Following on from my discussion re. cutting engineered floor out from under my kitchen units (see this link) viewtopic.php?f=67&t=5113&p=13133#p13133 I want to say thanks for your advice and ask for some more please. Is it true that each room should be laid as a separate entity? If so what is the best way to level an individual room like the hall? We want to take up the floor here first to experiment with the creaking and make sure that it is the unlevel floor that is causing it before ripping out the whole house. Also, I mentioned before that the underlay used was this green stuff from Wickes. Is this adequate or is it worth using a more superior one. Is it possible that the creaking can be resolved with a new underlay? As I said before you can actually see the floor bouncing up and down when it's walked on. Do you think that the click lock floor will come apart easily, I remember it needed bashing together? And finally, should we be glueing the boards as well? Sorry for so many questions but we can't seem to get a conclusive answer anywhere else and we just want the floor to be quiet Thanks so much for your help. I am so upset about this floor, it has been such a disappointment. I hope it's not just a bad quality product.
Could you take a picture of the tongue and groove of the product and post up here please. As for running through door ways. Its safer to break up in door ways. However, a professional that understands on how wood works and can do the maths on how much expansion is needed can normally run the flooring through doorways. But sometimes its just not possible due to sizes of areas etc. As for leveling the areas. Have a look here, this should give you a idea of different methods of leveling floors - viewtopic.php?f=32&t=368
sounds like there just not been enough expansion allowed. Was the floor fitted upto skirts? or skirts fitted afterwards? I'd take the skirts off first, see if theres any expansion gap present, if not then make one and go from there...
I have a suspicion the weight of your units and worktops bearing down on your floor might be an issue here restricting natural movement. Can you post a photo of the entire kitchen too?
Hi guys, I will post pic of kitchen later as need to charge my camera. The granite weighs a ton and there is a lot of it! The tongue and groove was strange, not typical but a sort of locking action as per this link: http://www.ukflooringdirect.co.uk/Engin ... Lacqu.html In fact this might well be the exact product, it is certainly the company I bought it from. The skirting boards were put on after and the builder was obsessed with the expansion gap as our building inspecter told a story about a guy who's entire expension had been pushed over when his solid oak floor expanded!! In fact, if you lift up the covers around the radiator pipes you can see an expansion area quite clearly. This is harder to see around the doorways and in one place it does appear to be butted up to the door architrave. Looking at the pictures of floor levelling it is quite apparent that there was no preparation, no levelling and also in the extension area (where incidentally the creaking is the worse, maybe cos of the kitchen) the floor was a new concrete one so pressumably would have been level? Anyone know anyone competent and skilled in the east kent area? :smile:
