real oak wood (tonge and groove style)

stevejames · Post by **stevejames** » Thu Aug 24, 2006 8:55 am

hi iam about to lay this type of floor i have bought a nail gun to do te job but i have been told to nail it through the tongue and then was told to nail it through the groove please help thankyou ...steve

Stella · Post by **Stella** » Thu Aug 24, 2006 9:59 am

The boards in my house are nailed through the tongue

richhrv · Post by **richhrv** » Thu Aug 24, 2006 10:53 am

no no no nail it through the groove at an angle of 45 degrees, when you slot the tongue of the next one into the already nailed one it will hold it for you....

stevejames · Post by **stevejames** » Thu Aug 24, 2006 6:39 pm

thanks once again for the info this is a great site ...steve

Gadget · Post by **Gadget** » Thu Aug 24, 2006 8:22 pm

Not easy to nail it at 45% through the groove

carhartt kid · Post by **carhartt kid** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 12:05 am

From someone who has fitted probably more than a square mile of flooring....

You fix through the TONGUE...Not the groove. The groove will SPLIT!!! The volume of meterial being nailed through the tongue is greater, therefore stronger. Also its easier to reach the nail head if you need to push it in deeper..

You use a flooring nailer, air finish nailer or a paslode. In that order of preferance. The flooring nailer can be rented from HSS for Â£21 a day...etc

http://www.hss.com/g/52516/Overlay_Floor_Nailer.html

Please watch this, as it'll save you time and money...

http://www.easy2diy.com/cm/easy/diy_ht_ ... d=35720314

Give it time to load (you might want to right click on the screen and hit play). It shows a few things most experts would be surprised to see. Such as, running the tongues away from a centre line (base line as they call it)

Another note is to hunt around for cork, foam or rubber expansion strip to run around your 10mm expansion gap. This will hinder rodents, close off any drafts, insulate and knock out any chance of you fixing the floor to tight.

Also, take your skirtings (baseboard) off and refit after you've laid the floor.. Oh and buy a brand new Jack Saw to trim the doorframes. Dont forget to use a piece of underlay and an offcut to use as a guide. Remember the kerf of the saw will leave you with a 1-2mm gap, which can be filled with a flexible filler.

Finally. When you reach the edge and can't fit the floor nailer in. Get your hammer out and countersink pin. Nailing throught the surface and then filling and finishing can be a real bitch..

Good luck young Jedi..

richhrv · Post by **richhrv** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 6:56 am

carhart kid have you ever used a 18g air pin gun to install flooring???? did you find it gripped ok and no movement????

carhartt kid · Post by **carhartt kid** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 10:42 am

Easy Rich...

18g...... I've not used a pin gun, but i've got a crown head stapler i picked up for Â£40 from this geezer

http://stores.ebay.com/staplemania_W0QQ ... idZ2QQtZkm

... Took a month to get to me...There are a few purpose made staplers for flooring on his page.

I personally prefer to use a flooring nailer. As its a lot less kit to drag around. I've only got a 16g Palsode and the framing badboy so both of those are out of the picture.

I'm not sure an 18g pin has the same holding power as a staple. But i suppose if you put enough of them in it would fix it ok.

stevejames · Post by **stevejames** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 8:23 pm

thanks Jedi.. information you have sent is invaluble to me i feel a bit more confident now ....steve

stevejames · Post by **stevejames** » Sat Aug 26, 2006 7:16 am

okay back to the problem with my floring! on opening the boxes i have found that there are 4 different sizes of lenghs this has thrown me as i expected them to be all one size so i am now at a loss as to which would be the best way to lay them the sizes are :
90cmtr-60cmtr-40cmtr-30cmtr thanksfor any help ...steve

carhartt kid · Post by **carhartt kid** » Sat Aug 26, 2006 10:35 am

Hi Steve,

No panic. The random lengths are just to add a more organic feel to the floor, rather than having a fixed pattern. You should open up a few boxes first, and find any pieces that are particularly nice, knotty or interesting and decide where you want these. Also check through for any damaged, warped bits, and put these aside for tapping blocks and emergencies.

Then, just start whacking them down as random as can be.

Be careful to avoid putting any down with their end joints too close to the next one. Also, plan ahead a little when you start getting near doors and the edges. Lay a few rows without fixing them so you can plan how to tackle scribed cuts and such. Then go back and fix them in place once you've done this..

Good luck...and most of all..take your time and have fun.

stevejames · Post by **stevejames** » Sat Aug 26, 2006 10:43 am

cheers i`ll let you know how i get on ...steve

carhartt kid · Post by **carhartt kid** » Sat Aug 26, 2006 6:46 pm

Post some photos up if you've got a camera!!!!

real oak wood (tonge and groove style)

real oak wood (tonge and groove style)

thankyou

flooring

tonge and groove floor (real wood)

thanks