Installation Instructions For Engineered Hardwood Flooring
PLEASE READ THE ENTIRE INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE PROCEEDING WITH THE INSTALLATION.
PRE-FITTING
Hardwood flooring is a beautiful and unique product of nature, which is characterized by distinctive variations in grain and colors. These natural variations in color and grain are not flaws, but are a part of the natural beauty and uniqueness of hardwood flooring. These inherent variations should be expected and serve to enhance the natural beauty and enduring charm. Our flooring are manufactured in accordance with accepted industry standards, which permit a defect tolerance not to exceed 5%. The defects may be of a manufacturing or natural type.
It is necessary that the flooring to be laid is left to acclimatize in the packaging (at room temperature) for at least 48-72 hours, lie horizontal and flat – at the ideal relative humidity level of 45%.
The room should be dry, if the building is a new building with a concrete floor, wait until the floor is completely dry （Please check the drying time information with the supplier if not sure about it）. The flooring should be laid at a minimum room temperature of 15ºC and a maximum of 22ºC.
The greatest possible care is taken to produce your floor. However, we advise you to check the boards for visible defects such as damage, deviations in shape or dimensions. No complaints regarding these visible defects will be considered after the boards have been laid. Make sure you have good lighting while laying the floor.
OWNER / INSTALLER RESPONSIBILITY
• The consumer and installer assumes all responsibility for final inspection of product quality. If the flooring is not acceptable, contact your dealer immediately.
• Inspect ALL materials carefully BEFORE installation. Warranties & Claims DO NOT cover materials with visible defects once they are installed. It is the responsibility of the installer to determine if the job site sub-floor and job site conditions are environmentally and structurally acceptable for wood flooring installation. We cannot accept responsibility for job failure resulting from and associated with a deficient sub-floor, job-site environment, temperature or climate in which the flooring is to be laid.
• Before beginning installation of any hardwood flooring product, the installer must determine that the environment of the job site and the condition and type of the subfloor involved are acceptable, ensuring that it meets or exceeds all requirements which are stipulated in the installation instructions which follow. We declines any responsibility for job failure resulting from or associated with inappropriate or improperly prepared subfloor or job site environment deficiencies.
• Prior to installation, the installer/owner has final inspection responsibility as to grade, manufacture and factory finish. The installer must use reasonable selectivity and hold out or cut off pieces with deficiencies.
• The use of stain, filler or putty stick for the correction of defects during installation should be accepted as normal procedure.
• Should an individual piece be doubtful as to grade, manufacture or factory finish, the installer should not use the piece.
• When our hardwood flooring is ordered, a 5 % allowance factor, depending on layout, must be added to the actual square footage amount needed. (Diagonal installations and/or board width of 5″ and over may require up to a 10 % allowance factor.)
• Please note that our engineered floors must be installed in environments of 40% to 55% relative humidity and temperature 15-22 ºC to prevent possible damage not covered by warranty. Installation of a humidifier or dehumidifier may be necessary. The floor is designed to perform in an environmentally controlled structure. Warranty exclusions are, but not limited to, surface checking resulting from low humidity, mildew or discoloration resulting from extreme sub-floor moisture.
PREPARATION
Our engineer flooring can be laid over a variety of surfaces (concrete, plywood, joists) and even over existing level wooden floorboards. Sub floor must be dry, level and with good load-bearing properties. Moisture content of the subfloor should be 9% (with a tolerance of 2%). You should first check that there are no loose pieces, should any be found, these need to be screwed down.
If the base is concrete, its humidity should be less than 3% and the mortar should be evenly set. If the floor is to be laid in a new building, the rooms should be enclosed with the windows closed. The temperature should be kept between 15-22 ºC to prevent possible damage not covered by warranty. Moreover, to acclimate our product in your home, power has to be hooked up with heating and air conditioning running. All “wet” trades should be finished and the relative humidity in the premises should be between 35% and 55% – the humidity of the plasterworks and paintwork should be less than 5%.
Our engineer flooring is generally compatible with the most common water based under floor heating systems (check with your supplier for further details).
Staple Down Installation
Make sure subfloor is tested for moisture content first and is properly prepared. Use air stapler/nailer with the appropriate naildown adapter (or a stapler/nailer of your choice) to make sure that stapling/nailing will not cause dimpling in the finished floor. Use the correct gauge nail/cleat/staple.
For the first and second starting rows: Lay first plank inside chalk line with grooved edge toward wall. Install entire first row in the same manner. Always leave at least a 5/8” expansion space between flooring and all walls and vertical objects (such as pipes and cabinets). Use wood or plastic spacers during installation to maintain this expansion space. In order to affix these first rows, as it is difficult to get the nail gun in place next to the wall, you may wish to set these rows first with screws and later replacing the boards and glue them down rather than simply face nailing them and leave unsightly nail holes which must be putty filled to match the wood floor. After gluing down these starting rows with a urethane adhesive set weight on top of these rows and allow them to set before commencing stapling/nailing the additional rows, as nailing the adjacent rows may cause the starting rows to subsequently move. Make sure the starting rows are straight and drawn tight.
Subsequent rows: Lay by using floor nailer/stapler to blind-nail top inside edge of tongue at a 45 degree angle. Nail each board every 6-8” and within 2” of each end. Remember to stagger end joints from row to row and use a tapping block to fit boards together. It may be necessary to face-nail in doorways or tight areas where the nailer/stapler can’t fit, (or glue down in these areas and weight them while the mastic sets). The last two rows will need to be face-nailed, (or glued down), in the same manner as the first two rows.
WARNING – Stapling/nailing can cause dimpling on the face if stapled incorrectly. Always make sure to visually check the installed floor as you go to ensure that the stapling/nailing is not causing dimpling on the face. (Note: be sure to look at the face of the installed flooring at a low angle from a distance to see if dimpling is occurring as it is hard to see when directly above the floor.) If dimpling does occur, STOP and adjust the stapler/nailer shoe and angle/place of staple entry in order to avoid it. We are not responsible for dimpling.
STEP BY STEP – “FLOATED FLOOR INSTALLATION”
1. Start with a clean, level floor which has the appropriate humidity for installation. To improve sound insulation and enhance walking comfort, a foam underlay should be laid at right angles to the direction of the floor being laid.
2. If laying over a concrete base, it is recommended that a polythene membrane* (Must be damp proved) is laid first and the moisture content of the concrete must measure no more than 8-10%. *only applicable to floated floor installations
3. For best effect, boards should be laid lengthwise pointing towards the incoming light (e.g. from a window). Plan to lay the first two rows of boards from left to right, grooved edge to the wall, with spacers between boards and the wall as well as both ends of each row. Allow for a minimum of 14mm Expansion gap around the outside of the room. 7.5 M is the maximum width one piece floor. If the wood goes wider than 7.5M, the extra expansion gap should be applied for all sides.
4. If the wall is not straight or is uneven, scribe and cut the boards to the contour of the wall. To complete the first row, measure the length of the last board (including the spacer) and saw to size.
5. If the off cut from this board is 40cm or more it should be used to begin the next row – if you do not have an off cut begin the next row by cutting a new board into two uneven lengths and use one to start the second row.
6. Use a plumb line to ensure that both rows are straight – when satisfied proceed to glue.
7. Apply PVA adhesive to the tongue and end butts – it is important to use adequate adhesive. Using the tapping block and/or pull iron, press the joints together – allow the first two rows to settle and adhesive to dry before proceeding further.
8. The rest of the floor can now be glued and laid.
9. Ensure that the boards are all laid straight and even, leaving spacers at all edges (these will later be removed and the space created covered by skirting and/or beading).
10. It is usual for there not to be space to fit a full width board at the last row so it will be necessary to make a longitudinal cut – the cutting of this last board may be helped by simply using another board as a scribe and cutting guide.
11. Press the last board into place with the pull iron remembering to put a spacer between the board and the wall.
12. Allow 12 hours for the glue to set. Remove all spacers to leave the expansion free.
13. The skirting board which covers the expansion space and gives the finishing touch to the installation, can now be fixed in place (to the wall only and not to the floor).
ALTERNATIVE INSTALLATION METHODS – “FULL GLUE DOWN”
Our engineer flooring can be glued directly to the chosen substrate. Preparation of the subfloor should be the same as above. A suitable flooring adhesive must be used and advice taken from your supplier.
When choosing a full glue down method there is no need to glue the tongues of the boards with PVA. It is recommended that a flexible adhesive is used as this will reduce the stresses transferred to the subfloor by the natural movement of the timber floor.
Please seek professional advice before proceeding with this installation method as it is difficult to rectify any problems once the flooring has been laid.
And please notice that all Engineered Wood flooring is NOT WARRANTED for use over radiant heat. Moreover, if you decide to cover the floor, (to allow the other construction trades to continue working), in order to protect the floors prior to final clean-up and turnover to the owner, use rosin paper which has good air permeability to cover the floors. Do NOT USE plastic film or other non-breathing type coverings as this can cause the floor to become damaged from humidity build-ups.
PLEASE CONSULT A PROFESSIONAL IF UNSURE OF HOW TO PROCEED；THE FACTORY WARRANTY WILL NOT COVER THE FLOORING IF ANY INSTANLLATION WERE DONE BY THE WRONG WAY MENTIONED ABOVE.
