After working with wooden floors for 14 years, I would like to explain what a carpenter or wood floor fitter must do before fitting a wooden floor. This is relevant to any wood floor.

What is the most important thing you should know about installing a wooden floor?

First is to check the dampness of your sub-floor, which I’ve talked about before.

Second is acclimatisation.

The wood must be acclimatized inside the room or house before installation. Parquet flooring must be acclimatised for a minimum of two days. Engineered flooring must be acclimatized for a minimum of two days. Multi-floor flooring must be acclimatised for a minimum of two days. And solid wood floor must be acclimatised for a minimum of four days.

These are very important steps for the future life of wood because your wood floor planks and boards can expand and rise in the future. Make sure you acclimatise your wood before installation, so you don’t regret it later.

Preparation is a crucial step.

Imagine if the wood floor isn’t acclamatised and it’s installed fresh from the packaging to your floor. It might look new and fresh in the beginning, but because it hasn’t been in the environment it’s supposed to get used to, it’ll start adjusting to the humidity and temperature of its environment while it’s on the floor. That means the wood will begin to contract and expand. And when there’s furniture on top of it and people walking, that will exacerbate the problem. Depending on the toughness of the wood and the indoor temperatures, you could see the wood floor begin to separate and rise anything from a month upwards after installing your new floor. There’s no use replacing just the few planks that start rising, as the rest of the floor will do the same given a bit of time. That means the whole floor will need to be replaced. That’s not a headache you want to have to deal with. The costs involved in replacing the floor will be huge. A quality wood floor lasts for many many years if installed properly, so it’d be a real shame to rush the job and install it in the shortest time possible. That’s why an experienced carpenter or fitter is crucial. Make sure it’s a wood floor specialist that installs your wooden floor.

If you want more advice, including how to find the best wood floor company, visit ParquetFlooringLondon dot com.