More and more manufacturers are offering ready-made parquet with "Click", „Loc“- and "Clip" system and praise laying without glue as child's play. Is that really true? We take a close look at the common systems.
For two years now, glueless installation systems have been replacing the classic ones in the parquet market. The omission of the adhesive offers many advantages, for example when aligning the first rows of floorboards or by making the freshly laid surface immediately accessible. Lots of do-it-yourselfers, who have not yet dared to lay the sometimes quite expensive parquet, lose their shyness with the click systems. But they also have their pitfalls. Is it really child's play to lay entire floorboards across a surface with all products?, there are a few tricks and special features of the various systems to be observed at problem areas such as under radiators and door frames. The much-advertised resilience of the floor also does not work for all manufacturers
The convenient solution
No doubt – the swing-in systems („Woodloc“, Kährs, and "Profi Loc", Trump card) offer the most convenient planks to install. That's because, that you have tongue and groove along the entire length of the floorboard (2,20 to 2,40 m) can be put together without any tools or great effort. The sticking point is the head edges: To connect them together, you either have to slide the planks into the front side before swiveling them in, which sometimes becomes a nerve-wracking fumbling. Or you bang the floorboards together with a hammer and tapping block, what with a plank length of over 2 m on the one hand and sensitive grooves and tongues on the other hand requires very precisely metered impacts. The Parador company is one step ahead with the "Bellano Click".: Here the head edge is locked at the same time as it is swiveled in, the light taps do not come from the other end of the plank, but on the deck. The swing-in version does not cause any problems under radiators, because there is enough space for sloping attachment under all radiators. It's more problematic under the door frame: Here you only have one chance, if you use the floorboard, which must be subordinated, start the row and then carefully tuck them under the frame. You then continue to the left.
The stable solution
The horizontal click technique has two disadvantages compared to pivoting: Nothing works without a hammer and tapping block, and the ability to recover the floorboards, which is desirable in the event of damage, requires considerably more sensitivity and time. The advantage: Laying the floor is not quite as elegant, however, you circumvent the usual problem areas without hesitation. The floorboard can even be driven in under the cut-off door frame with a hammer and tapping block, the short and strong springs can also take harder hits.
The Hamberger company offer their "Haro Clic Connect" floorboards with beveled long sides, which is very nice to look at, when laying requires a closer look. Because it can happen, that you mistake a joint that is not perfectly closed for the bevel and the laying result will not be optimal. Incidentally, a large plank dimension is not synonymous with a high installation speed: On a length of 2,52 m („ultraloc“, Tarkett Sommer) can handling, Cutting and folding the planks into each other can sometimes be a matter of patience – especially in small rooms. Here are smaller floorboards with 1,82 m Length ("Pro Click", Osmo) in advantage. The plank widths of the various systems, on the other hand, vary only minimally.
The quick fix
Likewise (fast) leimlos, but with normal tongue and groove these systems work. Brackets take care of the cohesion here ("Module 15", Osmo) or more recently so-called clip straps (Nolte). However, these systems are mainly offered for solid wood floorboards, which is usually between 15 mm and 21 are mm thick.
The laying effort is very different. Driving in the staples on the underside of the floorboards is time-consuming, it is faster with the straps once fixed. No tools are required for the latter, however, the top edges must be glued – as with the clipboards. This can become a problem when picking up the ground again. Dealing with partially up to 3 m long floorboards is a matter of practice. Nolte also offers room-length floorboards on request.