Can A Floating Floor Be Glued? (Find Out Now!)

If you just installed a floating floor, you might be wondering: Can a floating floor be glued down? If you find that the pieces are shifting after installation, it can feel tempting to just grab a glue or nail gun and put an end to the shifting.

Generally, a floating floor is not intended to be glued down. If you glue a floating floor, there’s a strong chance that you’ll disrupt the natural expansion and contraction of each piece, creating a problematic lump. The grooves of luxury vinyl flooring in bathrooms and kitchens should be glued to prevent moisture from slipping through the cracks. However, that’s not the same as gluing them down.

A floating floor, true to its name, floats on the floor. When you glue it down, it’s no longer really a floating floor.

There are a few cases when it’s okay to glue down a floating floor, especially if you’re just gluing each piece together for added stability. Always check with the manufacturer of your flooring to see whether your flooring was made for this. If not, it will void your warranty.

Maybe the pieces are shifting or maybe they’re making loud clicking noises when you walk on them. Either way, in this article, we’ll talk about when you should and shouldn’t glue your floating floor.

A floating floor is a type of flooring that, instead of being nailed down to the floor, “floats” over the subfloor. Floating floors are usually laminate, luxury vinyl, or engineered hardwood.

They work very similarly to locking a bunch of puzzle pieces together. Once the puzzle’s finished, the pieces shouldn’t shift. They’re secured to the subflooring by their individual weight and their relationship to the other pieces.

There are three popular types of floating floors: laminate, luxury vinyl, and engineered hardwood.

Why would you want to glue down floating floors in the first place?

For one, the pieces might be shifting. Additionally, they could be noisy (making “clicking” sounds when you walk on them). Finally, you might just desire the peace of mind that your floor is more securely attached to the ground.

Whatever the reason, you should not glue or nail down floating floors unless you’re 100% sure you can do it with zero issues. Floating floors are engineered for the pieces to fit together without glue.

Not all luxury vinyl flooring is made to float. In fact, for bigger areas you may want to opt for luxury vinyl flooring that’s meant to be glued down.

Loose-lay and click vinyl flooring is typically much thicker. Loose lay is usually around 5mm while vinyl flooring with a click mechanism is around 5-6mm.

Glue-down vinyl flooring, on the other hand, is much thinner. Most planks will only have a thickness of about 2-3mm.

While it may be easier to simply lay down LVF for kitchens and bathrooms, other options are available that are meant to be sturdier and more durable. Glue-down vinyl flooring is particularly appropriate for any areas that regularly experience anything heavy moving or rolling over them, like a wheelchair.

When the flooring is more securely attached to the ground, there’s virtually no risk of any individual piece warping or moving and eventually lifting. Even if a piece of a glued-down floor becomes damaged, it’s easier to isolate that individual piece than it is with a floating floor.

You also might want to buy a glue-down LVF product if there are any larger areas in your home, like living rooms, family rooms, and large living spaces. This reduces the risk of any shifting.

The same basic rules that apply to LVF also apply to laminate: unless the product is specifically designed to be glued, it probably shouldn’t be glued. Most laminate flooring products aren’t meant to be glued (although there are probably exceptions somewhere out there).

With that said, it is always possible to glue the grooves of each piece together to prevent shifting. This isn’t the same thing as gluing it down, though.

You’re just adding adhesive to each piece to make sure that it sticks to every other piece. You’re not gluing each piece to the ground.

People glue hardwood floors, right? So why would it be any different for engineered hardwood?

Engineered hardwood can definitely be glued down, and it doesn’t necessarily suffer from the same problems as luxury vinyl or laminate flooring. In fact, in a lot of cases, while engineered hardwood can be floated, it is glued down.

The catch, though, is that you need to prep the area more extensively than if you were to simply float it. Make sure the surface is entirely level before gluing engineered hardwood. It isn’t necessarily as DIY-friendly. You may want to consider hiring a contractor.

The good news is that it gives you a more solid feeling and less overall shifting than the other options.

Not all products are meant to be glued. While it’s possible to glue them together, it isn’t always advisable. If your flooring product is not specifically designed to be glued, doing so will likely void the warranty.

It’s better to save yourself the headache and just follow the instructions. Don’t do what you shouldn’t do. It isn’t rocket science.

However, if you’re 100% dead set on gluing your floating floor, here’s how to go about it:

Maybe you just installed a floating floor and it’s squeaky. Maybe you can feel the boards shifting under your feet. Or, it’s also possible that you haven’t installed any flooring yet and you’re just doing some research on whether or not a floating floor can be glued.

The short answer is kind of. A floating floor should only be glued if the manufacturer says that it can be glued. Once it’s glued, it’s technically no longer a floating floor.

Floating floors shouldn’t be glued because doing so disrupts the natural ebb and flow of each piece. One of the biggest benefits to floating floors is their ability to expand and contract with temperature changes. When you glue them to the floor, you lose that benefit.

Even worse, however, you introduce the potential for additional issues. With that said, it is definitely possible to glue your floating floor. If you’re 100% certain that any issues in squeakiness or shifting is due to improper installation and you’ve eliminated any other possibilities, it’s definitely possible to glue a floating floor.

If you desire to glue your floor, though, it’s best to buy material that was made to be glued down. If you want a mixture of both, engineered hardwood could be a good option. Beyond that, there are different types of luxury vinyl that can be glued. Laminate flooring is almost never glued down.

There are pros and cons to each method, but people tend to prefer floating floors due to their low price and ease of installation. When you’re installing new floors, keep that in mind. Don’t make the job any harder than it has to be by gluing down floating floors.