Advice Needed - Solid Wood Floor First, Then Skirting?

[Mav3000]

Hi, I'm in the middle of redecorating the downstairs of our house. We have a solid concrete floor with vinyl tiles on top. We've removed the old carpet and skirting boards.

I plan to fit solid wood flooring through the lounge and dining room, but don't know the best approach in regards to the skirting.

I plan to lay a DPM then Self-adhesive Underlay, then the 18mm flooring, with the 10mm expansion gap around the edges. I also wish to run some speaker wire in the gap too while I can.

My question is, should I put the skirting board on before the floor, or put the skirting board on after the floor is laid, to cover the gap?

If I put the skirting on before I floor, do I put it approx 25mm up on the wall, or floor up to the skirting (making the skirting look lower, but keeping the 10mm gap and using trim to hide it?

Any ideas from those more experienced than I would be welcomed.

Thanks, Mav3000

 

[WoodYouLike]

I plan to lay a DPM then Self-adhesive Underlay, then the 18mm flooring, with the 10mm expansion gap around the edges. I also wish to run some speaker wire in the gap too while I can.

My question is, should I put the skirting board on before the floor, or put the skirting board on after the floor is laid, to cover the gap?

You should read this first: Solid Floors - what to note, specially where it mentions how wide your expansion gaps should be. 10mm is absolute minimum and the correct width depends on the width of your room

As for skirting boards: make sure they are thick enough if you plan to use them to cover the expansion gaps. If yours are too thin, install skirting boards first, leave wide enough expansion gap in front of them and cover with Solid Oak flat beading

 

[EddieM]

or put packers behind the skirting board, to flesh them out a bit, I personally hate those strips / quadrants.

 

[Mav3000]

I too would like to avoid the oak beading, as the colour to match our desired floor is hard to find.

I see two options - one is to install the skirting at usual level, then put the flooring down, leave a gap, and cover the gap with the beading bits.

The other option is to install the skirting 25mm up the wall and use the gap underneath it as the expansion gap for the wood floor.

Id like to put the skirting on before the floor goes down so it is less risky when glossing the skirting, but am also wondering how we lay the last piece of flooring between the penultimate flooring row and the skirting.

 

[WoodYouLike]

Flat Oak beading works like a picture frame and because they are unfinished you can stain them in a matching colour.

It's not a good idea to install skirtings first and then floor. If there is any unevenness in the underfloor your carefully calculated height of skirting goes haywire and you'll definitely have problems installing the last row (and every end piece).

If you want the best result of your wooden floor, do it properly and first fit the floor then the skirtingboards (or use flat beading as mentioned above so you can install your skirting first).

 

[Mav3000]

Thanks Wood You Like - I've read your online guide and have picked up lots of good advice.

My plan was to install the skirting approx 15mm up the wall, and put speaker and satellite cabling underneath it, then install the wood flooring, 10mm away from the skirting, and fix beading on top of it to bridge the gap between the floor and the skirting board. Thus allowing for expansion.

I don't want to gloss the skirting with the floor down - just in case.

 

[EddieM]

Thanks Wood You Like - I've read your online guide and have picked up lots of good advice.

My plan was to install the skirting approx 15mm up the wall, and put speaker and satellite cabling underneath it, then install the wood flooring, 10mm away from the skirting, and fix beading on top of it to bridge the gap between the floor and the skirting board. Thus allowing for expansion.

I don't want to gloss the skirting with the floor down - just in case.

If you fix beading remember to fix it to the skirting only, not the floor.

 

[WoodYouLike]

If you fix beading remember to fix it to the skirting only, not the floor.

Not our FLAT beading (5mm). You're talking about scotia or quadrants. Our beading is pinned to the floor.

 

[EddieM]

If you fix beading remember to fix it to the skirting only, not the floor.

Not our FLAT beading (5mm). You're talking about scotia or quadrants. Our beading is pinned to the floor.

yes, sorry that was what I meant.

 

[Mav3000]

Excuse me for having to ask, but if the beading is pinned to the floor, then what happens in regards to the wood moving through expansion?

Another newbie question - if we buy untreated Oak and then treat it ourselves, do we then pick a treatment to give it the colour we'd like? Is this then needed every 3 months to keep the floor looking nice?

Does the floor come with nice bevelled edges and finished at the edges nicely?

I'll research these questions myself, but obviously its reassuring hearing it from experts than me interpreting what I read.

Thanks all once again,

Mav3000

 

[Chri5]

If you put skirting back after the flooring is complete there's no real issue with painting the skirting because:-

a- you can prime skirting prior to fitting somewhere else

b- you can leave a 1mm gap between skirt and flooring which is enough to push in a barrier such as grease proof paper or any other paper material that will not allow gloss to stain through.

 

[IJWS15]

Just done this.

The expansion gap is HORIZONTAL, fit the floor leaving sufficient expansion to the wall (note if walls are dry lined you can cut away the bottom of the plasterboard to give more expansion room.

Fit the skirting afterwards leaving a 1-2 mm gap.

Prime/undercoat the skirting before you fit it, fit, fill and gloss after fitting using card. greaseproof etc to keep paint off the floor (note you don't want the skirting touching the floor or it can prevent the floor moving if it expands).

Whatever you do don't fit the skirting any higher than a couple of mm over the floor/underlay thickness off the concerete.

 

[mip19lot]

Hi,

This is my very first post. I have read most of the previous posts but could not find an answer to my particular question, my apologies if it turns out you have.

I am about to lay parquet blocks in my entrance hall and landing upstairs. I understand the need to leave an expansion gap but my question is what do you do around the curved first stair riser where it meets the floor? I can appreciate fitting a length of beading along the straight part but the curved bit?

Is there a curved wood or metal quadrant especially made for this?

Many thanks

 

[woodenfloorfitter]

Run through this real quick - a few simple rules

1) tape some polythene down over the concrete, leave it overnight preferably for 24 hours, if there is condensation on the polythene or the concrete is discoloured you have a damp problem. the sheet should be 1.5m square and taped all along each side causing a seal.

2) did you leave your boarding in the room long enough to climatize, this can be important, some merchants also store the wood in there garages or sheds for months prior to delivery, this is not such a good idea

3) try using the sheet adhesive to lay the floor, or a membrane over the plywood.

4) has he left a sufficient gap all around, including around architraves and pipes

5) for solid flooring over concrete, you need 15 mm gap

6) you are fitting to a new extension? how has he fitting the skirting, and has he sealed the floor correctly

you can buy an expansion filler that is made for holding cables, you can the put the skirting on last

 

[WoodYouLike]

Dear WoodenFloorFitter, please your simple rules, especially the way the measure residue moist is absolutely not correct and hardly professional. It is indeed a trick used by some, but it does not show you how much moist, how deep the moist is etc etc.

mip19lot:
If it is not possible to undercuth the raiser then cut your blocks as best as possible following the rounding (presume you will have a block border around the pattern, this will make it a bit easier) and do leave an expansion gap there too (10mm). This is the only situation we use cork strip to fill the gap, as long as you can lift it out the minute you notice the wood expands.