5 Tips For A DIY Hardwood Flooring Installation
Are you adding hardwood flooring to your home and will attempt to do the installation yourself? If so, it will help to know these tips for installing various types of hardwood flooring.
Use Spacers Around The Room's Edges
Hardwood flooring will contract and expand when the temperature changes, which is why it's important that the floor has room to move. You'll want to use spacers around the room so that it is not flush with the wall. This small gap can help prevent problems with the flooring material, such as buckling because the wood has nowhere to go.
Let The Flooring Acclimate
Another way to prevent problems with your hardwood flooring is to allow the material to acclimate to your home's temperature and humidity. You'll want to simply set it in the home for several days so that it can make those slight changes to its size before you install it. This will prevent gaps from forming in the floor if the wood eventually contracts because it was stored in a hot environment that wasn't climate controlled.
Mix Up The Floorboards
It's possible that the bundles of the floorboard material have slightly different looks than the others. It could be due to the grain of the wood or even the color if you want to keep things natural. You'll want to mix up the boards so that you do not have all of the same types of wood grouped together. You then won't have an obvious place in the flooring where the material changes, since it will be blended nicely.
Level The Subfloor
You'll want to take the time to ensure that the subfloor is completely level before you move forward with installing the hardwood. If you have a concrete subfloor, you can use self-leveling concrete to even out the low spots. If you have a hardwood subfloor, you'll need to sand down those high spots so that the floor is even.
Lay The Boards Parallel With The Longest Wall
Confused about which direction to place the flooring material? It is always best to place the boards so that they are parallel with the longest wall. This will help make the installation process easier since there are fewer cuts that need to be made when the boards are installed in this orientation. That said, either direction is fine, but placing the boards perpendicular to the longest wall will be more work.
Contact a hardwood flooring contractor to learn more.