Is it time to replace that old angle grinder, or do you need help with a website? Perhaps you are looking for a better way to measure and track moisture. No matter what you are looking for, 2023 is shaping up to be a year jam-packed with new innovations for all of your install needs. Here is a sneak peek at what is to come.

BIHUI/Better Tools

BIHUI-USA by Better Tools continues its ongoing release of new products to serve the professional tile and large format installer with the launch of a range of cutting, grinding and battery-operated tools.

The 1400 watt 5” Variable Speed Angle Grinder is designed for drilling, cutting, beveling, milling, grinding and polishing. Accessories are also available such as diamond blades, grinding cup wheels, diamond mills, diamond bits and a dust extracting system. Part #: AG1400A

The Automatic Electric Tile Cutting Machine cuts up to 1 ⅛” thick tiles with 47 ¼” cutting length. Part #: TCSA1200

The Multiangle Tile Space Regulator can be used for inside and outside corner space adjustments and standard space adjustments. Part #: LFTFV6 

BIHUI’s 21V Lithium-ion Battery Vibration Tile Beater is the first in a series of 21V Lithium-ion battery powered tools. Part #: LFTBA-Plus

Crain

The Mini Stretcher is great for pattern matching and fast restretching without tubes and seam repair. The features include a stretch-lock button, two fully pivotable gripper heads, open top wall blade for fast tucking and a carrying case. The gripper heads and wall blade are quickly connected onto either end using the push-button lock pins. The tall seam repair legs that create a work area to run an iron beneath are sold separately (No. 519).

The new 280 Air Lifter moves heavy appliances with ease. The new and enhanced air release valve allows for total control of the 800 lb. lifting action. Slide the load plates under the load, turn on the blower, and the air plates inflate, lifting the load. An upgraded blower strap allows for more comfortable wear and use. New all-in-one carrying bag keeps tool organized and protected.

Floorcloud

Available as a mobile app and desktop software, Floorcloud’s jobsite monitoring technology is designed to work over a cellular network. This capability allows contractors, big and small, the option to view data related to a specific jobsite prior to flooring installation, or it can be utilized to monitor a space after the job has been completed to ensure that proper relative humidity and temperature are being maintained.

How It Works

Censors are placed on the wall at a jobsite just like a thermostat. These censors have a QR code on them that can be scanned and linked to the software. At that point, the contractor has the ability to monitor the jobsite conditions from anywhere a cellular signal is available.

The contractor then goes into the app and selects all of the products utilized in the project from a list of manufacturers that is preset into the database—the primer, patch, self-leveling underlayment, adhesive and the flooring. The onsite conditions are then compared every hour to the specifications that the manufacturers have set for the chosen products. If conditions exceed the specs determined by the products, a push notification is sent to the contractor’s phone, alerting them of the temperature, relative humidity and/or dewpoint change.

Floorcloud recently partnered with the National Wood Flooring Association to offer hardwood acclimation monitoring. The equilibrium moisture content (EMC) calculator will help flooring installers and contractors determine if the hardwood flooring is acclimated for that specific jobsite at that exact time. This technology requires the use of a Tramex or Wagner meter. The EMC calculator makes use of pre-programmed moisture levels set for each region. After selecting the region, the software will indicate whether or not the moisture readings are within spec for that particular region.

Onsite conditions and EMC readings can be shared instantly with any member of the team via the app or desktop software.

GoCarrera

Designed to help flooring installers and subcontractors keep work coming in, match the right installer with the right job and simplify the payment process, GoCarrera’s cloud-based platform has added a few new features for 2023.

How It Works

Flooring Installers and subcontractors create a free account. They are then assigned what is called a “Hammer Rating.” This is GoCarrera’s proprietary rating system. The Hammer Rating factors in years of experience, trainings and certifications to then assign flooring installers a value from zero to five, providing a flooring contractor or retailer a snapshot of that installer’s abilities and qualifications.

Included in the platform is a Work Order Management System that matches installers with jobs. Flooring installers and subcontractors can accept, decline or negotiate each work order, and conversely, retailers and other contractors can review a list of available installers as well as their work history and Hammer Rating.

Ad Hoc Invoicing is a new feature that allows installers the ability to create an invoice and accept credit card payments without a work order. Once the invoice is created, the customer receives an email notification where they can pay with Visa, Mastercard or AmEx.

GoCarrera has added some new payment options. With Preferred Settlement Timing, Installers can choose a settlement timing based on the real-time needs of their business. Three payout options are available: Economy: Funds typically settle in five to six business days for 2.5% at time of settlement. Standard: Funds settle in roughly two business days for 3% per transaction. Same-Day: Funds settle within the same business day when the Lien Release is signed before noon CST.

Recently added is a Maps feature where installers can search for available work anywhere in the U.S. Installers can view jobs and place a bid and even negotiate a price.

Gundlach

OTTOVAC is a battery powered suction cup designed to lift and move tile, glass and any other material that has a smooth, flat and non-porous surface and slightly textured surfaces. The 8" suction cup works on four AA batteries with no manual pumping required. OTTOVAC has a built-in pressure sensor with an internal, smart, automatic start/stop function. When the vacuum in the base of the suction cup reaches -55kPa, the pump will automatically stop after a three-second delay, and when the vacuum level drops below -55kPa, the pump will automatically restart until reaching the required pressure during operation. OTTOVAC has a pressure gauge to monitor suction and a maximum lifting capacity of 220 lbs. OTTOVAC weighs 2.7 lbs. and comes with a plastic carrying case. Batteries are not included.

Mud Scrub is designed to quickly remove thinset mortar from mixing paddles and buckets. Instead of using your hands, attach the Mud Scrub to your mixing drill. No specialized bucket, drill or attachments are needed. Easily clean the bucket and paddle between mixes per the thinset manufacturers’ instructions. It saves on the cost of replacing buckets, mixing paddles and sponges and significantly reduces water consumption used for cleanup. Made in U.S.A.

iQ Power Tools

New for 2023 is the IQ 228 Cyclone 7” dry cut, tabletop, tile saw with integrated dust control for large-format tile. No water is required. No dust. Tile installers can cut in the same area where the material is being installed. It is lightweight at 36 lbs. and is easy to transport. Installers can rip cut 18” with a rolling table and 18” without a rolling table. It is ideal for backsplashes, bathrooms and showers. It meets OSHA requirements for silica PEL.

The CB-060 Cove Base Groover makes perfect grooves to form outside or inside corners on a wide variety of cove base profiles. The innovative design gives the installer the ability to quickly groove both toe and toeless cove base profiles with heights ranging from 2 ½" to 6 ¼". The grooving depth, grooving length and clamp tightness are all adjustable to allow for maximum precision and professional results.

Lignomat

It is important to keep track of moisture in the floor covering and subfloors and measure the relative humidity. All can be accomplished with the equipment in the V24-KM (+E16) package.

The Ligno-VersaTec is a pin/pinless-RH meter with multiple calibrations for different wood species and other materials. Accuracy and reliability are guaranteed through Lignomat’s measuring technology for moisture and humidity.

The depth electrode E12 allows for measuring subfloors without removing the floor planks. The inspect electrode E14 allows for measuring the hardest floor coverings such as strand bamboo. The electrode E16 is mainly used for probing concrete floors up to 7” deep with instant results. The basic accessories are included for testing concrete using the RH in-situ method. For measuring ambient conditions, the Ligno-VersaTec can be used as a precision, fast-acting thermo-hygrometer.

National Flooring Equipment

The newest walk-behind scraper from National Flooring Equipment is a game-changer. The Rogue is an all-electric scraper with precision steering, speeds up to 150 ft. per minute and fully adjustable blade angle at the touch of a button. Designed for hard and soft goods removal, this powerful scraper tops out at 465 lbs. with enough removable weight for easy transport up and down stairs.

QEP

The QEP Xtreme battery powered Electric Suction Cup retains its suction for up to 48 hours when its battery is fully charged. With holding strength of up to 220 lbs., a built-in sensor will automatically detect the air level in the vacuum and automatically operate to maintain its absorption power. The Xtreme Electric Suction Cup can be used in handling all non-porous materials including glass, granite and marble, ceramic and porcelain tiles, sheet metal, dry wall, hard surfaces and even household items. Protective cover is included with durable carrying case.

The Roberts 24" Steel Tool Box is built with a heavy-duty steel construction and a premium finish. It features a storage tray that doubles as a seaming weight, inset side handles for carrying and plenty of room to store all your flooring tools.

Roomvo

The Roomvo visualizer tool is designed for anyone who manufactures, sells, designs or installs residential and commercial interior products. Currently, Roomvo offers visualization of flooring, including tile and carpet, rugs, countertops, wallpaper, paint and even art.

Whether you are a flooring retailer or installer, the Roomvo visualizer tool allows customers access to all of the products you sell or install. Perhaps you are a flooring installer with a boutique showroom that offers up a curated selection of products. Those products can be uploaded to the visualizer tool and accessed by customers for free by way of the Roomvo widget placed on your site. Don’t have a website? Roomvo offers professional websites that include the visualizer tool, starting at $20 per month.

How It Works

Customers click the “See our products in your space” widget. A window opens that asks them to begin by selecting the product they wish to view in the space. They have the option to browse all of the products offered. Next, they take a photo of the space in which they wish to see the new products, or they can choose from a selection of preset images. Lastly, the new product or products auto populate the appropriate surface, allowing the customer to see a new floor or new rug.

The free Roomvo visualizer tool can be upgraded to offer a call to action to drive leads for $100 per month. This lead generation tool appears as a “Book Appointment” or “Free Flooring Estimate” button that opens up to a form, requesting contact information, which products the customer is interested in and the details of the project.

Rubi Tools

The new Slab Cutter G3 is a manual cutting system for hand cutting large-format porcelain tiles with thicknesses between 1/8" and 3/8" and up to 10 ft. long. Included is a scoring wheel carriage, adjustable pliers, three aluminum guides with two non-marking suction cups per guide and a carrying case.

Rubi TZ tile cutters represent a breakthrough in manually cutting tiles by combining the latest generation of materials and an innovative design. The Rubi TZ-1800 is the most advanced ceramic and porcelain tile cutter on the market with a breaking system that provides up to 3300 lbs. of pressure. The TZ series delivers smooth, accurate scoring due to the patented design of the head guidance system. Due to the increased popularity of large formats, Rubi developed the new TZ-1800 with the capability to cut tiles up to 70" straight and 47"x47" in diagonal.

Traxx

Traxx’s industry classic fixed blade carpet and utility knives have added a colorful safety coating. They have combined a non-slip colored safety coating with bright new colors—green, orange, pink and blue—for easy identification on the jobsite and in the tool box. Their angled design allows for precise control when making cuts. They feature blade storage in the handle, a d-ring closure and an internal foam blade lock on the carpet knife that prevents the stored blades from moving around and becoming dull.

Traxx Enhanced Seam Weight is now available in bright colors—green, orange, pink and blue—for easy identification on the jobsite. The original purpose of a seam weight was to compress the carpet backing into the seam tape adhesive. The enhanced purpose of a seam weight is to remove heat and moisture while compressing the carpet backing into the adhesive. Each weight contains 363 holes in the base to allow for the rapid release of heat and moisture. Each dumbbell weighs 12.5 lbs.

Wagner

Wagner’s Floor Sentry is an electronic, Bluetooth-enabled data logger for wood floors that helps you monitor the environmental conditions surrounding your engineered or solid wood floor. Whether your wood floor is in a home or a commercial building, when you use Floor Sentry you’ll know when there are any changes to its ambient environment. If either the temperature or the relative humidity falls outside the desired range for proper floor care, the Floor Sentry will alert you by automatically delivering a Bluetooth notification to your mobile device.

How It Works

Floor Sentry works by embedding a credit card-sized sensor on the underside of a wood floor plank. Once it’s installed it starts collecting temperature and relative humidity data via a wireless connection to the Wagner Sentry app.

Floor Sentry is small and can be installed in a shallow cavity on the underside of one floor plank. You can create this cavity by using a woodworker’s routing tool. Place the Floor Sentry in this cavity and then place the plank. The installation guide provides detailed instructions that will walk you through this.

Download the Wagner Sentry app. The app is available for both iOS and Android devices. Open the app, give the Floor Sentry device a unique name, make any necessary adjustments to the default settings, and then begin monitoring and data logging the temperature and relative humidity of the wood floor.

Wolff

The Railcut track tool with height adjustable blades allows one pass cutting on thicker vinyl and rubber flooring. With the built-in track, the use of a straight edge and knife are no longer needed. By pushing the tool on the rail to cut, the strain on the wrist and forearm from pulling the blade through materials, sometimes with several cuts, is eliminated. The blade height is adjustable, extending the life of the blade cutting tip.

Wolff Tools has created a hands-off approach to walk-behind floor strippers. The R/C controlled Robo Stripper allows the user to operate and remove flooring with the continued vibration from traditional walk-behind strippers. It’s weight and travel dolly allows it to transport easily. This module machine can be taken apart and transported by two individuals. The variable blade speed can create a more concentrated and forceful approach to removing stubborn flooring up to and including hardwood and most ceramics.