How To Install A Wood Floor On A Concrete Slab

Use a vapor retarder.

How to install a wood floor on a concrete slab.

Grind off any high spots and fill any low spots. Read manufacturer s directions before installation to maintain warranty coverage. How to install a floating wood plank floor. Follow these steps to install an engineered wood floor in your home.

You don t want to try and glue it down either. Vapor retarder with solid hardwood floors a proper vapor retarder must be installed on top of the slab to make sure normal slab moisture does not reach the finished floor. If there are any high or low spots they can be ground away to prepare the surface and make sure that everything is level. Flat clean slab the slab must be flat with a trowel finish free of grease oil stains and dust.

Wood planks to the plywood. You simply nail the boards with a flooring nailer. Since humidity causes natural wood to expand and contract your flooring won t be able to move. Wood floor over concrete details lay a plastic moisture barrier and then screw 3 4 in.

Installing hardwood flooring over concrete. Cut plywood panels by 2 foot by 8 foot or 4 foot by 4 foot sections. Typically it is sheets of plastic laid on the slab and taped at the seams with waterproof tape. It will extend up the wall for about 2 to 3 inches creating a bowl where your wood floor stays dry and protected.

Before installing any wood floor over concrete you ll need a moisture barrier. Installing hardwood flooring on a plywood covered slab is identical to installing it on a wood subfloor. Score the back of the panels half of the thickness on a 12 inch by 12 inch grid. Apply an adhesive approved for plywood installation and recommended by the plywood manufacturer.

Materials include a minimum of 3 4 inch cd exposure 1 plywood subfloor panels 4 foot by 8 foot sheets. Hardwood type there is no way to install standard 3 4 hardwood on concrete. It s best to use shorter cleats than you would for a wood floor to ensure they sink in all the way. It should be clean and flat with a trowel finish and no sign of any stains grease or dust.

If you love solid wood floors and your home rests on a concrete slab you re not out of luck. Hardwood floors are durable low maintenance and easy to clean. The concrete slab needs to be in the right condition before installing flooring.