Vinyl looks great on day one no matter what's underneath it — the problem shows up months later, when dips in the old floor start telegraphing through as bubbles or uneven wear. Excellence Renovation handles floor screeding and vinyl flooring for HDB, BTO, condo, landed, and commercial units, and we don't skip the screeding step just to save a day on the schedule.

What's Included in Our Floor Screeding & Vinyl Flooring Services

Floor hacking — where the old flooring (tiles, parquet, old vinyl) needs to come out first before screeding can even start.

Cement screeding — levels out a bare or uneven concrete floor before anything new goes on top. Thickness depends on how far off level the existing slab is.

Self-levelling — a thinner top-up layer, poured on like a thick syrup that flows and hardens smooth. This is what actually gets a floor flat enough for vinyl, especially if the slab has noticeable dips across a stretch of floor.

Vinyl flooring installation — LVT and SPC, in plank or tile format. LVT's softer underfoot and a bit quieter to walk on; SPC's more rigid and holds up better if the subfloor's not perfectly even.

Vinyl overlay — laying new vinyl directly over an existing floor without hacking, when the base underneath genuinely allows for it.

Skirting — finished off flush to the wall so the edges don't look like an afterthought.

Types of Vinyl Flooring We Install

Luxury Vinyl Tile (LVT)

Comes in plank or tile format, printed with a realistic wood or stone finish. Softer and quieter underfoot than the other options, which is why it's the common pick for bedrooms and living areas where comfort matters more than heavy-duty durability.

Stone Plastic Composite (SPC)

A rigid core that doesn't flex, so it holds its shape under heavy furniture and constant foot traffic. Needs a properly levelled base to sit right, but once it's down it's one of the more durable vinyl options for an office or a busy living room.

Vinyl Plank (Click-Lock)

Individual planks that click together without glue, floating over the base rather than bonding to it. Easier to replace a single damaged plank later without redoing the whole floor, and quicker to install where the schedule's tight.

Vinyl Overlay (No Hacking Where Suitable)

Not a separate material so much as an installation method — laying vinyl directly onto an existing floor that's flat and solid enough to skip hacking. Whether this actually works depends entirely on the condition of the floor underneath, which is covered in more detail below.

Eco-Friendly & Safe Vinyl Materials

Much of the vinyl we install now comes with safety and environmental features that weren't standard a few years back:

• Low VOC — releases far fewer volatile organic compounds into the air than older vinyl, which matters for indoor air quality, especially in the first few weeks after installation

• Formaldehyde-free — no added formaldehyde in the manufacturing, a common concern for households with young children

• Waterproof — the vinyl core doesn't absorb water or swell, which matters in kitchens, bathrooms, and anywhere spills happen

• Anti-termite — the material itself doesn't support termite activity the way timber flooring can, one less thing to worry about in older units

If you've got young children or pets at home, it's worth asking specifically which of these a product includes, since not every option on the market covers all four.

Flooring Work Focused on Vinyl Overlay

Overlay gets recommended a lot because it's faster and cheaper than a full hack-and-screed job, but it only holds up if the existing floor actually qualifies. We check the floor condition first — flat, solid, no hollow-sounding or loose tiles anywhere — before recommending direct overlay over anything else. Laying vinyl straight onto a floor with hidden dips or loose tiles doesn't fix the problem, it just covers it up, and it tends to resurface as an uneven patch or a lifting seam within months.

We've turned down overlay jobs before after a walk-through showed loose or hollow tiles that wouldn't have held up, even though it would've been the easier sell at the time. If the existing floor passes that check, overlay saves time and skips the mess of hacking entirely. If it doesn't, we'll say so upfront and explain what needs to happen instead, rather than installing over a floor we already know won't hold.

Our Floor Screeding Process Before Vinyl Installation

We check the existing slab first — bare concrete, old tiles, whatever's there. If it needs hacking out, that happens before screeding starts, not alongside it. Cement screed goes down to bring the floor up to a workable level, checked with a laser level rather than eyeballing it, since even a small deviation across the room is the difference between vinyl that lasts and vinyl that ripples within a year. If the surface still isn't flat enough after screeding, self-levelling compound goes on top to close the gap.

Screeding is either bonded or unbonded to the slab beneath, depending on the condition of the existing concrete and how much build-up the floor needs — we pick based on what the site actually calls for, not a default method. For HDB units, this falls under renovation guidelines, and the screed material used needs to be from HDB's approved list. We handle that side, plus haulage and disposal of the old flooring debris, so it's not billed as a surprise add-on later.

A properly screeded floor also fixes two things people don't always connect to screeding: that hollow "popping" sound underfoot from trapped air pockets, and furniture that wobbles because it's not sitting flush. Both usually trace back to an uneven base, not the vinyl or the furniture itself.

LVT vs SPC Vinyl Flooring — Which One Fits Your Home

If the space gets a lot of daily wear, SPC usually holds up longer. For bedrooms or anywhere comfort underfoot matters more, LVT's the better pick.

Why Choose Excellence Renovation for Floor Screeding & Vinyl Flooring

Most vinyl floor complaints we get called out for aren't actually about the vinyl — they're about what was under it. Someone skipped the screed step, or rushed it, and six months later there's a soft spot or a seam lifting where the old floor's dip is still telegraphing through. We check level with a laser rather than by eye, and if the numbers don't come out flat enough, self-levelling goes down before vinyl ever gets laid. Same goes for material — HDB-approved screed, not whatever's cheapest that week. It's a bit slower upfront, but it's the difference between a floor that's still flat in five years and one you're redoing sooner than you should.

Floor Screeding & Vinyl Flooring FAQs

Do I need screeding before laying vinyl flooring?

If the existing floor has noticeable dips or unevenness, yes. A perfectly flat existing floor can sometimes skip straight to an overlay install, but that's the exception, not the norm.

How long does floor screeding and vinyl installation take?

A standard HDB living room can go from hacking to finished skirting in a single working day. Full-unit jobs or larger condo and commercial spaces usually take 1 to 2 days depending on lift access and how many rooms are involved.

Can vinyl flooring be installed over existing tiles?

Sometimes, if the tiles are flat and in good condition — an overlay saves the hacking step. If the tiles are uneven, cracked, or hollow-sounding, they need to come out first.

What's the difference between LVT and SPC vinyl?

LVT is softer, warmer, and more forgiving on a slightly uneven subfloor. SPC is more rigid and holds up better under heavy use, but needs a properly levelled floor underneath.

Does floor screeding need an HDB permit?

It can, depending on the scope and whether it's tied to other structural work. The screed material also has to be from HDB's approved list. We check this before starting and handle the application where it's needed.

Get a Free Floor Screeding & Vinyl Flooring Quote

Bare concrete, old tiles, or a floor that's just not level enough for vinyl — send Excellence Renovation your floor plan and we'll tell you what it needs and what it costs.

📞 Contact Excellence Renovation today for a free floor screeding & vinyl flooring quote.