HDB Interior Design Singapore: Replacing Old Flooring

HDB interior design Singapore often starts under your feet. In resale flats, owners replace old tile or timber with HDB approved flooring like vinyl or laminate, and the work needs an HDB renovation permit before hacking begins.

Why resale owners replace flooring

Old HDB flats carry floors that have served decades. Tiles crack, timber warps, and the look dates the home. Replacing the floor is the first job for most resale renovations because everything else sits on top of it.

A resale renovation runs about S$50,000 to S$70,000 in market ranges. Much of that goes to hacking the old floor and rewiring, which a BTO owner never faces. The floor is where the budget begins.

Choosing HDB approved flooring for HDB interior design Singapore

HDB lists materials that meet its guidelines. Vinyl and laminate are common choices for the dry areas, and both sit within the permitted build-up height so doors still clear the floor.

Quartz and solid surface are the standard for countertops, not floors, but the same idea applies: pick materials HDB knows and your permit sails through. Lightweight non-ceramic partitions work for non-structural dividers if you split a room.

The permit and hacking noise rules

Your LRC lodges the HDB renovation permit before any hacking. Processing takes about 2 weeks. Hacking and drilling follow HDB noise rules: weekdays 9am to 6pm, none on Sundays or public holidays.

• Confirm the contractor is on the HDB DRC list before paying a deposit.
• State the flooring type and build-up in the permit drawings.
• Keep structural slabs untouched; only the top finish is removed.
• Post the works schedule so neighbours know the hacking days.

Step-by-step flooring replacement

Here is the method for a typical resale living area and bedrooms. A 4-room resale is about 90 sqm, close to the BTO size but with more to strip.

1. Meet your LRC and agree the flooring type, vinyl or laminate, with the build-up height.
2. Lodge the HDB renovation permit with the floor drawings and wait about 2 weeks.
3. Hack the old finish within noise windows, weekdays 9am to 6pm, none on Sundays.
4. Sweep and level the base so the new floor lies flat across the rooms.
5. Lay the underlay, then click or glue the planks room by room.
6. Leave a small expansion gap at the walls and cover it with skirting.
7. Check door clearance and trim the bottom of doors if the new floor is thicker.

Platform beds with storage work well over new laminate, since the floor is even and the bed hides the gap. Built-in wardrobes stand square when the subfloor is level.

Child safety grilles and door rules

HDB requires window grilles on upper-floor windows for child safety, and removal is regulated. Keep the grilles through the flooring works and plan the new skirting around them rather than removing them.

The bomb shelter door stays as built. Inside, HDB allows only light fittings and laminated flooring, so if you refresh that room, use laminate and leave the walls alone.

Replacing old flooring resets the home from the ground up. A whole-house customization team pairs the HDB approved flooring with the carpentry above it, so the new floor, the wardrobes, and the platform beds all meet at the right height on move-in day.