I'm back...My last postings here were regarding laminate floor installation on my first floor. Done with that, now I'm onto the second floor and considering replacing the carpet with LVP. Seems LVP has overtaken laminate flooring since I shopped for flooring.

My first hurdle is some door jams and casings that are too high if I install a 6mm LVP. Seems when the house was built they knew it would be getting plush carpet and padding so they built allowing for the carpet and padding to go under the door jambs in addition to overall poor quality. Thoughts on a solution? I prefer not to install an underlayment, as it will raise the floor at the top of the stairs even more creating a slightly bigger last step riser. I like the idea of a 4mm-6mm LVP for the reason the floor height isn't increased much.

Thoughts on a thinner (4-6mm) LVP vs something thicker? Seems the thinner material would conform to any slight variations in the subfoor?

Whatever I pick, I will buy a case and try it first before jumping in with both feet like I did with the laminate!

Thanks in advance for any thoughts and suggestions....

 

I think 1/4" underlayment is your only solution, assuming that's enough.

 

That's was my first thought and is still an option as I tear out more carpet and assess the situation at other doors as well as the condition of the subfloor. So far I I found one door that is OK, one door could use 1/8" underlayment and another would need 1/4" plus.

I need to tear the carpet off the stairs and see if my plan of painting them is possible.

What is your thought on having that last step having a different rise than all the others? It's just something that bugs me and I prefer to keep the difference at a minimum. I also need to see what style of stair nose is available for the LVP as there seems to be different types and installation methods.

More work is required and lots of planning before I pick a direction.

Could just go with carpet again but wasn't my first choice.

Thanks for your thoughts as I dig into this.

 

To pass your initial framing inspection, no step may be more than 3/8" different in height from any other step. So I would say that's pretty minor, even if its 1/4 + 6mm more, unless your top step is already more than the others.

You could also cut/drop your jambs or retrim a few openings if need be instead of doing underlayment. Not a big deal.

 

Good info. I wonder how many people that installed laminate or floor over floor would pass that inspection now. I like the 3/8" difference rule and will stick with that. Amazing how one different stair rise can trip you up.

Most of the door casings are OK, it's the jambs that are high. Thinking I can remove the casings, cut out the frame with my handy sawzall, drop it and reinstall. Is that what you meant by cut/drop your jambs?

 

Yep.
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Thanks for the feedback. Great minds think alike.

I appreciate you taking the time to answer my questions. It's nice to have someone to bounce ideas off of.

Rod

 

You can also cut a sliver of casing 1/4" thick, glue to the bottom and with a little sanding, patching, painting it will blend in!

 

Yep, another option too!

And if the gap is just slight, a little bead of caulk should do the trick. I suspect I'll use several different techniques until I'm done.

Thanks