Learn How to Install Hardwood Floors _ DIY Projects

Wood floors are as beautiful as they are durable and installing it yourself can save money , but you need to prep your subfloor or your new flooring could have problems .

We'll show you the steps to prep a plywood subfloor .

First , you need to know how much flooring and materials you'll need , measure the room length times width to calculate the square footage add about 10% for mistakes or warped boards .

Next , remove the baseboards , carpet and tax strips .

If you have vinyl , you can install certain flooring right over it .

No matter what type of flooring you install , your sub floor has to be clean , dry level and structurally sound .

For glue down applications .

You need to remove any wax , paint adhesives or oils with a sander for floating and nail down floors .

You just need to clean up dust and debris .

What about odors from pet stains ?

Well , the best approach is to use a stain remover , then cover it with a primer sealer .

But keep in mind some glue down adhesives won't adhere to the sealer .

So check the instructions after you've cleaned your floor , check the moisture level .

A simple moisture meter will work just press the pins into your subfloor and check the reading .

Your flooring manufacturer's instructions will list acceptable readings .

If your moisture levels are too high .

Call a pro for help .

Oh , when working on plywood over concrete , check the levels of both floors .

After the moisture tests , check that the floor is level .

It shouldn't vary more than 3/16 inch every 10 ft , sand any high spots and fix low spots .

According to your floor type , typically on glued down and floating floors , you can apply leveling compound for nail down floors .

You can repair by reinforcing the joists or building up the low spots with £15 belts or MPS .

Your subfloor also needs to be strong and structurally sound , fix loose or creaky boards with wood or decking screws .

Of course , any major damage will need to be repaired too .

One more note for subfloor repairs .

Flooring typically looks best running along the longest wall in the room , but it should be perpendicular to the floor joists .

If it won't be , you can add another plywood layer to strengthen the floor .

Next , prep the doorways stack a piece of flooring on the underlayment and cut door casings about 1/16 inch above with the jams saw for doors , remove them and cut about 1/8 inch above .

When your subfloor is in good shape , you can put down the underlayment .

The type depends on your flooring installation for nailing solid hardwood or stapling engineered go with felt paper or grade D craft paper , roll it out , leaving the underlayment long at the ends , you'll trim it after you've installed the floor overlap , the seams about six inches and staple down for floating , engineered locking or laminate .

Use a two in one or three in one .

Typically , they have self adhesive scenes to join the pieces together for glue down floors .

The moisture barrier is usually part of the adhesive .

Some products even have the underlayment pre attached , but you might still need a moisture barrier .

One other thing , some engineered locking and laminate floors can go right over vinyl as long as it's not two layers thick .

Next step is to mark a starting line square to the room walls , however many walls are bowed or out of square .

So here's what you do , mark the center of each wall and snap lines between then measure from the center to the starting wall , subtract the expansion gap and mark this distance at the ends , snap a line between to get a straight line against the wall .

Now your subfloor is prepped .

Here's a quick overview of the installation , run the flooring along the length of the room with an expansion gap at the perimeter .

Solid hardwood expands and contracts stagger the joints at least six inches and also avoid h joints .

In other words , don't allow the joints to line up unless they are at least two rows apart .

It's smart to calculate the width of the last row too .

If it will be less than one inch , consider cutting the first row by half before you get started , determine how much flooring you'll need by multiplying the length times width of the room to get the square footage add about 10% extra for any warped or damaged boards .

When you have your flooring , let it acclimate to the room temperature and humidity for at least 72 hours .

Typically , you remove the flooring from the boxes and stack it in the room .

This is a good time to check for any warped or defective boards .

Hold on to them .

You can use the bad pieces to help pry the last row into place .

Also , you might be able to cut off the damaged parts and use the good pieces for your install .

When the flooring has acclimated , pick out the straightest boards for the first two rows , hold the first board on the starting line , you snapped during prep groove side toward the wall set spacers for the expansion gap , typically three quarter inches , face nail about half inch from the tongue side , starting about three inches from the ends and generally every six inches in between , we're using an air nail gun .

But drill pilot holes .

If you're using a hammer and nail set , tap the next piece in place with a tapping block and mallet and continue face nailing , you can fill the nail holes with matching floor putty later when you get to the end cut the board to fit .

Remember to account for the expansion gap place the board face up and cut with a flooring blade .

Then install now blind nail at a 45 degree angle every six inches .

If using a hammer and nails , be sure to drill pilot holes to start the second row , push the groove onto the tongue of the first row and tap the boards together with a tapping block .

Keep installing the next few rows this way , staggering the joints at least six inches .

It's a little slow now , but the installation will pick up once you have enough room to use a flooring nailer to use the flooring nailer , hold it against the flooring tongue and hit it with a hammer and hit it again and again .

Spacing the nails , continue installing the rest of the floor staggering the joints and maintaining the expansion gaps , mix boards from different boxes .

So you don't have patches of similar color or grains cut around any obstructions like vents or columns .

When you get to the last few rows where the flooring nailer won't fit blind nail where you can for the last two rows , you'll have to face nail along the tongue side to fit the very last row cut the pieces .

Keeping in mind the expansion gap , use a pole bar to wedge the pieces in place , then face .

Now , if the last strip will be less than one inch wide , glue it to the previous row .

Finish up by cutting the excess underlayment , filling nail holes with wood putty and reattaching the baseboards and shoe molding , attach the trim to the wall , not the floor , then add the transitions and it's finished .

Solid hardwood .

Definitely adds a rich look to this room .

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