How To Fit SPC Luxury Click Flooring: Plank and Herringbone

Before anything else, take a few minutes to check all panels for damage or manufacturing faults. Do not install any affected panels, as once a panel has been fitted it is considered accepted.

Leave the unopened packs in the room where the flooring will be fitted for at least 24 hours before installation. Keep the flooring flat in its original packaging, stored in a dry area off the floor, with at least 75mm between the packs and the subfloor. The room should be kept between 18°C and 29°C, with relative humidity between 45% and 60%.

Each panel already has an integrated 1mm XPO foam underlay built into its base, so there is no need to add a separate underlay. Adding one will affect the performance of the locking system, so it is important to leave it out. 

As you fit the floor, mix panels from several packs. SPC flooring is designed with natural variation in colour and grain, and mixing panels as you go helps spread that variation evenly across the floor for a more natural, authentic finish.

SPC luxury click flooring can be fitted in most rooms around the home, including kitchens, bathrooms, hallways, bedrooms, living rooms, utility rooms and conservatories. It is also suitable for heavy commercial spaces.

It is fully waterproof, so it is a good option for rooms where splashes and spills are part of daily life. Just avoid fitting it anywhere the floor would be constantly submerged or exposed to standing water, such as wet rooms, shower trays, saunas, steam rooms or swimming pool surrounds.

This fitting technique is suitable for the following SPC Luxury Click Flooring ranges:

White Oak | Platinum Oak | Balsamico Oak | Flax Oak | Vanilla Oak | Cinnamon Oak | 

Gold Oak | Sand Oak | Coffee Oak | Copper Oak | Cookie Oak | Birch Oak | Marzipan Oak | Sesame Oak | 

Hazel Oak | Wheat Oak | Amber Oak | Brass Oak | Mocha Oak | Chocolate Oak

Before you start fitting, check the room and subfloor are ready, and make sure your flooring has acclimatised for at least 24 hours. Leave a 10mm expansion gap around the edge of the room and around fixed objects such as stairs, pillars, internal walls and kitchen cabinets fitted against walls. When running the floor into an adjoining room, leave a 10mm expansion gap across the doorway transition and cover it with a suitable door bar. 

Kitchen islands can be fitted on top of SPC flooring, but kitchen cabinets fitted against walls should be treated as fixed furniture, so the correct expansion gap must be left around them.

The maximum length in any one direction before transition joints are needed is 15m, or a total area of 15m x 15m.

SPC flooring must always be fitted as a floating floor, so never fix the panels down using adhesive, screws or nails. It can be fitted in standard bathrooms and kitchens, but it is not suitable for wet rooms or anywhere the floor would be exposed to standing water. In bathrooms, kitchens and other wet areas, fill the 10mm expansion gap with a suitable sealant to help prevent water reaching the subfloor. 

Start in the left-hand corner of the room and work from left to right, with the tongue side of the panel positioned to fit the next panels. Place spacer wedges between the first row and the wall to maintain the 10mm expansion gap.

Line up the short edge of the next panel with the edge of the previous panel, making sure both edges align perfectly. Gently tap the joint with a rubber mallet until it locks into place. The connected panels should sit level, with no visible height difference between them.

Take your time, as it is important to ensure each panel of the first row is perfectly aligned and locked together. This will make the rest of the floor easier to install. 

At the end of the row, measure the space left to the wall and cut the final panel to size, allowing for the 10mm expansion gap. SPC panels can be cut with an electric saw or utility knife. Any panel used to start or finish a row should be at least 200mm long.

Continue across the room row by row, checking regularly that the panels are aligned and the joints are tight.

For the final row, measure the remaining gap to the wall and cut the panels to width, allowing for the 10mm expansion gap. Use a pull bar to draw the final row into place.

Once the main floor area is fitted, follow the guidance below for pipes, underfloor heating, wet areas and finishing the room.

Herringbone SPC flooring uses the same i4F glue-free lock system as the plank format, but the laying pattern is different. Each double pack contains right-hand panels marked A and left-hand panels marked B, so separate them before you start. It will make the pattern much easier to follow once you begin fitting.

This fitting guide covers the herringbone laying pattern for the following SPC Luxury Click Flooring ranges.

White Oak Herringbone | Platinum Oak Herringbone | Balsamico Oak Herringbone | 

Flax Oak Herringbone | Vanilla Oak Herringbone | Cinnamon Oak Herringbone | Gold Oak Herringbone | 

Sand Oak Herringbone | Coffee Oak Herringbone | Copper Oak Herringbone 

Before fitting, check that the room and subfloor are ready, and that the flooring has acclimatised for at least 24 hours. Leave a 10mm expansion gap around the edge of the room and around fixed objects such as stairs, pillars, internal walls and kitchen cabinets fitted against walls. When running the floor into an adjoining room, leave a 10mm expansion gap across the doorway transition and cover it with a suitable door bar.

Kitchen islands can be fitted on top of herringbone SPC flooring, but kitchen cabinets fitted against walls should be treated as fixed furniture, so the correct expansion gap must be left around them.

The maximum fitted area before transition joints are required is 15m in any one direction, or a total area of 15m x 15m.

SPC flooring must always be fitted as a floating floor, so never fix the panels down using adhesive, screws or nails. It can be fitted in standard bathrooms and kitchens, but it is not suitable for wet rooms or anywhere the floor would be exposed to standing water. In bathrooms, kitchens and other wet areas, fill the 10mm expansion gap with a suitable sealant to help prevent water reaching the subfloor.

Separate the A and B panels before you begin. The A panels are right-hand panels and the B panels are left-hand panels, so keeping them apart will help you build the pattern correctly.

As you work, take panels from several packs. This helps spread the natural colour and grain variation across the floor. 

Start installing the herringbone pattern from the left side of the room. Connect the first A and B panels together, making sure the grooves on the long edges of both panels are facing towards you. Gently tap the connection with a rubber mallet to lock the joint together.

Once the panels are connected, check that the top surface of each panel sits flush, with no raised lip between them. Make sure to position the corner of the B panel 10mm away from the wall to allow for the expansion gap.

Continue installing the left-hand and right-hand panels in sequence, tapping the short edges with a rubber mallet to lock each panel into position.

When you reach the final panel in the row, measure the distance from the corner of the last panel to the wall. Mark this distance on the next panel, remembering to allow 10mm for the expansion gap. Use an angle rule to measure the angle between the short edge of the panel and the wall, then mark this angle on the panel as your cutting line. Cut along the marked line using a suitable saw.

Position the cut piece into place and tap the short edge gently to lock it together.

Once the first row is complete, continue fitting the next panels and rows in sequence until four complete rows have been installed. As you work, gently tap the short edge of each panel to make sure it is correctly fitted. The panels should sit flush with the previous panels, with no raised edges or gaps.

Once four rows have been fitted, mark a straight cutting line across the panels. This line should run from the leading corner of the furthest left panel across to the ending corner of the furthest right panel from the first row.

Cut the panels in place using a suitable depth-adjustable electric saw. If cutting by handsaw, unclick the panels in the reverse order they were fitted, cut each panel individually, then reassemble them.

Once the panels have been cut, reposition the fitted section against the wall and maintain a 

consistent 10mm expansion gap against the wall.

Once the first four rows have been cut and repositioned against the wall, continue fitting the remaining panels across the room, following the same A and B sequence.

Keep checking that the panels sit flush and the pattern stays aligned as you work. When you reach walls, doorways or fixed obstacles, measure carefully, allow for the 10mm expansion gap and cut each panel with a suitable saw.

When fitting around radiator pipes or other fixed pipes, mark the pipe position on the panel and drill a hole 20mm larger than the pipe diameter. This gives the floor space to expand and contract.

Cut from the edge of the panel to the centre of the drilled hole, then fit the panel into place around the pipe. Once the panel is installed, glue the cut piece back into position using a suitable glue.

SPC luxury click flooring can be fitted over suitable water-fed and electric underfloor heating systems, as long as the floor surface temperature does not exceed 27°C.

Before fitting the flooring, the heating elements must be covered with a minimum 20mm screed or overlay. The floor should be heated evenly across the room, and where more than one heating loop is used, the difference between loops must not exceed 5°C.

Leave the underfloor heating switched off for at least 48 hours after installation. When turning it back on, increase the temperature gradually. Furniture placed on the floor, including sofas, tables and beds, should have legs and be raised from the floor by at least 10cm. Rugs should not be used with underfloor heating.

Once the floor is fitted, remove all expansion spacers around the room. In bathrooms or other wet areas, fill the 10mm expansion gap around the edges and fixed items with a suitable sealant to help protect the subfloor from moisture.

Next, add any trims, scotia or door bars needed to finish the space. Always fix these directly to the wall or subfloor, never through the flooring itself, so the floor can expand and contract naturally. Matching skirting boards are also available for selected ranges and can be used to cover the expansion gap for a neat finish.

For daily care, sweep with a soft brush, vacuum using a hard-floor attachment, or wipe with a damp cloth. Never use a steam mop, and wipe up liquid spills promptly. For more advice on looking after the floor, read our guide on how to clean LVT flooring.