Gluing solid oak floor onto concrete

[Alistair McDonald]

Hello all,

I've laid a few "click" laminate and engineered floors in my time, but I've got a couple of rooms which I've bought solid oak floor for. The recommended way is to glue them down.

Does anyone have any idea how much longer it will take to do a room in this way?

Also, is there a better way of laying it than gluing? I guess i'll lose my "warranty" (like I'll ever claim) if I don;t follow their recommendations

I've also got a marble fireplace to go round, and I don't want to use a quadrant to cover an expansion gap - any ideas/assessment of the risks of bowing?

Tools-wise, I've got several strap/clamp things (bought for this job) and an adequate saw that'll deal with the 60mm lengths in no time, squarely and cleanly. The skirting boards are coming off, too.

Cheers,

Alistair

PS: my life is in flux, one of my kids is in hospital, so I may not reply immediately. Please blame absent-mindedness, not rudeness if I don't follow the thread as quickly as I should. I hope I can reply to all.

[Richard Perkin]

Alistair McDonald wrote in news: [e-mail]:

Suggestion:

Glue 25mm battens at say 400mm centres onto the concrete. Use PVA to prime the concrete, then fix battens with Gripfill or similar.

Fit 25mm expanded polystyrene insulation board between battens

Nail boards to battens using nailgun and secret nailing

Hope this helps

[Alistair McDonald]

Cheers, Richard.

I hadn't considered using battens, but on reflection, I'm not sure I want a 35mm difference in floor height between neighbouring rooms.

Alistair

[Richard Perkin]

Alistair McDonald wrote in news: [e-mail]:

Indeed. I guess it depends on whether you are happy with the potential heat loss into the concrete below the new oak flooring.

As for time, in my case two rooms were done in one day. Living room: nailed to existing suspended floor; dining room: nailed to battens. The skirting boards were part fitted the same day and finished the following day.

Since then (3 months ago) the floor has been covered with sheets of hardboard to protect the surface. Now the renovation is complete we're on with the decorating, so it should all be finished in a couple more weeks...

Kind regards