fluid for joining seams
- Floor Welding gun to cure cold welds
Grooving tools are used to create space for adhesive between sheets of vinyl.
Invest In Quality Tools That Make A Difference To Your Flooring
Make sure you choose quality vinyl installation tools built to last. Your flooring business will benefit when jobs are faster, safer and more accurate. We hope this blog has provided a helpful checklist of vinyl tool requirements that can help you understand what is needed for both vinyl sheet and luxury vinyl tiles.
