Each FreeFit plank secures itself directly to your sub-floor, using the revolutionary, patent pending, FreeFit design. It’s free floating. To cut a plank, simply score and snap.

No underlayment is necessary and FreeFit is quiet and warm under foot.

FreeFit is guaranteed not to delaminate.

FreeFit Plank Installation Instructions:

1. Tools needed: Utility knife & straight edge

2. Material Needed: Measure the length & width of your room. If the room has alcoves or offsets, measure these separately. This will give you the square footage of the room. Have a minimum of 10% extra to cover mistakes, trimming and for future needs and or replacement.

Most installations require about 10% overage. However this can vary depending upon the room size and layout.

Condition FreeFit Prior to installation: FreeFit must be acclimated at a room temperature of at least 65 degrees Fahrenheit for 48 hours before installation. Leaving the planks in the carton, open the end flap allowing ambiant air to flow through each box. Lastly, turn each carton so the white side of the box is facing up.
 

When installing tiles and planks you should work out of a minimum of 3 boxes and mix planks or tiles when installing.

Subfloor Preparation:

Virtually no surface preparation is needed. FreeFit can be installed over most existing floors including wood, vinyl, linoleum, concrete and even ceramic tile.
WHILE FreeFit IS SUITABLE FOR SITUATIONS WHERE MANY OTHER TYPES OF FLOORING SHOULD NOT BE USED, CERTAIN PRECAUTIONS SHOULD BE OBSERVED FOR EVEN THIS VERY FORGIVING FLOORING PRODUCT.

All subfloors must be sound, solid and have little flexibility

Approved subfloors

Concrete: Any large cracks or voids must be filled with a cementitous patching compound. Concrete should be level within 1/8” in 10 FT.

Lightweight concretes are approved

Please Note: As we state in all our sales literature, FreeFit is Water Resistant and will withstand standing water. However this does not mean that FreeFit is designed to be exposed to water, or be underwater for extended periods of time. Moisture intrusion is a totally different situation that can arise with new or old concrete that exhibits very high levels of hydrostatic pressure in combination with very high levels of alkalinity. This combination provides a substance that is highly corrosive. No floor covering, including FreeFit, can withstand the long-term corrosive nature of this chemical. If testing determines that the level of Hydrostatic pressure exceeds 8 pounds using the Calcium chloride test and/or a P.H. test indicates alkalinity levels in excess of 9, steps must be taken to separate FreeFit from the source of the corrosive effect of this chemical. Under these circumstances, there are products on the market that can be use to seal the concrete. This sealer must guarantee to keep the concrete slab under 8 lbs of moisture pressure. After the concrete is addressed with a sealer a polyurethane sheet should be used on the concrete prior to installing FreeFit as an added precaution. We recommend a Polyurethane sheet if there is any suspicion of elevated moisture in the Concrete slab.

Wood subfloors must be sturdy, flat, and have little flexibility.

OSB is approved. It must be sturdy, flat, and have little flexibility

All other subfloors, i.e. particleboard, chipboard, wafer board, etc. must be sturdy, flat, and have little flexibility.

Quarry tile, terrazzo, and ceramic tile: Use caution with highly embossed tile. This type of tile plus grout joints should be filled with a high quality cementitous patching product. FreeFit is water/moisture resistant, and does not support mold or mildew. However, excessive moisture in the subfloor can cause mold, mildew, and other moisture related issues like the trapping of moisture emissions under FreeFit. This will cause an adverse affect on existing glue down substrates causing it to release. Example: Parquet and Strip Wood Flooring which can also swell and buckle.

Radiant Heat: Subfloors should be operating for at least 3 weeks prior to installation to drive out moisture and calibrate temperature settings. All radiant heat floors should be turned off 3 days prior to installation. Maximum operating temperature should never exceed 85°F. Radiant heat components must be a minimum of 1/2” separated from FreeFit. This is the only type of radiant heat that is approved.


Temperature: The room temperature and the sub floor temperature must be between 65° and 85 ° Fahrenheit. Maintain proper temperature for 48 hours before and after installation. The building’s heating and air-conditioning system should be turned on at least one week before installation. Failure to follow these guidelines may result in an installation failure (i.e. flooring may expand or contract resulting in gapping). FreeFit is an interior product only, and must be installed in a temperature controlled environment, maintained between 65 and 85 degrees F. Please keep in mind a concrete floor can be up to ten degrees colder than the actual room temperature.

Existing Resilient Floors:

Existing resilient tile and sheet vinyl floors must be in good condition and thoroughly bonded to the structural floor... The exception is that any tile or sheet that is of a soft cushion construction must be removed.

Note: A layer of resilient or soft underlayments like luan may compromise the inherent strength of FreeFit. Do not install over more than one layer of existing flooring, to prevent indentation or possible stress on the adhesive seams.

If laying FreeFit over existing ceramic tile, you must skim coat the grout lines with a floor leveler. If you install FreeFit over an existing floor that has an embossing or grout line on it, we recommend you skim coat with a floor leveler. Check for any dips in the subfloor that can create a void underneath the floor that will cause stress on the plank seams when walking on it. If so please fill in and level subfloor with embossing leveler. FreeFit is water resistant so it can be installed directly over concrete floors in the basement, (Refer to Approved Sub Floors, Page 3). If your concrete floor has any bumps or burrs of concrete sticking up, simply knock them off with a hammer and chisel and fill in the holes. If you have asbestos tiles and don’t won’t to pay for an expensive asbestos abatement job, FreeFit is the perfect answer. Any loose or damaged tiles should be patched prior to installing FreeFit over the asbestos floor. Never sand asbestos floors from any floor manufacturer, if you think the floor may have asbestos.

We recommend the following actions in the room you are installing FreeFit in: Beware of any sheetrock taping and sanding, POE, painting, wall prep, finishes, and other activities that produce lots of dust. Cover FreeFit with a drop cloth...

Installing:

Before laying out the floor, check the wall you are starting from and make sure it is square to the opposite wall. Simply measure the room from opposite ends of the wall to the far wall. If the measurements are different you can make adjustments on the first row of FreeFit by scribing the plank on the edge.

1. Lay a row of loose planks first to determine if you need to adjust the length of the first plank to avoid a small piece of less than 12” on the opposite wall from where you started.

2. Installation should start in a corner and proceed from the wall. The preferred method of installation is tight against all edges.

3. One of the great attributes of FreeFit, it’s forgiving. If your seam appears not to be tight, you can immediately pull apart the planks and reapply it.

4. When installing the plank, it is strongly recommended to stagger the rows so that the short edge (6”) seams are not in a straight uniform line. We recommend the staggered random method. However you may want to try other “patterns” of planks to suit your taste.

5. Start the second row with the plank cut at about 2/3 length (2 feet). Simply measure and mark the plank, then using a straight edge and utility knife, simply score the plank and snap.

6. Again, get one corner of the plank started tightly against the other.

7. Start the third row with the plank cut at 1/3 of a length (1 foot). Again the remaining piece can be used at the opposite end of the row, if the layout of the room permits

8. Continue this pattern for the remainder of the rows to be installed. Always place the cut end of the first plank against the wall.

9. Fitting around irregular objects, no problem. Simply make a pattern out of heavy paper to fit around pipes or irregular objects. Place the pattern upon the plank and trace. Cut along trace lines using a utility knife or heavy duty scissors, and lay plank.

If the perimeter walls are not sitting flush with the substrate and FreeFit is unable to achieve a tight fit against surrounding walls, it’s recommended that 1 plank or tile be glued down around the perimeter first, before loose laying the field. This will lock in the floor and provide for a sound installation. 

Replacement of Plank

Be sure to keep some spare FreeFit planks in case there is an unforeseen need for replacement. If you need to replace a plank of FreeFit just pull up the damaged plank and put a new one in it's place!

FreeFit Tile Installation Instructions: Divide the room into equal quadrants using chalk lines. Dry-lay a row of tiles using the enclosed wax paper to protect the FreeFit strip, and then from the center line to the side wall determine the space left for the borders tiles adjust the chalk lines to achieve a balance layout with equal size boarders all around. (This can readily be figured out from the room dimensions without putting down the tiles if desired.) Once the Border tiles are determined cut tile down to size. Start in corner of room with border tiles and lay down a row to end of wall. Then lay adjoining row creating a 90 degree angle. Make sure by using a plum line or laser gun that both rows are completely straight and square. Use double face tape to keep both rows in place. If the wall is uneven, adjustments can be made by scribing the boarder tiles. Then proceed in laying tiles in a staircase fashion. See the figure below (B-Border Tiles, Numbers is sequence to lay tile.)

Tile Replacement:
Be sure to keep some spare FreeFit tiles in case there is an unforeseen need for replacement. If you need to replace a plank of FreeFit just pull up the damaged tile and put a new one in it's place!
Please follow same acclimation and subfloor conditions, and information listed for FreeFit Plank for the Tile.