While vinyl sheet flooring quickly replaced the existing designs of linoleum in the 1950s, it didn't just try to copy the look and feel of lino flooring. Because vinyl gets its design by printing a layer onto the synthetic material and covering it with a wear layer, the design options are unlimited.
Color patterns, tile effects, wooden floors, ... vinyl can be anything you want it to be. That's why it's used in so many different rooms and professional uses all over the world.
For professional users, Beauflor even offers the option of creating your own design. Visit our design studio to learn more about this.
Linoleum on the other hand goes through a very different process to create a design. Pigments are added to the natural material to create a desired color finish, but the options are somewhat limited. The color pattern is actually visible through the entire material.
A floor for rooms where water spills are possible, needs to have a water-resistant floor. While linoleum has technically always been water-resistant, that feature depends on the periodic sealing of your floor, a repetitive process. And even with that sealing, the natural floor is susceptible to water damage through high humidity or flooding.
Vinyl on the other hand is almost completely waterproof. Thanks to the PVC layer, a vinyl sheet stands the water resistance test and is perfect for bathrooms and kitchens. Where there are no seams, water can’t find a way to infiltrate and get underneath the floor. Beauflor vinyl rolls are unique because they come in a width of up to 5m, making it a seamless floor in almost every room thinkable.
Both linoleum and vinyl flooring have been and are fans' favorites when it comes to cleaning. Vacuum cleaners, sweeping brushes, mobs, various cleaning products... they're all good choices to keep your floor clean. The only difference here is that linoleum has a risk of color changes when in contact with certain cleaning products with a high pH level.
The protective wear layer of vinyl makes sure your floor doesn't change appearance over time because of frequent cleaning, while linoleum needs specific detergents to keep its appearance.
When it comes to durability, it is difficult to compare linoleum and vinyl. Much depends on the quality of the product itself. A lower-quality wear layer in vinyl might lose its protective qualities over time, while linoleum is softer and more vulnerable to small damage.One of the improvements that vinyl had on linoleum, was that maintenance wasn’t necessary anymore from time to time.To make linoleum last longer, periodic sealing is needed. Without this, it is more vulnerable to scratches and wear-and-tear. However; because of the fact that the design of linoleum is present throughout the flooring material, these damages are less visible from a distance.
As with most products, how long you'll enjoy it and in what state that is, depends on how much care you give it. Linoleum takes a little more work now and then (which is a downside because of its use in professional environments), but can remain its look for a very long time. Modern vinyl is a very high quality product, making it very durable in the long run.
One of the perks of vinyl sheets is its easy installation, making it a loved flooring product for DIY-ers. On a flat underlay, you can glue your vinyl roll, cutting it down to fit into the corners. The installation of a lino floor can be similar to the process above, but the less flexible nature of linoleum makes it harder to manipulate. Since linoleum is almost exclusively used in professional applications today, installation is practically always done by a professional.
Both vinyl and linoleum sheets come on rolls, which created most of the confusion between the two flooring types when both were on the residential market. Up to this day, width is the only important parameter when we're looking at seams. While both types of floors generally come in the same sizes, Beauflor vinyl sheets - as said above - have widths of up to 5 meters.
This makes Beauflor vinyl rolls the best option for seamless resilient flooring.
One category where vinyl hasn’t yet overtaken linoleum, is comfort. Lino flooring is slightly softer than vinyl flooring, which also makes them a bit more quiet.
However, both floors are in the top category when it comes to sound and impact. They are also both slip resistant, so they're good for rooms with a higher humidity (although lino suffers from too much humidity).
As you can see, vinyl and linoleum, while in the same category of flooring, are very different in nature and features. While residential floor buyers will almost certainly go for cushioned vinyl flooring, in some professional segments, linoleum is still used.
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