Architects and Designer Wooden Hardwood Flooring Projects
Wood Floor Specification
Timber, Forestry Resource and Wood Flooring Guide
Wood Flooring Display at The Building Centre London
What is Engineered Wood Flooring and why use it
Fitting Methods
Wood Flooring Fitting Services
Custom Finishes
Why choose wood flooring
Fitting Solid Wood Floors
Fitting Engineered Hardwood Floors how to do it and all the potential pitfalls including fititng over underfloor Heating
Wood Flooring for Underfloor Heating
Fitting under Skirting Boards
Replacing a floor board in the middle of a floor
Sanding a wooden floor without dust
Creating a White Wood Floor
Applying Blanchon and WOCA oils for wooden floors
Bona Refresher Application
Using Bona Adhesive
Wood Flooring Advice
Oiled Wooden Floor that is sticky
How to Clean a really grubby dirty Brushed and UV Oiled Oak Floor with one of our maintenance kits
WOCA Softwood Lye & Brazil Brown Finish
How to deal with concrete floors when laying wood flooring
Wood Flooring Grading and Type Test Results
Wooden Floor Videos and fitting wooden flooring
Basements and Wood Flooring
Water and Wood Moisture and Humidity

Wood Flooring Sustainability ...more info
Technical Specification Documents ...more info
Sub Floors and their inherent problems for wood flooring ...more info
WOCA Oiled Finished Wood Flooring ...more info
Parquet Wood Flooring for use with underfloor heating ...more info
EAZY FIT Parquet Flooring fitting costs ...more info
Micro Bevel and Square Edged Wood Flooring ...more info
WOCA Oils from Wood Care Denmark ...more info
WOCA Wood Floor Maintenance Kits ...more info
Fitting Wood Floors beneath Skirting Boards ...more info
Fitting Engineered Hardwood Floors how to do it and all the potential pitfalls including fititng over underfloor Heating

BEFORE INSTALLATION

Make sure that the cartons are stacked horizontally and flat. All our boards are kiln dried to 7% to 9% moisture content and the plywood base has also been dried to “balance” the boards at the manufacturing stage. Engineered boards do not need to acclimatise (except when you have underfloor heating UFH) and should be installed immediately after delivery. Do not store them in a humid or damp environment where there may still be wet screed or plaster. By installing soon after delivery you will ensure that an engineered board will maintain its stability and give you a trouble free installation. If you cannot lay the floor immediately then leave the cartons stacked with the shrink wrap film in place.
 
You must test the relative humidity of the environment the floor is to be laid in and also the moisture content of any sub floor or screed must be less than 4% this is our latest level after extensive research on floors that have been fitted over a long period.

 

The following is very important
  • All wet trades such as plastering and wallpapering must be finished
  • All the plaster must be totally dry
  • Floor and wall tiles have been installed for at least 2 weeks
  • Radiators have been bled with any leaks rectified
  • The concrete sub floor has a moisture content of less than 4%
  • All windows and doors are fully fixed
  • All painting is completed
  • All other trades have finished

 In most homes we now have concrete floors and they should be checked for damp proof courses and humidity.

 

UFH

If you have any type of hot water system you must acclimatise engineered wood flooring and commission the system carefully. Please go the section on wood flooring for UFH. 

 

SUB FLOORS

The surface should be firm, clean, level and grease free. If there is some possibility of dampness then use the Bona R410 to seal the floor IF YOU HAVE BITUMEN on the floor or R580 for all other DPM applications. If the concrete floor is uneven by more than 4mm then you can use a self levelling compound but in this case you will not be able to glue the floor down as the glue may cause the levelling compound to break away.
 
In older houses there is normally an air gap below the joists, in this case lay a damp proof membrane below before installing your engineered floor to ensure that the floor stays warm and will not absorb the moisture below.
 
Where you are fixing to old floor boards you must make sure that they are firmly fixed and that there are no loose boards or protruding nails.
 

If you want to lay your new floor over an existing one then add screws to the old boards as well as nails to make it secure

If you want to take the old floor boards up then make sure the joists are sound and remove all the nails you can.

If the old floorboards are substandard and you want to lay the new boards in the same direction then either get extra wide boards or screw down a plywood sub base on which you can then glue down your new floor. This will ensure that you do not get “creaky” boards and your new floor will be completely flat and secure.

If you lay your new floor directly onto existing boards in the same direction you are likely to get problems in the future unless they are wide boards which will cross over any join. Normally it is always best to lay the boards length ways in a room and not across the shortest space.
 

Environment: Engineered Wood Flooring will still react to changes in the environment, such as fluctuations in temperature and humidity but it will be much more stable than solid wood. Therefore, during installation of engineered wood floors, it is important to allow the boards to have sufficient space (at least a 5mm to 8mm gap) around the perimeter of the room to allow for this natural expansion of a wooden floor. This can be achieved by laying the floor before putting the skirting board on, or leaving a gap of 20.5mm under the skirting board, this will ensure that there is sufficient space for the wood to “move” which it does due to it being a natural material.

 

The installer assumes all responsibility for final inspection as to grade, manufacture and factory finish. This inspection of all flooring must be done before installation. Carefully examine the flooring for colour, finish and quality before installing it. The installer must use reasonable selectivity and hold out or cut off pieces with deficiencies, whatever the cause. If the material is not acceptable, do not install it and contact us immediately.
 
Prior to installation of any hardwood-flooring product, the installer must determine that the job-site environment and the sub-surfaces involved meet or exceed all applicable standards. Recommendations of the construction and materials industries as well as local codes must be followed. These instructions recommend that the construction and sub-floor be dry, stiff and flat. The manufacturer declines any responsibility for job failure resulting from, or associated with, sub-surface, sub flooring or job-site environmental deficiencies.
 
Prior to installation, the installer/owner has the final inspection responsibility as to grade, manufacture and factory finish. The installer must use reasonable selectivity and hold out or cut off pieces with deficiencies, whatever the cause.
  • Use of stain, filler or putty stick for touch-up during installation should be accepted as normal procedure.
  • When flooring is ordered, at least 8% must be added to the actual square meterage needed for cutting and grading allowance.
  • Should an individual piece be doubtful as to the grade, manufacture or factory finish, the installer should not use the piece.
  • Use of appropriate products for correcting subfloor voids should be accepted as normal industry practice.
  • Industry standards allow a 5% defect allowance in manufacture.