Wood Flooring On Concrete Subfloor

How to install a glued subfloor over concrete.

Wood flooring on concrete subfloor.

If you have a subfloor that consists of wood on top of concrete you ll need to test both floors. Over concrete with a wood subfloor. A vapor retarder is recommended any time you install a solid 3 4 inch wood flooring over concrete. As with a floated subfloor nwfa recommends a vapor retarder for glue down subfloors when installing wood flooring over concrete.

Learn how to install beautiful hardwood floors over a concrete slab. Typically manufacturers will specify a flatness tolerance of 1 8 in a 6 foot radius and or 3 16 in a 10 foot radius. Floated subfloor alternate subfloor glue down sub floor and the nail down subfloor system. Use a 6 staple pattern at the perimeter of the subfloor.

If your concrete subfloor was just poured you ll need to allow it to properly cure for a minimum of 60 days before your luxury vinyl flooring installation begins. Make sure the concrete slab is flat to the wood flooring manufacturer s specification. Get a comprehensive breakdown on which materials to use what to take into consideration and what steps to take for four subfloor systems. Concrete is a common subfloor material and in general it s easy to prepare for a luxury vinyl flooring installation project.

Check for cracks and crumbling. Laminate planks snap together and float above a subfloor which means tiny subfloor imperfections are okay although again a level subfloor will help prevent damage. Use a moisture vapor retarder between the subflooring and the hardwood flooring to prevent moisture from leaching through the joists and subfloor to negatively affect the hardwood above. This is a popular subflooring option in the southern states and in areas where homes do not have basements.

If the slab is out of specification consider grinding floating or both. To level a subfloor for installing laminate follow the directions above to remove high and low spots. New concrete is heavy with moisture and it must be a minimum of 30 days old before moisture testing begins. Determining moisture content of both the wood flooring and the subfloor is an important part of quality control in the flooring installation process.

Laminate is a budget friendly attractive alternative to hardwood flooring. Check your flooring manufacturer s recommendations to ensure you re using a proper subfloor.