Installing
hardwood flooring
comes in a variety of methods, but one of the most popular ones,
despite not
being the most sophisticated one, remains the nail down technique.
It’s very
straightforward, which is both a benefit and a disadvantage, but for
the
starting do-it-yourself interior designer it’s perfect.
Learning how to install hardwood
floor using the nail down technique isn’t tough and you
won’t be required to
know a lot of stuff about carpentry or have do-it-yourself building as
a hobby.
All you need is some common sense, patience, the knowledge to operate a
few
power tools and a few other accessories. And speaking of tools and
accessories,
let’s start by seeing what you’ll need.
How
to Install Hardwood Floor (Nail down Technique)
- Tools and Accessories
Simple
crayon/carpenter’s crayon
– you’ll need this to draw out the exact lines
you’re going to have to cut your
hardwood panels through, as well as for simple guidelines on your sub
floor
Chalk –
you might have to use
this when trying to figure out how to install hardwood floor in your
room,
given your existing space.
Hardwood floor nailer
– this can
be either manual or pneumatic. Pneumatic nailers have the advantage of
getting
the job done faster and more secure, but you’ll have to be
careful with them
because you can easily go deeper in the floor than you might want and
ruin the
panel(s) you’re trying to nail down
electric drill
– usually, the
electric drill should be used together with a 3/32 inch head.
Rubber mallet
– you’ll use this
mallet to get the panels to fit better, hammering them gently on their
ends.
Remember that you should be very delicate about this, because you can
easily
make the surface of the two panels you’re trying to get to
fit better overlap,
which creates a very nasty surface “burst” where
the panels meet.
Claw hammer
– you’ll need a claw
hammer for areas where the mallet won’t be usable, for
example with tiles that
are near the wall and you have no room for it.
hardwood flooring nails
– 2 inch
nails should work great, but it will depend heavily on the type of
floor you’re
using and the room space you have to work with.
Cutter knife
– used for small
adjustments, cutting the panels out from their box and several other
smaller
issues. You will also need it to cut the substrate into smaller pieces,
so that
it’s easier to manage.
Saw
– you’ll need a saw for cutting panels to fit
perfectly, based on the guidelines you trace with the
carpenter’s crayon
Broom, dust pan and piece of
cloth – they’ll be used in the end to
clean up the mess, but also in between
panel connections to eliminate dirt and any glue that might be coming
out of
the crevice.
How
to Install Hardwood Floor (Nail down Technique)
- Preparation
Even
if you’ve done your research
on how to install hardwood floor properly, you’ll still want
to be fully
prepared before you actually get your hands dirty. Although
it’s not hard work,
it’s not hard to mess up bad time either.
In order to prepare for the job
ahead, try to move all your furniture, if any, to another room. I
understand
this is not always possible, but even so, get as much out as you can.
If you
have a bigger piece of furniture, see if it can be dismantled then put
back
together in another room.
As a last resort, if you simply cannot or don’t want
to move furniture around, just gather it up in one corner of the room
and start
paneling from the other corner…then when you get to the bit
where the
furniture’s at, move it where you already have hardwood floor
installed and
continue. Obviously, this is not good for your floor or your back but
oh well…
You will also want to remove any
baseboards, door sills, old floor panels and so forth. Anything that
could
interfere with the well being and well installing of your new hardwood
floor
needs to go.
In case the sub floor is raw cement or some other bumpy
material,
get a felt floor liner to cover the entire floor. After
that’s done, you can
start putting to practice what you’ve learnt on how to
install hardwood floor
panels.
How
to Install Hardwood Floor (Nail down Technique)
- Step by Step Instructions
Place
the felt floor liner on the starting corner area. Cut a piece that
covers an entire row of panels vertically and around 3 rows
horizontally.
Place
the first hardwood floor panel the same corner of the room, making sure
it’s facing the right direction (groove sides towards the
walls, tongue sides towards the room)
Continue
with the next few panels, in order to get your first row up. On the
last panel, you will notice that the distance is shorter to the wall,
than a full panel can fit in, so you’ll have to measure it
and cut a new panel to match this distance perfectly.
Try to be exact
about it, the wall strips can cover an inch of two of floor that
isn’t perfectly measured, but that’s about it.
Once
you have a full row connected, secure it to the floor using screw shank
nails (you might or might not need the drill for this, depending on the
floor type, the hardwood type, the nails, your skill and strength and
many other factors)
Secure
the strip in place and nail the panels down manually, since you
won’t be able to use the automatic nailer due to the wall
blocking you out.
Since
you most probably had to cut the last panel in the first row down to
fit the exact distance, leaving you with a smaller piece of panel, you
will have to use this to start the next row.
This will create an
alternating effect that is pleasant from a visual point of view, but
it’s also good for the floor. Otherwise, if you have all the
panels matching perfectly and have their connecting joints lined up,
the floor’s stability around these joints will be weaker.
Continue
with this technique, connecting the panels and connecting each row. You
can now use the nailer to pin them down. Use the rubber mallet to
adjust the panels and the rows together, so that their connecting
joints don’t fall apart forming small trenches.
When
you’ve reached the end of a row, thus a wall, you
won’t be able to use the mallet to fix the row vertically, so
you can use the claw hammer to do so.
On
the last rows, you will have to insert the nails down manually, because
the side wall will be blocking you again.
The
last panel is often the hardest to fit in, because you’re
obstructed from all directions. Pay extra attention to it, despite the
exhaustion or enthusiasm that might have caught on by now.
Clean
up and enjoy your floor!
How
to Install Hardwood Floor (Nail down Technique) -
Clean Up
And
speaking of step 10, let me
emphasize on the importance of the cleaning up bit. You probably
didn’t hear
this out when learning how to lay hardwood floors, because most of the
guides
focus on what to do DURING the installation process and tend to skip
what needs
to be done afterwards.
When you will be done with the installation of your
floor, there will be a large amount of saw dust, bigger pieces of floor
and
other stuff lying around.
Using a broom, you can clean up the big
pieces, but
it’s important not to let the dust settle in either. Clean it
up with a piece
of cloth, or a mop if your floor permits it. If you used glue to stick
the
panels’ joints together better, make sure you clean the
excess glue properly as
well.
How
to Install Hardwood Floor (Nail down Technique) -
Special Tips
Be very gentle when installing hardwood flooring. You
can easily damage the surface and ruin an entire panel. This goes for
horizontal row fixing as well, although the horizontal surface of a
panel is larger, so it’s more resistant to hits.
If you’re using a manual nailer, use your
rubber mallet instead of your claw hammer to insert the nails.
How
to Install Hardwood Floor (Nail down Technique) -
Conclusion
The
nail down technique is, to
many, one of the most comfortable in hardwood flooring. It’s
not as rigid as
glued down floors and it’s not as loose as other floating
methods.
In addition,
nail down hardwood floor is extremely easy to install and remove,
leaving
almost no trace behind if you want to replace it (unlike the glue down
hardwood
floors for example, which will leave a mess to remember for a while
when you
try to remove them).
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How
to Install Hardwood Floor (Nail down Technique) -
Special Tips
