Real wood floor prep

[skybluescooby]

Hi All,
Thinking of installing real wood floor to new garden room.
Just need to know what the best product available to lay as a base.
Have seen thin felt type rolls and thick green boards, plus dampcourse and accoustic underlay..
What will be the best considering i want warmth, noise reduction as the main priorities.

 

[WoodYouLike]

See here and then here for preparations in regards of wooden flooring.

 

[skybluescooby]

Now.......... why did i think woodulike would be the first to answer.
Should have gone straight to your website as i have done in the past.
Many thanks, i shall digest your info over xmas and prepare my task in earnest.
Merry Christmas

 

[skybluescooby]

Woodulike or anyone else, Just been to a wood floor supplier wh told me to lay the dpm , tuck it under the void between flor and wall then lay and screw 3mm ply to the floor then glue the real wood on top of this ??
Is this correct as i dont see any mention of using ply, i thought a layer of dpm over the concrete floor then lay the wood.
Incidentally how is the wood laid, guess to the floor or glued to the tounge

 

[WoodYouLike]

Will come back to this later, but DON'T follow his advice!

 

[WoodYouLike]

Is this correct as i dont see any mention of using ply, i thought a layer of dpm over the concrete floor then lay the wood.
Incidentally how is the wood laid, guess to the floor or glued to the tounge

Layer of DPM and a sound-insulation underlayment is the correct way if you plan to install the floor floating = glueing the T&G's (we do that 99 out of the 100 times, except on underfloor heating and with design parquet flooring).

If you plan to glue the wood down to the concrete: make sure the screed/concrete is as level as possible otherwise not enough glue (applied on the underfloor) bonds with the boards etc. If you don't trust the moist content in the concrete when glueing down you have to either wait until it is dry enough or apply a liquid DPM if the moist is 2 - 3 % higher than allowed.

 

[skybluescooby]

So based on this would you advise the best way is to lay a layer of dpm then float the floor and glue the t&g as opposed to the underneath of the boards. similar to laminate i presume.
Have read other posts where people have glued directly to the floor and are having problems

 

[WoodYouLike]

Best way, well the way we know from years of experience will cause the least problems. But as within every trade, there are many other opinions and experiences out there. Go with wathever you think will suit you best.
Oh, and don't forget to include a proper sound-insulation underlayment (some products come in a handy 2-in-1 product: DPM + sound-insulation)

 

[skybluescooby]

Its the experience that i wish to tap into.
Can you recommend a good quality adhesive, a good quality sound and dpm underlay or expected quality prices and what volume do you need when glueing, ie do i glue spots in the groove or insert a layer along the groove

 

[WoodYouLike]

Can you recommend a good quality adhesive

Any PVAC wood-glue will do.

a good quality sound and dpm underlay or expected quality prices

A combi product like to one we have costs around £ 41.25 ex VAT per roll of 15 sq m and comes with handy overlapping self-adhesive DPM strip to connect to rowes together.

and what volume do you need when glueing, ie do i glue spots in the groove or insert a layer along the groove

Always, always glue the whole length of the groove.

 

[skybluescooby]

re the underlay and by the way thanks for your superb info.
I saw a product in the local shed this morning, made by floormaster and is basically a dpm membrane that has an upper adhesive area that peels back bit by bit when fitting boards.
Whats your opinion on this bearing in mind if i peel it back and get a kink whilst pushing boards together im pretty much screwed.

On the subject of dpm and bearing in mind warmth and comfort, do i need to lay anything else on top of dpm, ie felt underlay etc or just dpm then boards

 

[WoodYouLike]

re the underlay and by the way thanks for your superb info.
I saw a product in the local shed this morning, made by floormaster and is basically a dpm membrane that has an upper adhesive area that peels back bit by bit when fitting boards.
Whats your opinion on this bearing in mind if i peel it back and get a kink whilst pushing boards together im pretty much screwed.

Sounds like a (cheap) copy of the Elastilon underlayment. Elastilon is a good and known product. Handy when you are used to it, but can cause a (sorry) 'first-timer' exactly the problems you mention.

On the subject of dpm and bearing in mind warmth and comfort, do i need to lay anything else on top of dpm, ie felt underlay etc or just dpm then boards

No, DPM and 3mm foam sound-insulation is 9 time out of 10 sufficient.

 

[skybluescooby]

ok,
Have got wood... have got elasticon underlay.
One final question before i commit.
Would it beneficial to glue the grooves as well as adhering to the elasticon underlay ??

 

[WoodYouLike]

Not really = double and OTT. Adhesive on underlay will hold everything together as 'wood' glueing T&G on normal underlay do.

Happy New Year

 

[Odd Job 2]

I am about to have a new oak floor layed and oiled - can someone let me know how easy is it to clean