Why Glue Down Hardwood Flooring

When working on a clean concrete subfloor the glue down method is often the go to choice.

Why glue down hardwood flooring.

The installation of hardwood floors by the glue down method is used predominately on concrete slabs. The floor will be glued directly to the sub flooring using a hardwood flooring adhesive. Glue down hardwood floor installation. Boards adhere well to the rough surface of the concrete subfloor and therefore lead to less gaps or planks lifting and buckling.

Glue down hardwood flooring often sounds more like real solid hardwood flooring than floating floors do. Newer adhesives are elastomeric. The glue down method of engineered wood flooring installation is typically the most common and creates a highly stable floor. The adhesives used to glue wood down to a subfloor make for an extremely strong bond.

While a glue down installation is the most expensive and labor intensive of the three options it s also considered the most stable method of installation. They allow the wood board to expand and contract but they do not grow or shrink nearly as much as they would with a floating or nail. Because of the way it is installed there isn t a hollow sound when walking across the floor or a spongy feel this is something that can be an issue with floating floors if they aren t installed perfectly and with optimal conditions. Engineered hardwood floors can be glued or nailed into position but they also have the option of being floated over an underlay.

Applications are more prominent with residential construction in sunbelt areas commercial locations and high rise dwellings. That s because of the elastic quality of glue which allows the floor to expand and contract naturally with the seasons. If installing glue down hardwood flooring in a new house completely close the building in with all outside doors and windows in place. Around the house the rooms with the most traffic such as the front hallway the kitchen and the recreation room are better served by glue down flooring than floating flooring but if you re considering a whole house.

Reduces but does not eliminate wood movement. With that said one of the most important factors while dealing with glue down installation is going to be your subfloor. A glue down floor is usually a better choice in high traffic areas like commercial buildings and industrial spaces because the glue provides extra holding power. Subfloor preparation is critical on all job sites but especially for glue down.

Glue down hardwood floors on concrete. If you choose to fix your hardwood floor into position you then have the choice of either gluing your floor to the subfloor using flexible flooring adhesive to. All wet work such as concrete masonry framing members drywall paint etc should be thoroughly dry.