Bamboo Flooring Installation

You can avoid a lot of flooring problems by simply learning what to do and what not to do when installing the floors. Follow this guide to find out the most common installation mistakes — and how to best avoid them!

Flooring is a big investment and can result in expensive repairs if not done properly, so set 30 minutes aside to ensure you and your installer read the complete installation guide from your manufacturer.

If you have a hardwood floor glued or nailed down and has started to shrink or change shape within a few months after installation, improper acclimation is one possible culprit.

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When installing hardwood flooring over a concrete subfloor, crawlspace, or other sub-floor that may emit moisture, steps must be taken to seal off the moisture to prevent damaging the floor. The failure to use a vapor barrier underlament, using the wrong type of adhesive, or failing to apply the adhesive at a uniform and consistent rate, at the wrong thickness, or with the wrong trowel, are a few of the leading causes of hardwood floor cupping and water damage.

If sub-floor moisture is left unsealed it will begin to accumulate over time in the flooring planks, resulting in dark water stains, bubbling, cracking and even buckling due to the swelling of the planks.

If floating a floor, use a 3 in 1 vapor barrier underlayment. If gluing down to concrete, use a vapor barrier adhesive with its compatible trowel, and make sure to achieve 100% coverage of glue on the slab.

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Concrete slabs continue to emit moisture for decades after being poured. If you don’t get 100% coverage/spread of the vapor barrier adhesive on the slab, the gaps in the glue will allow the moisture to come up, and voila – the cupped floor! Furthermore, using the wrong trowel – or misusing the trowel – can result in less than 100% coverage of the slab’s glue. See the diagram below for a representation of good vs. bad troweling.

If you have a long run on your floor, floating hardwood floors should only be installed in homes with stable indoor humidity. If in doubt, always glue down or nail down a floor.

Flooring adhesives are notoriously strong and can even hold a car to a wall, so don’t let the glue dry on top of your flooring planks, or you’ll be left with cloudy spots where the top coat of the finish used to be.

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Strand woven bamboo flooring is by far the densest and hardest wood flooring on the market and requires properly set 18 gauge cleats when nailed down. Please note the same features and requirements apply to strand woven eucalyptus flooring.

Avoid turpentine, mineral spirits, paint thinners, and other abrasive cleaners on polyurethane finished hardwoods unless you like cloudy spots on your floor, as these abrasive cleaners can strip finish topcoats.

The Internet is loaded with examples of hardwood floors installed over crawl spaces that are cupping, sometimes within just a few weeks of installation. In most cases, the cupping is a result of the moisture being emitted from the ground in the crawl space. This problem needs to be addressed at the source — crawl spaces and unconditioned spaces need to be sealed to protect hardwood floors from moisture before acclimation.

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When warm, humid weather rolls in, the problems are compounded. Crawl spaces are usually below grade, shady, and are naturally cooler than the outside air. When the warm, moist outside air blows in the crawlspace through vents or other air leaks, the moisture in the humid air condenses on the cooler surfaces just like water condenses on a cold glass of ice water sitting on your counter. In extreme, but not uncommon cases, so much water condenses that it begins dripping off the surfaces to collect in the bottom of the crawlspace. Hardwood floors cup because of excess moisture drawn up through the bottom of the floor-board, while the top of the flooring remains relatively dry by comparison.

Having a flooring problem that you think may be caused by an installation error? Please feel free to let us know in the comments section below!

Choose an adhesive with a moisture limit that is compatible with the amount of moisture being let off by your concrete. When installing over concrete, this seals the concrete and protects your floor from moisture. The next most important tool is your trowel. You want a trowel that has been designed to work with your adhesive. If you’re not sure, check the label on the flooring glue bucket, or call your flooring manufacturer. It is crucial to maintain the correct spread rate on the slab, so moisture isn’t allowed to seep through and cup your floors.

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Your concrete slab may be cured, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s clean. So before you do anything else, please give it a thorough sweeping or vacuuming to get up any dust and debris. Depending on how dirty your slab is, you may have to give it a good scrub with soap and water. If you need to scrub it, give it another 24 hours to dry before installation. Most importantly, your slab must be level before installation, whether through the use of a self-leveling compound or from grinding down bumps.

Don’t start spreading the glue all over your floor until you determine the best starting point regarding any step-downs where stair nosings may be needed and other site-specific considerations related to moldings and flooring plank direction. If you’re gluing down the floor and decide to take a break longer than 6 hours or continue the next day, remember not to leave glue too far out under the last plank. When you come back to start gluing planks the next day, if the glue is too far out from the bottom of the plank, you won’t be able to slide the next plank in to continue your installation! And keep in mind that wood and planks are usually laid parallel to the longest run in the installation.

It’s important to mention right off the bat that most adhesives dry in less than a few hours, so you never want to apply more than you‘ll be able to cover in that time. That doesn’t mean you should skimp on the adhesive because you shouldn’t. It simply means only covering small sections of the floor at a time but using a liberal amount of glue in each section. Furthermore, using the correct trowel is crucial to ensure the proper spread rate and coverage on the slab. Once you’ve spread some glue in your starting point, go ahead and scrape the top of it with the notched side of your trowel. This creates grooves in the glue and helps your planks grab hold. Make sure to use adhesive remover towels to wipe up the glue off the top of the planks as you’re laying the flooring so none of the adhesives gets on top of your planks. If the glue dries on top of your planks, it will ruin the finish.

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It’s essential to use spacers when gluing down a floor because, without them, each row you lay down will push up against the first row, and then your first row gets squeezed up tight against the wall. If you were laying down your floor over a plywood subfloor, you could nail the first row in place. But since you can’t, you must use spacers every six inches along the planks to ensure the first row will stay in place.

After you’re done laying your first row, and you’ve come to your last plank, you’ll want to measure the distance between your last plank and the wall and then subtract ¼” – ½” for the expansion gap. Saw this piece off your last plank and then lay it down.

Perhaps you’ve noticed other wood floors have used a random pattern when it comes to the seams. Bamboo and eucalyptus floors look more natural this way. To achieve this look, you’ll want to start your second row by placing a longboard beside a short one and vice versa. Once you’ve finished this second row, use a tape for delicate surfaces and tape across the seam between your first and second row to hold them in place while your adhesive dries. You’ll repeat this process throughout the room, making sure to use those adhesive towels to wipe excess glue that has squeezed between the boards. Once all of your boards are down, taped, and wiped, allow the adhesive to dry for 6 hours.

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Once your floor is arid, you can nail your baseboard to the bottom of your walls to cover those expansion gaps. You did make sure to cut with consideration for those gaps, right? Once that’s done, the only thing left to do is show off your new floors and take all of the credit.

Hardwood flooring (and bamboo) can be installed in powder rooms (half-baths) with no problems, and in full bathrooms as long as they are properly protected from moisture.

With the exception of rigid core waterproof bamboo flooring, most bamboo and hardwood flooring isn’t

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