Renovate: Can another covering be laid on parquet?

Hello everyone,

a friend wants to renovate her apartment and is currently stuck on the topic of flooring. There is parquet flooring from 50 years ago. The subfloor of the parquet is apparently not so great, so her idea was to leave the parquet in place and lay PVC or linoleum on top. She came up with the PVC/Lino idea because then the existing doors would still open and close properly. As an alternative, we just discussed that theoretically, you could also lay impact sound insulation + laminate (because it’s cheaper) and shorten the doors by one centimeter.

Tearing out the parquet is not an option for her due to financial reasons.

Are these generally feasible and plausible ideas? The parquet is also not 100% flat right now; can you even simply lay something over it? Do you have to worry about moisture in the parquet if "dense" coverings like PVC lie on top?

What a shame. Why not sand it down?

What a shame. Why not sand it down?

THAT was my very first thought, but she doesn't like how it looks, and according to the quotes she got from local craftsmen, sanding and sealing(?) would be about as expensive as a new floor. I can't judge if that's true, but that's what she said.

Hello "Ben-Man". Unfortunately, I am only reading your article today, about 3 weeks after the entry, and hope it is still up to date. Regarding the topic you touched on, the following: A parquet floor that was installed about 50 years ago should be treated with caution when it comes to renovation. "Renovation" means sanding, filling, priming, and resealing. Why "should be treated with caution"? This is partly because the parquet adhesives used at that time (for today's ones it is still unknown) simply became brittle over the longer service life. Also bituminous adhesives, which were used at the time. This means: if the parquet is moved, for example by the mechanics during sanding, the adhesive joint tears apart, the parquet wood detaches from the substrate and can be easily lifted. If parquet wood is covered with a vapor diffusion-tight top layer (this includes PVC/Lino among others), the same can (but does not necessarily have to) happen for other reasons. However, the "result" is the same. Your note or question about whether one has to consider moisture is justified but can only be assessed if the specific object conditions are known (meaning: where the existing screed is installed above which room with what climatic conditions, etc.). A (trained) parquet layer/parquet master will first check the adhesive bond at a side spot before taking on the foreseeable total damage "on their back". If the system does not withstand the mechanical stress of the test during the manual test, the parquet must either continue to be used as it has been over the past years, or it must be dismantled! Whether one wants that or not. A laminate floor as a second layer on the parquet floor may at first seem like an interim solution. I fear that this idea will soon give way to sober reality. Possibly, so my concluding word, with your statement >Parkett rausreißen ist für sie aus finanziellen gründen keine Option> the affected parquet itself will not adhere to that, to put it jokingly. When the child has fallen into the well, there is no need to consider any more whether to secure the access (to the well). Then the relieving thought comes too late! Wishing you a safe decision: KlaRa

If you do not want to renovate the parquet, then the only option is actually to lay a carpet loosely over it; if it is a rental, everything that damages the floor is out of the question.

Parquet from 50 years ago is often of very good quality and can be renovated multiple times; also, strips can be glued back on if individual ones are loose. If the floor is uneven, the screed may have partially collapsed?

If you don’t want to renovate the parquet, then basically the only option is to lay a carpet loosely over it; if it’s a rental, anything that damages the floor is out of the question.

Parquet from 50 years ago is often of very good quality and can be renovated multiple times; strips can also be re-glued if individual ones are loose. If the floor is uneven, the screed may partially have collapsed?

We don’t want to be “skittish” or “make a big fuss” here and talk problems into existence where there are none. Whether the parquet is actually “good” is on the one hand pure speculation and on the other hand has nothing to do with the embrittlement of an adhesive. And the surface evenness, which the questioner never addressed at any time, and the limited load-bearing capacity of the screed is now without corresponding evidence purely taken out of thin air. This professional forum is intended for general assistance and not for additional uncertainty. The adhesive embrittlement is admittedly also speculative on my part, but not without reason. It simply corresponds to my professional experience that with the adhesive options available at that time (which were limited), this would be the case today. Loose laying of a textile covering is possible in very small rooms and with rather minor use, but in a living room it does not comply with professional standards—and due to the room climate changes, waves would form in the covering layer sooner rather than later. This method of installation, which was quite common about 20 years ago and involved only edge fixations with double-sided dry adhesives, is strongly advised against for larger rooms. However, the note is correct that any work on a construction layer firmly connected to the structural component does not fall within the intervention rights of a tenant but is solely the responsibility and decision of the owner.