Does anyone have a timber floor over concrete slab?
Question:I want to lay a real timber floor, not floating laminate, over concrete slab. Has anyone got this type of floor? Did you have the timber glued to concrete or was it fixed to battens? Any suggestion as to which is best? Thanks.
Answers:
The two ways of fixing are direct stick or to use a batten system. It will depend on how good your concrete slab is. If it is nice and flat then a direct stick approach is very acceptable. If however the slab is up and down then you would be better to use the batten system. With either system the most important thing to consider is the moisture in the concrete. I strongly suggest that you have the concrete moisture tested and it must read below 5.5% moisture. If it reads above this you will need to use a moisture barrier. The best and cheapest product on the market is Protect Crete's Moisture Fix. It is rolled on or broomed over and left for 24hrs before being able to be layed over. If you ignore a moisture problem, your timber floor will warp and cup within months of installation, destroying an expensive project. Have a look at the web site below for more info on moisture barriers and also water & solvent based polyurethanes for timber floor finishes.
You could fasten it with concret scews and then make plugs to cover the scews.
Yes. I've done a few timber floors on concrete floor. You have an option to put insulating material on top of the concrete first. This acts as a buffer so that when you walk on the timber flooring, it does not "knock" as much and cause as much noise. Other than that purpose, you don't really need the insulation anyway. So you could just place the timber directly onto the concrete provided your timber strips are tongue-in-groove and they can lock together to form a good fit that will not come off. If the timber is not lockable, then you'd need to secure it onto the floor. In that case, concrete nails could be used but not advisable. Better to lay a layer of plywood onto the floor and nail onto that. Make sure to drive in your nails at opposite angles to "lock" the strips in place.
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