LVT Flooring at B&Q: How to Choose Glue-Down, Click SPC and Herringbone

The B&Q website now lists a wide choice of luxury vinyl tile (LVT), from B&Q’s own ranges and from verified sellers. Two floors that look almost identical in a product photo can be very different underfoot, so it pays to know what to check before you add packs to your basket. This guide explains how to choose LVT flooring on the B&Q website: glue-down or click, which wear layer, how herringbone works, how to read a listing and how much to order. Where an example helps, we use the GF Flooring ranges, which are now sold on B&Q.

Key Takeaways

LVT on the B&Q website comes in two installation types: glue-down (dryback) and click, usually a rigid-core SPC board.
The wear layer is the number to check first: 0.3mm for bedrooms, 0.55mm for kitchens and hallways and 0.7mm for the hardest-working rooms and homes with pets.
Herringbone LVT is available in both glue-down and click formats; allow more extra flooring for herringbone than for straight planks.
Check who sells and delivers each product, the coverage per pack and the format before you order.
Order samples first. GF Flooring sends up to five free samples of any GF design, including the B&Q exclusives, from the GF Flooring website.

What Is LVT?

Luxury vinyl tile is a layered vinyl floor with a printed wood or stone design under a clear protective wear layer. It is waterproof, warm underfoot, quieter than laminate and suitable for every room in the house, including kitchens and bathrooms. If you are still deciding between floor types, our guides to LVT vs laminate and waterproof flooring cover the wider choice.

Glue-Down or Click: The First Decision

Every LVT listing on the B&Q website is one of two installation types and the choice decides how your floor is fitted.

	Glue-down LVT	Click LVT (rigid-core SPC)
How it is fitted	Bonded to the subfloor with adhesive	Boards click together and float over the subfloor
Typical thickness	2mm to 3mm	4mm to 6.5mm, often with underlay attached
Subfloor	Must be smooth and level, usually with a latex screed	More forgiving and fits over most existing hard floors
Who fits it	Best laid by a professional fitter	Suitable for confident DIYers
Finish	The most stable, seamless result, ideal for herringbone and large open-plan rooms	Quick to fit with a slightly more cushioned feel

As a rule, choose glue-down for whole ground floors, kitchens, herringbone patterns and anywhere you want the floor to last the longest, and choose click when speed of fitting matters or the subfloor is an existing hard floor. Our glue-down vs click LVT guide goes into more detail and our SPC flooring guide explains rigid-core click floors.

Wear Layer: The Number to Check First

The wear layer is the clear protective layer on top of the design and it decides how long the floor will look good under foot traffic. It is listed in millimetres on most LVT product pages.

0.3mm suits bedrooms, guest rooms and other lighter-traffic spaces.
0.55mm is the all-rounder for kitchens, hallways, living rooms and busy family homes.
0.7mm is for the hardest-working rooms, homes with dogs and light commercial spaces.

The GF Flooring glue-down LVT on the B&Q website is sold at all three levels and the wear layer is in the product name, for example “GF Flooring Glue Down 0.55 LVT-Hawes Oak”. That makes it simple to choose the right durability for each room and still keep the same look across the house.

Herringbone LVT at B&Q

Herringbone is one of the most searched-for floors on the B&Q website and LVT is one of the most practical ways to get the look. You will find two kinds:

Glue-down herringbone uses individual short planks bonded to the subfloor in the classic zig-zag pattern. It gives the crispest, most authentic herringbone and is best laid by a professional fitter.
Click herringbone uses left- and right-handed boards that lock together and float, which makes herringbone possible as a DIY project.

Herringbone needs more extra flooring than straight planks because of the angled cuts at the edges of the room, so allow around 10 to 15 per cent on top of the room size rather than the usual 5 to 10 per cent. GF Flooring herringbone is available on the B&Q website in glue-down 0.3mm, 0.55mm and 0.7mm and in click SPC. For more on laying patterns, see our herringbone flooring guide.

How to Read an LVT Listing on the B&Q Website

Before you buy, check five things on the product page:

Format. Glue-down (sometimes called dryback) or click. This decides the fitting method and the subfloor preparation.
Wear layer. Match it to the room, as above.
Thickness and plank size. Thickness matters for door clearances and thresholds, and plank size affects the look of the room.
Coverage per pack. LVT is sold by the pack, so check how many square metres each pack covers.
Who sells and delivers it. Products from verified sellers show the seller’s name on the listing. The seller handles delivery and any questions about the floor.

How Much LVT Should You Order?

Measure the length and width of each room, multiply to get the area and add any alcoves and bays. Then add extra flooring for cuts and waste, around 5 to 10 per cent for straight planks and 10 to 15 per cent for herringbone, and divide by the coverage per pack. Always round up to the next whole pack. It is worth ordering everything you need in one go so the whole floor comes from the same batch.

Subfloor, Fitting and Underfloor Heating

Most problems with LVT come from the subfloor rather than the floor itself. Glue-down LVT needs a smooth, flat, dry subfloor, which usually means a latex smoothing compound over concrete or a plywood overlay on timber floorboards. Click SPC is more forgiving, but the subfloor still needs to be flat within the tolerance in the fitting guide. Let the packs acclimatise in the room before fitting.

LVT works well over underfloor heating because it is thin and conducts heat efficiently. GF Glue Down LVT can be used over both water and electric underfloor heating. Whichever floor you choose, check the maximum floor temperature in the manufacturer’s installation guide. The GF installation guides for glue-down LVT and click SPC are free to read on the GF Flooring website and our LVT installation guide covers the general method.

Order Samples Before You Buy

Colour and texture look different on screen than they do on a floor, so always see a sample in the room it is going into, in daylight and under your own lighting. You can order up to five free samples of any GF design, including the B&Q exclusives, from the GF Flooring website. They are sent within three to five days and you keep them.

GF Flooring on B&Q

GF Flooring is now sold on the B&Q website, in GF Glue Down LVT at 0.3mm, 0.55mm and 0.7mm and in GF Click SPC, including a collection of designs exclusive to B&Q. The GF Glue Down LVT and GF Click SPC pages on the GF Flooring website show every design with its specification and link straight to the B&Q listing. Read more in our article on GF Flooring launching on B&Q.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does B&Q sell LVT flooring?

Yes. The B&Q website lists LVT flooring from B&Q’s own ranges and from verified sellers, in both glue-down and click formats. GF Flooring is one of the LVT brands sold there.

Is click or glue-down LVT better?

Neither is better for every room. Glue-down LVT gives the most stable, seamless finish and suits herringbone and large open-plan spaces, but it needs a smooth subfloor and a professional fitter. Click SPC is quicker to fit, floats over most existing hard floors and suits confident DIYers.

What wear layer should I choose?

Choose 0.3mm for bedrooms and lighter-traffic rooms, 0.55mm for kitchens, hallways and family rooms and 0.7mm for the busiest rooms and homes with pets.

Does B&Q sell herringbone LVT?

Yes. Herringbone LVT is available on the B&Q website in both glue-down and click formats. GF Flooring herringbone is sold there in glue-down 0.3mm, 0.55mm and 0.7mm and in click SPC.

How much extra LVT should I order?

Add around 5 to 10 per cent to the room area for straight planks and 10 to 15 per cent for herringbone, then round up to the next whole pack.

Can LVT go over underfloor heating?

Yes. LVT is well suited to underfloor heating. GF Glue Down LVT works with both water and electric systems. Always check the maximum floor temperature in the installation guide.

Can I get samples of LVT sold on B&Q?

For GF Flooring, yes. You can order up to five free samples of any GF design, including the B&Q exclusives, from the GF Flooring website.