Hey Folks Hoping someone can advise as I'm running into all sorts of conflicting advice on the internet. We've got builders in who amongst other work are due to be laying down engineered wood over old, existing floorboards. Firstly, our wood supplier convinced us to purchase underlay (Tredaire Technics 5) which might be due to us being in a 1st floor flat. I'm assuming this is probably a sensible idea but any impartial advice would be appreciated. However, our builder was planning on nailing down the new boards but the supplier has said this would be a bad idea, as we'd create tiny indentations in the underlay that could cause problems down the line. After telling the builder this, he agreed to float the boards instead. He then came back and is claiming you can use a 2mm MDF over the underlay to prevent the indentations whilst still using nail down. I haven't found evidence of this so am asking for advice here. Has anyone heard of or used this method before? I would add that so far I have found the builder to be decent and trustworthy so I have no reason to doubt him completely. Any advice to help clear up this matter would be greatly appreciated! Thanks Fleabo
Hi Biggest mistake you did was give a builder a flooring job. How thick is the engineered? Your woo Also 2mm MDF . Hope that's a joke.
You cannot nail on compressive underlay the nails will eventually work loose.Also if you nail through the underlay you will bridge the acoustic properties of the underlay causing impact noise to resinate through to the property below.
Thanks @TonyA @Diesel10 So, yes the intention was to nail through the MDF, through the underlay, onto the floorboards underneath. Sounds like this isn't recommended. For reference, Diesel10, the engineered wood is 20mm thick.
@TonyA I couldn't say that they are. They're very old, very gappy and definitely uneven but to what deviation I don't know for sure. They were also at some point in the past riddled with woodworm and the builder has replaced the worst planks with new ones. The builder also clarified it's 2mm hardwood not MDF he's planning to use over the underlay. His argument for nailing down the wood is to prevent movement after long term use and is willing to glue the wood together if that's my preference.
Different fitters have different ways of fitting wood . If this was my job I would 6mm sp101 plywood with ringshank nails And then glue the floor down with F ball B95. I wouldn't use underlay Might not be the cheapest method but I've never had a issue with any floors this way. As you have spent good money (assuming) on the wood you might as well spend a little extra on the fit. By finding a local reputable flooring company.
Thanks for the advice @Diesel10. I think we are certainly going to consider that. But fast forward from now, imagine our floor has been laid. This being the first time we've ever had this done, how do we know if the fitters did a good job? What are the signs to look for?
Hmm good question . Well couple of things 1. If there is many rooms and he has fitted all in one without door bars = naughty 2. Have they left a gap all the way around the room? Expansion gap approx 10mm 3. Have the architrave frames been cut to put floor underneath to make it look clean? Have they used filler anywhere around ? 4. The board butt end joints are they randomly staggered? Do they have a repeat pattern ? 5. I can't think how else - my minds not working .. I'm ill Send some pics
Has he fitted it with grip fill = bad Is your floor creaking like an old door = bad Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Don't let anyone nail that floor until you are certain your lease allows you.If your lease says no floor unless you use "their recommended" acoustic solution and you lay it regardless you can be forced to remove it at your expense.
The only way to fit this properly is to plane any peaks in the floorboards, make sure all floorboards are firmly fixed then min 6mm flooring grade ply and either secret nail (if the boards are over 120mm wide and less than 150mm wide) or prime the ply and fully adhere with a suitable adhesive again directly to the floor.
