Real Projects

Project overview

With so many flooring options available and at a wide range of prices, this beginner do-it-yourself couple knew that covering approximately 700 sqft (~65 m2) of their unfinished basement floor was going to be no easy task.

What they had

A below grade basement with an exposed concrete floor that had been cured for approximately two years. A home office and entertainment/bar area was planned for their finished space.

What they wanted

A mid-priced flooring product that would be suitable for a high-wear environment, relatively easy to install, low maintenance and would be able to last at least 10 years. They also wanted a product that would compliment their intended use and style of the space.

What they chose

A floating engineered hardwood floor was chosen due to its practical and economical qualities such as do-it-yourself installation, a lower per square foot price compared to other alternatives (solid hardwood and carpet) and they felt it had a more appealing look and feel than laminate. The engineered hardwood floor was also desirable as it did not require a wood sub-floor which would help to maximize the finished ceiling height.

Tools and materials used for this project

Their installation recommendations

Preparing the sub-floor

Before installing the engineered hardwood we had to first prepare the concrete floor. The flooring manufacturers will provide detailed sub-floor requirements, but generally speaking, your sub-floor surface needs to be clean and dry, mainly level and tested for moisture.

Laying the underlayment

After preparing the sub-floor we had to apply an underlay. An underlay is required if you are installing the engineered hardwood directly to concrete and not to a wood-built sub-floor. We used a three-in-one underlay which provides vapor/moisture protection and acoustic/sound dampening. This process was easy and all you have to do is roll out each row of underlay next to the first, making sure the ends wrap at least 2 inches up the walls and that you tape the butt joints to create a good seal. It is very important that there are absolutely no open seams, tears or holes in the underlay as any moisture wicked up through the concrete will cause damage to the hardwood, even through the smallest of openings.

Laying the engineered floor

The mid-range, engineered flooring product we selected had individual board measurements of 9/16" x 71/2" x 48". An additional feature of this product was that each piece had a self-activating, "double locking" system, which meant the friction of tapping the tongues and grooves together heated the adhesive and created a bond eliminating any additional gluing or nailing.

Other important points on the installation as we experienced are as follows:

• Firstly, ensure that you are dealing with a square surface, or make the appropriate angle cuts on your first row to ensure squareness as you proceed (specific tips on this can be found in the installation guides of the manufacturers' product).
• Measure, measure, measure and then cut/install. Measure to figure out how many pieces you need to run for each row; both the length and depth of the area being covered. There are minimum lengths and widths that you want to use, so some simple calculations are required to ensure a successful project.
  
  
• Staggering of rows. Again, use the manufacturers' installation guides to best gauge how to stagger the rows to ensure an ideal look. General rule of thumb is to use a three-row staggering pattern.
• You will need to ensure a 3/8" - 1/2" perimeter away from all walls, pipes, or other objects to allow for expansion and contraction of the flooring material. Use spacers to ensure that a consistent expansion gap is maintained.
  
  
• Use a coping saw to handle the more complex or notched cuts.
• Start with the groove side of the board facing the beginning wall as you want to avoid having to use the tapping or pull bars against the tongues, which can be susceptible to cracking or breaking, even when you apply distributed force.
  
  
• Angled areas that require angled cuts tend to be the most difficult. Start with a square area to allow yourself to get the hang of installing the product first before moving to these more difficult spots (if applicable).
• It may seem obvious, but always install the engineered hardwood floor first before you install baseboards or moldings. Ensure that your baseboards and/or moldings are wider than the required expansion space (greater than 3/8" - 1/2") or unsightly gaps could result.
• Purchase extra boxes of the flooring product (approximately 10% of the overall area being covered) and your necessary matching transition pieces. This will give you enough material to make some mistakes or repairs later on and will ensure that if the product is discontinued or harder to obtain, you have a matching product to continue with (more applicable if your installation is going to take awhile).
• Store the engineered wood in the space where you will be doing the install, at least for a couple of weeks to allow it to acclimatize to the environmental conditions. Do not open the flooring material unless you plan on installing it right away. Leaving the flooring exposed for extended periods of time can cause expansion of the tongues/grooves and subsequent difficulty in installation.

Final piece of advice

If we had to do it again we would do more product research and spend more time looking for a higher quality product. While the product we used was adequate for a basement/recreation area it would not have been sufficient quality for a main floor living space. As the old saying goes, "you get what you pay for!"

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