Engineered wood and UFH

[thewinelake]

Got a floor with water-based UFH that I'm intending to lay an engineered wood finish on.

I rather like the look of beech, but someone from a floor supplier that I have some respect for has said that engineered beech isn't really so suitable for use on UFH as it's "less stable" than (say) oak or ash.

Are there any views from the forum on this matter?

 

[mointainwalker]

I have UFH and I believe I read the same advice when I was researching which floor-covering. If you look on some manufacturers sites - Kahrs, Tarkett - you may see something there.

 

[WoodYouLike]

Beech is a rather "nervous" wood-species. where Oak can expand/shrink 3 - 4 mm per meter width, Beech is known to do this at a "speed" of 7mm per meter width.

Especially where UFH is concerned it therefore not recommended to use as floor-covering, too prone to cause troubles. Even when steamed and turned into Wood-Engineered

 

[AronSearle]

Yes, Beech (and birch) are large movement timbers.

I have seen it used successfully on UFH, but with narrow engineered boards, and careful control of the heating, though I still wouldn't recommend it in general.