| Only a few short years ago
the only type of solid hardwood that was glued
would be thick parquet or herringbone. Expo Design
and their parent store Home Depot began the wild ride
of glueing more common solid
3/4 inch hardwood. Unfortunately many installers did not
know how to do it properly. Our last visit to the
stores mentioned shows they have replaced the 3/4"
hardwood with thinner solid products.
 Thinner solid hardwoods have
more flex to them. One of the most troublesome
aspects of gluing these hardwoods was always the
lack of flexibility. Thicker crooked boards don't
straighten out as easily as thinner hardwoods.
Often you would get gapping before the job was
done.
Today there are still many
installers that will not take on this kind of job,
However, done properly they can be just as
successful as any other type of installation.
Major urethane adhesive
manufacturers will warrant their use for solid
hardwoods providing all specifications are
followed to the tee. Knowledge, experience, and strict attention to how
it can be done is critical. A few tips for any
successful installation would include:
| • Use a urethane
based adhesive and a 1/4" x 1/4" square
notched trowel with a spread rate of 30-35
square feet per gallon. |
|
Example shown above |
| • Shorter 3/4" solids
are much easier to glue direct. |
| • Moisture testing
and
subfloor flatness is critical for any
successful installation. |
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