Solid Wood Floor Fitting Instrucion

Site conditions are extremely important and can make all the difference to a timber floor. The overall fabric (walls, floors, timber etc) of the building should be thoroughly dried out so that there are no visible signs of moisture or condensation. All wet work(concrete, plastering etc) must be completed and thoroughly dry before you even think of having the flooring delivered. It is crucial that any newly built or extended environment is dehumidified by either running the heating system for a prolonged period with good ventilation or alternatively a dehumidifier can be used.
The effects of heating and climate on stability
As mentioned before the timber needs to acclimatise
Expansion gaps are left around the perimeter of the floor
Seasonal variations and levels of heating may cause the timber to expand and contract. Small gaps may appear during winter when the heating is turned up, but these should close up again during the summer months. Timber kiln dried to 7-10% moisture content will react adversely to humidity levels below 35% and above 65% so for these extreme environments advice should be sought as to how suitable various products are.
Areas exposed to excessive variation in heat and humidity are not suitable for a solid timber floor, in this environment an engineered floor is more suitable.
Finishing
Unfinished boards generally need a light sanding with a finishing orbital sander and 120-150 grit paper. Vacuum to remove all dust and then using a finish of your choice seal the floor. Such as:
Osmo hard wax oil: very similar to treatex but with a slower rate of drying. Very easy to re-oil and to spot repair.
Bona Traffic: A 2pack waterborne 100% polyurethane floor lacquer, ideal for commercial and domestic areas subject to extremely high levels of use or where a very matt finish is required. Coverage = approximately 45-50m2 per 4.5ltr + .5ltr pack. Apply with a BonaKemi roller or other suitable applicator which must be dry when used.
Bona Mega: Single pack waterborne 100% polyurethane oxygen cross linking wood floor lacquer, ideal for commercial and domestic areas subject to heavy wear. Coverage approximately 45-50m2 per 5ltr can.
Maintenance
Always have a dust-attracting mat at entrance sites; this will prevent any sharp stones or dirt scratching the floor.
In a domestic situation a California mop will keep floors clean and dust free. Always vacuum, sweep or dry mop the floor before you clean with a maintenance product. Use felt pads on the feet of furniture to protect the floor from excessive scratching. We do have a comprehensive list of maintenance products in stock and we will give you all the advice, help and products you will need to keep your floors looking good.
In a commercial location a full maintenance schedule is available in many situations the manufacturer of the product sealing the timber will talk to and train the cleaning staff. Felt pads or other forms of protection need to be used on the feet or base of furniture to protect from excessive scratching of the floor. Heavy scratching will break seal of the lacquer causing damage to the timber by the ingress of dirt and moisture from cleaning.
If you maintain your floor, the original seal should remain intact and so should alleviate the need for re-sanding and sealing. This can be achieved through using polishes on lacquered floors and regular oiling/cleaning of oiled floors.
Installation guide
Fitting instructions
Nail down method onto existing floor boards, plywood, chipboard, floor joists or batons
Suitable products:
All Engineered and solid wood floors.
Fitting instructions: Nail down method
Once the room has been measured and an allowance made to cover wastage, the moisture content of the sub floor and walls checked and the sub floors confirmed as clean, dry and flat: -
We recommend that you should lay heavy duty bitumen backed builders paper under all nail down installations as a precaution against cupping due to damp ingress
Plan floors usually work best when laid down the longest wall length
Make sure that you inspect each board before you install it
The groove of the floor is laid against the wall
A gap must be left between the boards and the perimeter wall / skirting
This gap is called an expansion gap and must be a minimum of 10mm
Plastic spacers are available to create this gap on your starter row
Now lay your first row against the wall
Use a Powernail nailer with 38mm L nails for floorboards, board products and 50mm for joists
The Powernail nailer needs to be properly set up to fire the nail into the correct position and depth into tongue
It is also important that the floorboard is not too tightly fixed to the subfloor again this is part of the Powernail nailer setup
Nail every 250mm along the board for floorboards/board products or into every joist/baton
The support from the grooves on the ends of each board means that they do not have to end on a floor joist/baton
Use the off cut from the last board to start the next row, making sure that the ends of the next row of boards are staggered at least 400mm from the previous row. A parquet clamp is useful for fitting these first few rows
Any damaged boards can be cut in half and also used to start new rows
Continue across the floor until you reach the last row
Cut the last row of boards to leave a 10mm gap and then use a parquet clamp to edge the final row of boards into place
You can install skirting, scotia and L/T section or Reducer as required
Your floor should now be properly protected until it is ready for handover
For solid boards over 160mm wide we recommend that you follow the instructions above with additional use of wooden adhesive if over concrete, flooring grade chipboard/ply needs to be installed.

Fitting instructions: Glue down method
Onto plywood or chipboard (with no under-floor heating) or onto concrete (with no under-floor heating)
Suitable products:
All solid wood and engineered wood floors.
Wood blocks and hand made panels
For installation over concrete please follow the additional preparation instructions as detailed below:
For all installations a minimum of one coat of primer should be used
For sub-floors with a RH greater than 2% (and less than 5%) you will need to use two coats of primer
For sub-floors with an RH greater than 5% please call for our specific recommendations
Fitting instructions
Once the room has been measured an allowance made to cover wastage, the moisture content of the sub-floor and walls checked and the sub-floors confirmed as clean, dry and flat:
Your sub-floor should now be clean, dry and level
Plank floors usually work best when laid down the longest wall length
For wood blocks/panels you will need to work out where the central axis of the room runs. laying strings from corner to corner will assist this.
We advise that you glue several rows of planks at a time
Pre-cut these rows, making sure that the board lengths are staggered to ensure that the ends of different boards do not match up
Use the off cut from the last board to start the next row, making sure that the ends of the next row of boards are staggered at least 400mm from the previous row. A parquet clamp is useful for fitting these first few rows
Any damaged boards can be cut in half and also used to start new rows
A gap must be left between the boards and the perimeter wall/skirting
This gap is called an expansion gap and must be a minimum of 10mm.
Plastic spacers are available to create this gap on your starter row
Make sure that this gap remains even at doorways
Once the first few rows of boards are ready it is time to spread the wooden adhesive
The wooden adhesive needs to be spread using a fine notched trowel-3mm
Work across the floor using this method of pre-cutting, gluing and then installing
Once the floor is complete clean off any adhesive residues before fully hardened
You can install skirting, scotia and L/T sections or Reducers as required
Your floor should now be properly protected until it is ready for handover
For solid boards over 160m wide we recommend that you follow the instructions above with additional nail fixings at 200mm centres. If over concrete flooring grade chipboard needs to be installed

Fitting instructions : Floating method
Onto plywood, chipboard or concrete with no under-floor heating
Suitable products:
All 14mm and 20mm engineered wood floors
Never float a solid wood floor
Fitting instructions
Once the room has been measured and an allowance made to cover wastage, the moisture content of the sub-floor and walls checked and the sub floors confirmed as clean, dry and flat:-
Your sub-floor should now be clean dry and level
If the RH of the sub floor is higher than 2% you must use a underlay with a built in moisture barrier (polyprotect used with adhesive tape or universal with an integrated moisture barrier and sound reduction
Plank floors usually work best when laid down the longest wall length
You will need to glue tongue and grooved based products along the top of the tongue on both the sides and ends with d3 adhesive
Click system floors do not require any glue
Make sure that you inspect each board before you install it
The groove of the floor is laid against the wall
A gap must be left between the boards and the perimeter wall/skirting
This gap is called an expansion gap and must be a minimum of 10mm
Plastic spacers are available to create this gap on your starter row
Now lay your first row against the wall and continue down the floor
Use the off cut from the last board to start the next row making sure that the ends of the next row of boards are staggered at least 400mm from the previous row a parquet clamp is useful for fitting these first few rows
Any damaged boards can be cut in half and also used to start new rows
Continue across the floor until you reach the last row
Cut the row of boards to leave a 10mm gap and then use a pulling iron to edge the final row of boards into place
You can install Skirting, Scotia and L/T sections and Reducers as required
Your floor should now be properly protected until it is ready for handover

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