Hey there fellow wood floor folk, today out topic is: backward engineered floor installations.
Something that drives me crazy is that every time I see a photo of an engineered glue-down application or talk to an installer, they ALL install the floor in the wrong direction! Just the other day I read the directions from one of the prefinished flooring manufacturers, and their instructions are correct, but their photo is wrong. Then I discovered the same thing in the instructions from an adhesive manufacturer. I also have customers come in and complain that the flooring was made backwards!
Here’s the fact: Engineered floors are to be installed “backwards,” by which I mean tongue to the wall, groove toward the installer or open room. This reduces the amount of adhesive pushing up through the floor—it actually forces excess glue downward under the flooring. It also prevents adhesive from filling the groove, which can cause an almost pneumatic-type pressure, causing the boards to push apart. (That’s one reason you see so many installers using tape to hold the floor tight while the adhesives sets.)
Some manufacturers will mill the tongue and groove ends opposite of what is typical for standard wood floor milling. Whichever way it is milled, when gluing, nailing or stapling an engineered floor, the installer should work in a direction (right-to-left, left-to-right) that leads with the tongue end in case the boards need to be tapped snug. Tapping the groove edge can lead to accidental damage. Solid nail-down flooring is most always installed left to right for this same purpose, but many installers will deviate based on the situation. For example, they might want to start in a doorway or opening to the right because they want to neatly tie into a nosing, molding or transition piece. If there is a need to tap the board, they would likely use the rubber end of the mallet, a tap block or manual board puller.
How have YOU been gluing down your engineered flooring?
