DIY Network

Hardwood Flooring From "10 Things You Must Know" episode DTEN-102

Here are the 10 Things You Must Know about hardwood flooring.

advertisement

Hardwood Flooring Countdown

10. When installing wood floors, you don't have to finish. There are two different types of flooring you can purchase: unfinished and pre-finished. Pre-finished is a faster and less labor intensive alternative to unfinished flooring. Because the finish is already applied, pre-finished flooring simply needs to be installed. However, the extra time and work required for unfinished flooring does pay off. As any expert can tell you, the beauty of a sanded and finished hardwood floor can't be matched with pre-finished flooring.

9. A solid installation begins at the base. The quality of your finished floor is directly related to the quality of your subfloor. While the subfloor doesn't necessarily have to be perfectly level, it does need to be perfectly flat. If the subfloor has any imperfections, your finished floor will be noticeably wavy and probably squeak. Typically, the subfloor is constructed with 1/2" – 3/4" plywood.

8. Cover the noise with a little paper. The last thing you want is a brand new, beautiful hardwood floor...that squeaks. In addition to making sure your floor is flat and free of imperfections, there is an additional step you can take to prevent squeaks in the floor. Put down a layer of Rosin paper on top of your subfloor to prevent any noisy wood-on-wood contact.

7. Nail your boards tight and keep your back loose. Wood flooring requires a special nail gun that hides the nails in the tongue of the board called a blind nailer. It's highly recommended you use a pneumatic blind nailer. The installation of hardwood flooring is no easy task and you should be giving yourself all the help you can get. Pneumatic blind nailers are relatively inexpensive to rent and the benefit definitely outweighs the cost.

6. Your entire floor rests on the first board you install. The first board in any floor installation is extremely critical. If it's slightly off, the error will grow exponentially as you lay more boards. Spend extra time on your first board and continue to check the boards to make sure they're square as you move across the floor.

5. Buy extra stock and save the puzzling for another weekend. If you're a novice floor installer, it's essential to have extra wood because you're going to make mistakes. However, even professionals buy extra stock. Flooring comes in a variety of lengths and if you don't buy extra, you could find yourself wasting time trying to piece together an impossible puzzle. Always purchase about 30% more flooring than you actually need.

4. Before you get your feet wet, do a dry lay. Practice makes perfect and hardwood floors are no exception. Instead of diving in head first, lay out your floor before you start nailing it. It will allow you to plan where you use the longest pieces of your flooring and catch problems before you get started.

3. Your final finish shouldn't be your first. Finishing a floor is no easy task. You'll need to rent a great deal of equipment, put in a great deal of hard work and do it with the proper touch to make sure it looks right. If you've never finished a floor before, your new floor shouldn't be your practice canvas. Get practice before you attempt to put a finish on your new hardwood floors.

2. Pull yourself out of a jamb. When you install new flooring, you often raise the height of the existing floor, which can cause problems near door jambs. In order to raise your door jambs without tearing up your knuckles, you'll need a special tool called a Japanese pull saw. The saw cuts on the pull stroke allowing you to get close to the floor and remove a small part of your door jamb.

1. Procrastinate and allow the wood to acclimate. Wood will expand and contract with changes in the environment. If your stock comes from a 95 degree warehouse and your home is 72 degrees, the wood is eventually going to contract in the cooler environment. It's for this reason that you need to give your wood a few days to get used to the temperature and humidity level in your home. Allowing the wood to acclimate is extremely important because if you don't, it will acclimate on your floor and cause gaps and/or buckling.