19

Chapter

Finish Flooring

Objectives

• Describe strip, engineered, plank, and block wood flooring.
• Lay out and install strip flooring on concrete or plywood subfloors.
• Describe the procedure for installing laminate flooring.

Robbins/Sykes, Tibbias Flooring Inc.

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Objectives (Cont.)

• Describe the procedure for applying hardboard, particleboard, and plywood underlayment.
• Outline the basic steps for installing resilient flooring.
• Explain the different types of ceramic floor tiling and how they are installed.

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Finish Flooring

• Any material used as final surface of floor
• Usually laid after wall and ceiling surfaces are completed
• Improved materials are used in making composition (resilient) flooring
• Floor surface should be covered to protect it during other finish work

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Wood Flooring

• Popular in residential structures
• Has strength and durability
• Provides attractive appearance
• Available in varied widths and thicknesses

Weather Shield

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Strip Flooring

• Pieces of solid wood cut into narrow strips
• Laid in random pattern of end joints
• Usually is tongue-and-groove on sides and ends
• May come unfinished or prefinished

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Plank Flooring

• Made of solid wood
• Gives informal appearance to floor
• Usually laid in random widths
• Pieces may be bored and plugged to simulate wooden pegs

Robbins/Sykes, Tibbias Flooring Inc.

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Block Flooring

• Looks like conventional parquetry
• Each block has design formed by smaller wood blocks
• Blocks are laminated units made by gluing together several layers of wood

Robbins/Sykes, Tibbias Flooring Inc.

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Engineered Wood Flooring

• Designed to float on subfloor
• Made by laminating several plies
• Top ply is prefinished hardwood

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Sizes and Grades

• Strip flooring widths range from 1 1/2″ to 3 1/4″
• Standard thicknesses include 3/8″, 1/2″, and 3/4″
• Solid planks are usually 3/4″ thick
• Widths range from 3″ to 9″
• Unit blocks are produced in 3/4″ thickness
• Uniform grading rules are established by manufacturers
• Grading is largely based on appearance

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Delivery

• Wood may shrink or expand during storage
• Wood flooring should be delivered four or five days before installation
• Do not store wood in damp buildings
• Make sure concrete work and plaster are dry before bringing in flooring

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Subfloors

• In joist construction, most building codes specify sound and rigid subfloor
• For regular strip or plank flooring, subfloor should be
• Good quality plywood
• Oriented strand board

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Installing Wood Strip Flooring

• Check that subfloor is clean and nailing patterns complete
• Put down good quality building paper
• Lay strip flooring at right angle to floor joists
• Stagger end joints

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Nailing

• Using enough nails and proper size will reduce noise
• Use face nailing for first strip
• Succeeding strips are blind nailed
• Countersink all nails

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Flooring around Projections

• Flooring strips should run uninterrupted through doorways and into adjoining rooms

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Multiroom Layout

• Strip flooring may be carried through all or major parts of building
• Align starter courses with setup line before face nailing
• Continue installation across rooms following plan

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Wood Flooring over Concrete

• For slab-on-grade installation, put down sleepers
• Double layer of 1 × 2 wood sleepers is used
• Sleepers are nailed together with moisture barrier of 4-mil polyethylene film

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Estimating Strip Flooring

• Calculate area in square feet
• Add percentage for size being used (see table)
• Standard bundle of strip flooring has 24 bd. ft.
• Allow additional amounts for breaks and projections

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Wood Block Flooring

• Squares of wood in various patterns
• May use intricate patterns of small pieces
• May require double layer of subflooring
• Allow clearance on unit blocks for expansion

Bayfield Lumber Company

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Installation Patterns

• Can be on square or diagonal
• Never use wall as starting line for square pattern
• For diagonal pattern, snap chalk line between walls for starting point

Oak Flooring Institute

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Prefinished Wood Flooring

• Use prefinished flooring to speed up construction
• Install with care to avoid damaging finish
• Make installation last step in interior finish sequence

Memphis Hardwood Flooring Co.

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Laminate Flooring

• Floats over subfloor but is not fastened
• Underlayment of foam cushions and absorbs sound
• Tongue-and-groove construction allows planks to be snapped together

Boen Hardwood Flooring, Inc.; Pergo, Inc

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Engineered Wood Flooring

• Prefinished and durable
• Edges and ends have tongue-and-groove joints
• Joints are glued in some cases
• Tapping block is used to tap planks into place

Boen Hardwood Flooring, Inc.; Pergo, Inc

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Thinking Green

• Eliminate waste created through theft and vandalism
• Keep accurate records to catch material shortages
• Store all materials and tools securely
• Use solar-powered security cameras to monitor jobsite

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Underlayment

• Required to provide smooth, even surface for resilient materials
• Prevents finish floor materials from checking or cracking
• Can be plywood, hardboard, or cement board
• Used with special mastic material on some concrete floors

​

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Resilient Floor Tile

• Many types available
• Select type appropriate for job
• Install proper underlayment
• Be careful of substances that might stain vinyl

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Laying Tile

• Allow adhesive to set before any tile is laid
• Start laying tile at center of room
• Do not slide tile, which may move adhesive
• Align joining edges first, then lower rest of tile

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Installing Resilient Tile over Concrete

• Make sure surface is dry, smooth, and structurally sound
• Cover dusty or chalked surfaces on floors with coat of primer
• Perform bond and moisture test before laying tile

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Self-Adhering Tiles

• Have adhesive applied to tile back at factory
• Easy to install
• Can be laid over smooth-faced resilient floors
• Follow same layout procedure as for standard tiles
• Keep room warm for one week after installation

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Estimating Tile Flooring and Adhesive

• For tiles, find area of room
• Multiply square footage by factor in table to allow for waste
• Estimate adhesive according to square yardage or square footage

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Sheet Vinyl Flooring

• Can be installed over concrete, plywood, or some vinyl flooring
• Full-adhesive-bonded flooring is fastened with adhesive on full area
• Perimeter-bonded flooring is fastened only around edges and at seams

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Ceramic Floor Tile

• Available in variety of colors and shapes
• Made from mixture of clay and other materials
• Bisques are formed and then kiln dried

Riviera Marmitec

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Ceramic Tile Types

• Grouped according to their permeability
• Organized by their characteristics
• Paver
• Quarry
• Mosaic
• Lugged

American Olean Tile Co.

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Ceramic Tile Adhesives

• Mastics are least expensive
• Mortars are good choice where tile will be exposed to water
• Epoxy dry-set mortar has high bonding strength and resistance to impact

American Olean Tile Co.

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Estimating Ceramic Tile

• Calculate square footage of area to be covered
• Add 10% to compensate for breakage and cuts
• Consult manufacturer’s coverage chart

American Olean Tile Co.

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Installing Ceramic Tile

• Apply adhesive using thick set or thin set method
• Adhere tiles and allow them to dry
• Fill spaces between tiles with grout

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Construction Careers �Flooring Installers

• Work with wood, vinyl, tile, carpeting, and sheet flooring
• Work for flooring contractors or retail stores or are self-employed
• Learn through on-job training or apprenticeships

Dmitry Kalinovsky/Shutterstock.com

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