There are 2 ways one can lay a solid wooden floor. One is usually to apply the boards directly on the concrete substructure making use of glue and the other is to suspend the flooring utilising joists or batons. This can be sometimes called a sprung or suspended floor.
In the first technique it really is imperative that the substrate is totally flat. In the event the flooring is not completely flat, the boards will lift given that they're going to go down under stress and through time will pull themselves up. In the event the ground is not fully flat it is advisable to screed it and get it flat. Otherwise you can decide to install a sprung floor. However installing a sprung floor will result in the surface being about 50mm higher than it was or 30mm higher than the other system. Reason being is that there will be a baton underneath the boards to accept these floor board. So double check where your flooring will wind up prior to deciding upon the technique.
I will go into more detail regarding each tactic in 2 separate written content which you may search for in the search bar on the right, but for the purposes of this posting I will only touch on the types of timber someone can chose and a broad outline of solid wood floors.
There are various types of timber that can be used for solid wood flooring. Each one comes with its own characteristics and properties. Some are harder than others, some are less prone to marking because they are dark coloured. What I find most important is to choose a timber that will not move much after installation. All timber will move as it expands and contracts due to fluctuations in temperature, moisture in the atmosphere and other factors. These will all vary with the seasons and in different parts of the country the variation will be different. It is always a good idea to bring the timber to site where it will finally be laid and let it acclimatise for a few weeks before installing. If the timber for instance was kiln dried and then stored in Durban on the coast, then later moved to Gauteng it will move because of differing temperatures and moisture in the atmosphere. So it should be allowed to rest for a few weeks before installing. In fact it should be allowed to rest before machining so that any movement can be removed through the machining process resulting in a flat, square, stable board. There is nothing more frustrating than laying solid wood floor boards only to find that later they have cupped or bowed slightly and unsightly gaps appear between boards or worse still they start to lift. It is not always possible to let them rest before machining but at least allow them to rest before installing so that any movement can be seen before installation and corrected where possible.
One can try and match the colour of the timber to the rest of the room. Saligna for instance is slightly pinkish in colour whereas teak will be a much darker wood and sometimes with dark heartwood and lighter coloured sapwood. You can get creative in matching the colours and intersperse dark with light. If you feel like get really clever you can use different types of wood in your floor but be careful to try and match the timber in their density so that all the pieces will expand and contract at a similar rate.
Your floor should be finished with a good quality polyurethane either in mineral based or water based. Water based is normally preferred as it allows you to apply several coats in the same day. Also it is better for our environment.
In the first technique it really is imperative that the substrate is totally flat. In the event the flooring is not completely flat, the boards will lift given that they're going to go down under stress and through time will pull themselves up. In the event the ground is not fully flat it is advisable to screed it and get it flat. Otherwise you can decide to install a sprung floor. However installing a sprung floor will result in the surface being about 50mm higher than it was or 30mm higher than the other system. Reason being is that there will be a baton underneath the boards to accept these floor board. So double check where your flooring will wind up prior to deciding upon the technique.
I will go into more detail regarding each tactic in 2 separate written content which you may search for in the search bar on the right, but for the purposes of this posting I will only touch on the types of timber someone can chose and a broad outline of solid wood floors.
There are various types of timber that can be used for solid wood flooring. Each one comes with its own characteristics and properties. Some are harder than others, some are less prone to marking because they are dark coloured. What I find most important is to choose a timber that will not move much after installation. All timber will move as it expands and contracts due to fluctuations in temperature, moisture in the atmosphere and other factors. These will all vary with the seasons and in different parts of the country the variation will be different. It is always a good idea to bring the timber to site where it will finally be laid and let it acclimatise for a few weeks before installing. If the timber for instance was kiln dried and then stored in Durban on the coast, then later moved to Gauteng it will move because of differing temperatures and moisture in the atmosphere. So it should be allowed to rest for a few weeks before installing. In fact it should be allowed to rest before machining so that any movement can be removed through the machining process resulting in a flat, square, stable board. There is nothing more frustrating than laying solid wood floor boards only to find that later they have cupped or bowed slightly and unsightly gaps appear between boards or worse still they start to lift. It is not always possible to let them rest before machining but at least allow them to rest before installing so that any movement can be seen before installation and corrected where possible.
One can try and match the colour of the timber to the rest of the room. Saligna for instance is slightly pinkish in colour whereas teak will be a much darker wood and sometimes with dark heartwood and lighter coloured sapwood. You can get creative in matching the colours and intersperse dark with light. If you feel like get really clever you can use different types of wood in your floor but be careful to try and match the timber in their density so that all the pieces will expand and contract at a similar rate.
Your floor should be finished with a good quality polyurethane either in mineral based or water based. Water based is normally preferred as it allows you to apply several coats in the same day. Also it is better for our environment.
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