We get asked by a lot of customers whether they can install solid wood flooring themselves, and the simple answer is yes. Our wood flooring is simple to lay in most scenarios and we’re always more than happy to guide you through the process. Each floor varies depending on the subfloor you’re laying onto, but there are a few fundamental tips to follow along the way.
Picking Your Profile.....
Our flooring is available in either a tongue and groove profile, or a square edge profile. This is purely a floor layers choice. Our tongue and groove profile is purely for locating the board, and shouldn’t be used as a fixing tongue. This means that you can’t depend on the tongue and groove to hold any weight of the floor. 75% of our customers opt for a tongue and groove profile through preference. You can read more about our profiles here.
Take Your Time.....
Getting the first board perfectly straight is at the most important part of laying a solid wood flooring yourself. You will be using this first board as a guide for the rest of the floor, and so taking your time to fix this one straight is very important. Fix this board firmly as you will be levering other boards up against it.
Clamping.....
Once the first board is fixed, use a clamp and spreader to clamp up the next adjacent board. When laying our mixed width flooring, there is a useful bit of information to read here.
Try to use more than two clamps along the length of the board to get a nice parallel fit. When clamped, use your fixings to screw through the face of the board and int the subfloor below.
It isn’t always possible to use clamp and spreader bars, so gently tapping with a wooden mallet will ensure a tight fit.
Think About The Board Ends ......
Some of the ends will need cutting on a cross cut to fit back to joists or walls and it is important that the ends of all the boards are supported on a joist. Joists are often at 400mm centres to one another (or thereabouts). If possible, when finishing a board length on a joist, try not to finish on the same joist for the next run of flooring. This will look more aesthetically pleasing once complete.
Have your Tools Ready.....
You will need a few key tools along the way when laying your solid wood flooring including your tape measure, cross cut, fixings, drill, PPE, oils and finishings. Make sure you’re prepared and have everything ready and waiting before the arrival of flooring. You don’t want to have to stop the work half way through due to lack of tools.
An expansion gap around the edge of the room is an important consideration when it comes to the minor seasonal movement of the boards.
Sanding and Finishing ......
Once laid, we’d advise sanding your solid wood floor and then using a hardware oil finish such as Fiddes Oil or Osmo Oil. These penetrating oils are hardwearing and produce polished feel that won’t chip in time. It’s not strictly necessary to sand your flooring, but there will be tiny steps between some of the boards which feel more comfortable underfoot of sanded.
Check Your Sub Floor With Us.....
Each floor needs to be treated independently and the subfloor must always be taken into consideration. We are able to give tailored advice about the install of solid wood flooring yourself once we know more about your project. Do give our friendly workshop a call today and see how we can help advise how to install solid wood flooring yourself.
