Our Flooring Project Process

At Rankins Floor Covering, we believe a great-looking floor starts long before the first plank or piece of carpet is installed. Every flooring project should be planned carefully, prepared correctly, and installed with attention to detail. From the first design ideas to the final cleanup, we focus on doing the job right and making the process as smooth as possible for you.

1. Design & Flooring Selection

Every project starts with choosing the right flooring for your home, lifestyle, and budget. We take the time to understand what you are looking for, how the room is used, and what type of look you want to achieve.

We can help you consider important factors such as:

• Flooring style, color, texture, and pattern
• Hardwood, laminate, luxury vinyl plank (LVP), carpet, or sheet vinyl
• Durability for high-traffic areas
• Water and moisture resistance
• Pets and children
• Comfort and maintenance requirements
• Matching flooring with cabinets, walls, trim, and existing flooring
• Transitions between different rooms and flooring types

Once the flooring is selected, the project can be measured and planned so the correct amount of material is ordered. We also look at doorways, closets, stairs, transitions, baseboards, appliances, and other details that may affect the installation.

The goal during the design stage is to make sure you know what the finished floor will look like and how the entire installation will come together before work begins.

2. Tear Out & Removal of Existing Flooring

After the project is planned and the new flooring is ready, the next step is removing the existing floor when necessary.

Depending on the project, this may include removing:

• Carpet and carpet pad
• Tack strip
• Laminate or floating flooring
• Luxury vinyl plank
• Sheet vinyl
• Hardwood flooring
• Underlayment
• Old transitions or trim

During tear-out, we work carefully around walls, cabinets, doors, and other areas of the home. Old flooring materials, staples, nails, tack strip, adhesive, and debris are removed so we can properly inspect the surface underneath.

Tear-out is more than simply removing the old floor. It gives us the opportunity to see the actual condition of the subfloor and identify problems that may have been hidden underneath the previous flooring.

3. Subfloor Inspection & Preparation

Proper preparation is one of the most important parts of any flooring installation. Even the highest-quality flooring will not perform correctly if it is installed over a poorly prepared surface. Once the old flooring is removed, we inspect the subfloor to determine what preparation is needed.

Depending on the condition of the floor, preparation may include:

• Removing staples, nails, screws, or old adhesive
• Scraping away loose material
• Sanding or grinding high areas
• Filling low areas
• Patching cracks, holes, or damaged sections
• Securing loose or squeaking subfloor areas
• Replacing damaged sections of subfloor when necessary
• Installing underlayment
• Checking floor flatness
• Checking for moisture-related concerns
• Cleaning and vacuuming the installation surface

For some flooring products, especially LVP, laminate, sheet vinyl, and hardwood, having a flat and solid surface is extremely important. Small imperfections in the subfloor can cause movement, gaps, uneven areas, premature wear, or other problems after installation. We take the time to correct preparation issues before covering them with the new floor.

4. Layout & Installation Preparation

Before installation begins, we plan the layout of the new flooring. For plank flooring such as hardwood, laminate, or LVP, this includes deciding where the flooring will start, which direction it will run, and how the flooring will finish at walls, cabinets, hallways, and doorways.

Careful layout helps prevent:

• Extremely narrow pieces along walls
• Poorly positioned seams
• Awkward cuts at doorways
• Uneven-looking rows
• Unnecessary transitions

For carpet, we plan seam locations and material placement so the finished installation looks as clean and natural as possible. For sheet vinyl, careful measuring and positioning are especially important because the material needs to fit closely around walls, cabinets, doorways, and other obstacles.

Taking time to plan the layout before installation helps create a more professional finished appearance.

5. Flooring Installation

Once the preparation and layout are complete, installation begins. The exact installation process depends on the flooring material.

Hardwood Flooring

Hardwood may be nailed, stapled, glued, or installed using another approved method depending on the product and subfloor. Boards are carefully laid out and installed while maintaining proper spacing and alignment.

Laminate Flooring

Laminate is generally installed as a floating floor. The planks lock together over an approved underlayment while proper expansion space is maintained around the perimeter of the room.

Luxury Vinyl Plank — LVP

LVP may be installed as a floating click-lock floor or as a glue-down product. Proper subfloor preparation and careful plank layout are especially important to produce a smooth, consistent finished floor.

Carpet

Carpet installation can include installing new tack strip and pad, positioning the carpet, creating seams when needed, stretching the carpet properly, trimming the perimeter, and securing the carpet along walls and transitions.

Sheet Vinyl

Sheet vinyl requires careful measuring, cutting, fitting, and adhesive application when required. Special attention is given to cabinets, doorways, corners, seams, and other areas where precise cuts are necessary.

Throughout installation, we pay attention to details such as straight rows, proper seams, clean cuts, expansion gaps, transitions, door jambs, and the overall appearance of the floor.

6. Transitions, Trim & Finishing Details

After the main flooring has been installed, we complete the finishing details. Depending on the project, this can include:

• Transition strips
• Reducers
• Thresholds
• Stair nosing
• Quarter round or shoe molding
• Baseboard work
• Door jamb adjustments
• Floor vents
• Closet areas
• Finishing around cabinets and other fixed objects

These smaller details make a major difference in how professional the finished project looks. We check the flooring throughout the room and make sure edges, transitions, seams, and cuts are finished properly.

7. Final Inspection

Before the project is considered complete, we perform a final inspection of the installation. We look over the flooring for:

• Proper fit and alignment
• Clean seams and joints
• Secure transitions
• Finished edges
• Proper installation around doorways
• Any areas that may need adjustment or additional attention

Our goal is to catch the little details before the job is finished.

8. Final Cleanup

A flooring project creates dust, scraps, packaging, and other debris. Once installation is complete, we clean the work area and remove installation debris.

Final cleanup may include:

• Vacuuming the new floor
• Sweeping the work area
• Removing flooring scraps
• Removing packaging
• Collecting installation debris
• Cleaning up around transitions and doorways
• Making sure the finished floor is ready for you to enjoy

We want the last thing you see to be your new flooring — not the mess from installing it.

From Design to Finished Floor

A successful flooring project comes down to good planning, proper preparation, quality installation, and attention to detail. At Rankins Floor Covering, we take pride in treating every step of the project as important. We focus on building the floor correctly from the bottom up so you receive a finished product that looks great and is made to last.

Our process is simple:

Design → Tear Out → Preparation → Installation → Finishing Details → Final Cleanup

From the first idea to the finished floor, our goal is to provide honest work, quality craftsmanship, and a flooring installation done right.