Installations: Detailed Inside Issues to Address

Regardless if you're installing your hardwood floor yourself or if you've hired a professional hardwood floor installer to do the job for you, the installation guidelines as set out by the National Wood Flooring Association must be followed. Paying attention to specific conditions inside your home before installation begins can prevent potentially expensive flooring issues later.

Moisture in the Air

Notice the feel of the air as you enter the home. If you're installing the floor yourself, have a friend, relative or neighbor who does not frequent your home on a regular basis come into your home and “feel the air” for you. Specifically take note of any damp, stagnant or musty smells. Also, does the air feel “heavy” or “thick?” If any of these conditions apply, you must take steps to regulate the temperature and humidity in the home before you can even acclimate the wood.

Ensure that the clothes dryer is properly vented to the outside of the home. This may mean actually getting into the crawlspace or basement to verify that the vent hose is securely hooked up to the place it is supposed to be and not just dangling aimlessly from a broken clasp or joint.

Examine the bathroom exhaust fans. Follow the path of where these vents lead to. These should also direct moist air outside the home. In older homes, these apparatuses may only vent into an open attic space that have vent spaces in the walls. There may not be any particular tube that leads directly from the exhaust fan directly to vent space in the wall. Whether or not this contributes to any moisture problems for the flooring will be determined by other factors including whether or not there is insulation in the walls that lead to rooms where the flooring will be installed. Other factors may apply.

New Construction

If you're preparing to install the hardwood floor into a newly built home, make sure that other things that require drying time are fully dry before acclimatization begins. For example, are all plaster slabs, mortar and concrete slabs dry or do they feel cool or damp? Find out if any other work still needs to be done that can effect moisture, such as installing stonework into a fireplace or hooking up the remainder of the plumbing. If the new floor is installed before these things are completed, the humidity levels can be effected and in turn effect the hardwood floor.

Look at the subflooring. Does any of it curl, twist, bow or peel? If it does, it could be “full” of moisture and this must be remedied before you attempt any installation of the hardwood floor. Identify the source of the moisture issue, eradicate it and then bring the moisture levels back into proper balance with the use of humidity controls devices.

Heating Systems

Monitor the central heating system and make sure that it reflects proper temperature and humidity levels that resemble what the average temperatures are year round. Make sure this stays constant before, during and after installation.

Electrical heating of various types do not circulate humidity throughout a home like central heating and forced air systems will. Turning on these heaters in the winter dry out the air considerably. Turning them off during the summer months, which may be more humid, allows for sharp levels of humidity to rise and fall in the home throughout the year.

Never install solid hardwood flooring over radiant heat. Solid hardwood flooring is more susceptible to

heat and humidity changes than engineered hardwood flooring is. Follow the recommendations of the manufacturer of your hardwood floor for radiant heat settings prior to the installation of engineered hardwood flooring.

Roof and Walls

Check the ceilings for signs of water damage or blatant leaks. Leaks that appear behind interior walls can cause the paint to begin peeling in the spots that receive the most moisture. Watch the walls for any signs of mold or alkali bloom which is puffy white or orange fluffy stuff growing in one spot. Notice if any of the cold water pipes have any condensation on them. Open the cupboard doors that lead to under the sink. See if there are any leaks or condensation there as well. In the basement, look for signs of excessive moisture such as mud, damp walls, rust markings on pipes or rusty nail heads that have developed a blue stain on the wood surrounding the nail head.

Any room additions to the house will need to be checked where the two rooms meet. Look for leaks, mold, etc...Also, depending on the construction of these rooms, the subfloor may or may not have a proper moisture barrier in place. These things need to be inspected and remedied before installation begins.