Engineered Flooring
 

Engineered flooring is beautiful and practical for cement floor TV homes. I paid to have engineered flooring in most of my home, but now I would not hesitate to do the job myself. It's time consuming and requires a few special tools and some know-how, but here's how to do it correctly:

1) Remove existing flooring and glue or concrete "bumps" in the floor. Remove any shoe molding but it is not necessary to remove the baseboards.

2) Engineered flooring should be glued down, not installed over a laminate type foam underlay. Therefore, since TV floors are often 'wavy" you must apply concrete filler to the void spots. Pour water on the floor and allow it to settle into any void areas. Draw a pencil outline on the edges of the voids. Towel up the excess water. Mix the concrete filler and trowel it smoothly into the void areas. Using a watery mix will result in a flatter surface.

3) Measure the floor to be certain the distances across the room are the same and that the floor is square. If you find that the room is not square, you can compensate for the problem in the next step.

4) Decide the direction you want the floor to run and choose one of the two walls which has the fewest doors or the longest straight run for your starter strip. If the floor is not square: (example - one wall is 1/2" longer than the opposite wall.) Snap a chalk line at the exact width of a board on one end of the wall and 1/4" more than a board width on the other end. When you install the starter strip along the chalk line this will cut the discrepancy in half and the final shoe molding will cover the small gaps on both sides of the long wall.

5) Get the proper glue and apply it according to instructions. Do only the first strip from one end to the other. Install with the groove facing the wall and the tongue facing out. Use a power miter saw to cut the final board to about 1/8" of the end wall. The remaining piece, unless it is less than a couple of inches long, will become the first board in the next row. Do not continue the job until the starter strip is completely dry and secure.

6) Look carefully at the glue instructions. Most glues are fairly quick drying so you can only do a few courses at a time. I suggest you start with three courses at most. Lay out the material for each of the three courses selecting boards which tend to end in a random pattern, rather than having the seams near each other. Snap a line at the point which is the width of three courses. Apply glue up to the chalk line, then install the three courses. Each new board should fit snugly against the adjoining one at the end and side . If necessary, tap the board into position with a soft piece of pine and a mallet. Be prepared to cut the end pieces fairly quickly so that all three courses are installed while the glue is the proper consistency.

7) Install the rest of the floor in segments based on how many courses you feel you can do at one time.

8) Generally you will install a threshold or transition strip in the center of each wall opening. The transition shape you choose will depend on the type and height of the adjoining floor. If you gotten this far and you've chosen a proper transition strip, you will be able to determine how you must slice, chisel or otherwise modify flooring so that the strips and shoe molding cover the cuts you make.

9) The last course may have to be sliced to fit. Cut and glue these pieces one at a time so you are not rushed.

10) Measure and cut matching shoe molding. Install with glue and/or finishing nails. A pneumatic brad nailer is the most ideal way of fastening molding.

11) Put feet up and have a beer!

Questions, comments?

Great instructions, THANKS!! have been reading up on it and watching videos on the web of it. Been watching the DIY channel alot. I think we can do it, just expensive if you mess it up. Let you know how it comes out.. Again thanks

2) is the best suggestion of them all!

I recently did an IKEA product floor in the kitchen - over an existing vinyl floor - I allowed the 1/2" gap around the walls - put the floor down one day - took it back up the second day - put down foam underlayment then put it down again the third day. This stuff where these floors are supposed to float is more trouble than it's worth.

Sure, expansion and contraction are considerations so the floor can creep without opening seam gaps. You should see the gaps I have with a floating floor! Wish I would have glued it down the first day like this guy said.

So not being totally 100% happy with my floor appearance, I go back to IKEA to investigate - my floor looks ten times better than their displays so all is well. Wish mine was glued down.

You will NOT mess up!!!

We did a float floor in our GA house worked great.
 

We did a float floor in our GA house but it was engineered wood not Laminate. 5/8". (It was a click product) Did the step two mentioned using level Quick to fill the dips. We used a thicker foam. I don't remember the thickness but the thin one was blue and the thicker was cream. It held up great no problems. I however made sure my spacer around the edge was secure (stripof wood not their dumb spacers from the kit.)so when we pushed against it, it didn't move. One of the problems we found is that the sheetrock doesn't go all the way to the slab so when you put in the spacers they tip. We used an 1/8" x 2" so it was pushing on the sheet rock then cut the rock to above the finished floor when done and replaced the trim. This way the floor can expand under the sheetrock if needs be. The guy at the flooring store suggested we put caulk in the gap around the edge when we were done so the seams wouldn't open up. We did this, don't know if that is normal as never saw it in any instructions.

Did glue down in another room. What I liked about the glue down is I could do a pattern using two colors. 6 strips of the light around the edge then 3 of the dark then the rest with the light. If is a bit tricky but really looked great when done. The higher end Bruce and some of the more expensive lines have a mosaic border that they sell which is how I got the idea.

Having developed a headache while reading all of the above posts, I now really like my idea best - let Lowes do the install, while I strictly follow step 10 and only step 10.

My husband agrees with you.
 

Hubby says in retirement I am not dragging him into any more projects. I come up with creative (wierd) ideas for fixing up the house and he ends up doing most of the work. My compound miter saw, sawsall and router are staying at my sons from now on (as soon as we finish this house and sell it of course). So when we arrive in TV I will be tool less and unable to tear out any walls when he isn't looking.:girlneener:

SNOK, If this information gives you a headache, you probably should let some one else do the labor.

Thanks ijusluvit some very helpful info. I never did like those floating floors. They have a strange sound when you walk on them.

I thought the idea from Trudym was kewl using different colored flooring. I can see that being very interesting.

Question on the glue-down floor: Suppose down the road you want to replace the floor; how do you take up the existing floor?

Not easy
 

You take up the trim around the walls and use pry bars (be sure to put a piece of wood against the sheetrock to span the studs,when you pry or you will get holes) After the first few rows it comes up easier. but you are left with glue with splinters stuck to it on the slab. Chipping and grinding off that glue is time consuming.(I used a cold chisel) I had a damaged section in one house we had and replaced the damaged pieces. It was nit picky. But it turned out Ok. You take the replacement piece and cut off the under side of the grove and trim down the tounge so you can wedge it in.