General Rules

• 3/4" solid wood flooring is intended for installation on or above grade only. For installation below grade, special precautions must be taken including an assessment of the humidity levels and seasonal variations in humidity. Your hardwood flooring dealer can best offer you advice in this area. Also, do not install over radiant heat installed within concrete floors.
• Your flooring should be delivered at least 72 hours before installation. Boxes should be opened and heating or air conditioning should be on so that the flooring can acclimate to the conditions under which it will remain after installation.
• Your wood flooring requires 1/2" to 3/4" expansion void between the first and last rows of planks and the walls, and at all vertical obstructions within the room. This space must be covered by base board and shoe mold after flooring installation.
• Your new flooring should be installed at right angles to your joists. When installing over old flooring, the flooring should be installed at right angles to the old flooring. Otherwise, the old floor should be overlaid with 1/2" plywood gapped 1/8" at the edges and nailed with 7D or larger nails.
• High spots on subfloor should be sanded down and renailed where necessary to eliminate any squeaks or loose boards.
• Because of the natural color variation in hardwood flooring, it is important to work out of three or four cartons at a time to assure a beautiful blend of shading. Lay out a portion of the floor at a time before nailing, providing a good mix of long and short boards and ensuring that all joints are spread out evenly. Joints should be a minimum of 6" to 8" apart.
• Proper nail spacing is one nail every 8" to 10" with at least two nails in every board. Every board should be nailed so that there is a nail within the last three inches of both ends of the board.
• 2" nails should be used for machine nailing over plywood-on-joists. 1 3/4" nails should be used for machine nailing over plywood on concrete.
• The following tools are needed for installation: Tape measure, broom, chalkline, hammer, nail punch, prybar, circular saw, miter saw or table saw, and power nailer and mallet.