Flooring Installation in Central Texas
Tile, plank, vinyl and wood floors installed over the slabs and clay soils that Central Texas homes sit on.
What the work covers
A floor is only as good as what is under it. Most homes in Central Texas sit on concrete slabs, and the soils those slabs rest on matter. The Austin area spans two very different settings: heavy clay and loam to the east, where some soils shrink and swell strongly with moisture, and thin soil over limestone in the Hill Country to the west. A slab on clay moves a little with the seasons, and a floor that cannot move with it will crack, buckle or open at the seams.
We install ceramic and porcelain tile, natural stone, luxury vinyl plank, laminate, engineered hardwood and site-finished solid wood where the subfloor allows it. Preparation is most of the labor. Old flooring comes up, the surface is scraped, ground or patched until it is flat, and the slab is checked for moisture before an adhesive or a floating floor goes down. Most flooring manufacturers publish a flatness limit on the order of a few sixteenths of an inch over ten feet, and the installation guide for the product you choose is the rule we follow.
Rigid floors need extra protection from movement. Tile over a slab with a crack, or over a joint that has moved before, gets a crack isolation membrane so a small slab crack does not become a line of broken tile. Large-format tile needs a flatter surface and fuller mortar coverage than small tile does, and we plan the layout so cuts land where they will be least noticed.
Matching the floor to the room
The same material behaves differently in a kitchen, a bedroom and a garage conversion.
- Porcelain tile
- Natural stone
- Luxury vinyl plank
- Laminate
- Engineered hardwood
- Solid hardwood
- Stair treads
- Transitions
Moisture is the quiet failure. A slab can look dry and still pass water vapor into a floor above it. The in-situ relative humidity test described in ASTM F2170 measures this with probes set into the slab, and many flooring makers set moisture limits for their products. We test where the product requires it, and we choose a moisture barrier or a different floor when the slab is not ready.
Wood floors need time to settle in the room. Engineered hardwood is built for slab installations, while manufacturers generally do not approve solid hardwood glued directly to concrete. Planks go in with expansion gaps at the walls and at every fixed object, because a floor that touches everything cannot expand in a humid month. Baseboard and trim cover the gap, and tile floors get movement joints where the slab or the layout calls for them.
Floors in older houses carry questions of their own. Sheet vinyl, old resilient tile and their adhesives can contain asbestos in homes built before 1980, so we ask about the age of the floor and recommend testing before it is torn out or sanded. Stairs, thresholds and transitions between rooms are quoted with the floor, because that is where the details show.
How a flooring job runs
Inspect the surface
We check flatness, cracks, moisture and the condition of the subfloor in each room before we choose a method.
Prepare the base
Old flooring comes up, the base is cleaned, patched and leveled, and membranes or underlayment go in where the floor needs them.
Lay the floor
Layout is planned from the room's focal point so cuts land in the least visible places, then the floor is set, glued or locked together.
Finish the edges
Grout, transitions, trim and thresholds are installed, and the floor is cleaned and protected for the cure time.
Permits and rules for flooring
Austin's list of work exempt from building permits includes finish work in one- and two-family homes such as tiling and carpeting, and it says exempt work still has to comply with the building code. Flooring that comes with a structural repair, a change in plumbing or a change to a wall is a different matter and may need a permit. Floodplain properties have extra requirements in some cities, so tell us if your lot is in one.
Sources: [1] austintexas.gov [2] en.wikipedia.org
Where we quote this work
Flooring is quoted across four Central Texas counties. Each town page has its permit office, neighborhoods and the building context that shapes a project there.
Related work: Door Installation, Window Installation, Demolition, Wood and Trim Remodeling, Interior Remodeling.
Questions about flooring work
Why do tile floors crack over slabs in Central Texas?
Slabs move with the seasons, and in areas with clay soils that movement can be large enough to open a hairline crack. Tile is rigid and will crack along the same line unless a crack isolation membrane lets the slab shift independently. The soils vary a lot across the region, so the base is checked at the quote.
Is luxury vinyl plank a good choice for slab homes?
It is a common choice because it floats over a prepared slab, handles light moisture better than wood and installs quickly. It still needs a flat surface, a moisture check and expansion gaps. Quality varies a lot, so we look at the wear layer and the manufacturer's installation limits before we recommend one.
Can I put solid hardwood over concrete?
Manufacturers generally do not approve glued solid hardwood directly on a slab. Engineered hardwood is made for that setting. If you want solid wood, the usual route is a plywood subfloor system installed first, which raises the floor height.
How long does flooring installation take?
A typical room of plank flooring is often a day. Tile takes longer because of setting time, grout and curing. Preparation such as leveling or moisture control adds days, and the quote gives a schedule for each room.
Do you move furniture?
Rooms are cleared before work starts, and the quote says who moves what. We move light furniture when asked. Pianos, safes and heavy appliances need movers.
Tell us about the project
Describe the work and the town. We follow up using the phone number you provide.
Martinez & Sons Remodeling1190 Airport Blvd #214
Austin, TX 78702