Installation & Assembly

Engineered T&G – Installation Guidelines
Please contact your local dealer for questions and further information
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product failure due to poor sub floor conditions or
materials. Unsound or damaged sections should be
repaired or replaced.
Sub floor surface should be scraped or sanded clean and
made flat prior to installation. The surface must also be
free of any wax, dirt, paint, oil, grease, sealers, curing
compounds and other debris. Sand or grind high spots
and fill low spots with an approved floor patch compound.
It is very important to nail or screw any area of loose or
moving sub floor that will cause squeaks. Manufacturer
recommends the use of nails or screws with panels
fastened every 12 inches along the joists or intermediate
supports to ensure soundness of floor when complete.
Sub Floor Inspection and Room Preparation
Sub floor must be completely dry. If installing over new
concrete slab, allow 60 days or more to dry thoroughly.
The installer must test the concrete using recommended
testing methods and levels.
Sub floor must be free of any paint, oil, greases, dirt,
sealers, curing agents, dust and other residues.
If installing on any wood sub floor, the moisture content
difference between wood floor and wood sub flooring
should not be more than 2%.
If installing over existing vinyl floor, make sure vinyl is free
of waxes, polishes, and is secured to the sub floor and
that the underlying sub floor meets sub floor conditions.
Screw down all creaking and loose sub flooring.
Remove doors and existing baseboards, quarter rounds
and thresholds.
Door frames and other wooden obstacles should be
sawed off at the bottom to allow enough room for the
underlayment and planks to slide under.
RADIANT HEAT
EXCEPT FOR THE HICKORY, MAPLE, & ACACIA &
EXOTIC SPECIES SELECTIONS, ½” or thicker
flooring is warranted for installation over hydronic
radiant heat if installed per these instructions.
However, flooring is not warranted over electric
radiant heat systems. Only hydronic systems are
approved. Please carefully read the “Radiant Heat”
section below before finalizing product selections.
Note: Flooring made with a hickory, maple or acacia
or exotic species top layer is exempt from radiant
heat warranty coverage.
§ Flooring is not warranted for use over radiant heat
systems heated by electric elements. Only hydronic
systems are approved. Hydronic systems must
include infloor temperature sensors and an outdoor
thermostat that allows the system to adjust the water
temperature according to anticipated heat loss.
Flooring installed in multiunit projects where the water
temperature is not regulated separately in each unit
is not warranted.
§ Prior to installation over radiant heat moisture testing
must be conducted and documented per ASTM 1869-
89 (Calcium Chloride Test) or, for wood subfloors,
using a pin type meter. The moisture content for
concrete subfloors must not exceed 2.0 lbs. per 1000
square feet per ASTM 1869-89 (Calcium Chloride
Test), and the moisture content for wood subfloors
must not exceed 12%. If moisture levels exceed these
limits, do not install the flooring.
§ The surface temperature of the subfloor must never
exceed 82°F in any location. The temperature setting
must always remain within 15°F of normal operating
level, and should never be turned completely off.
Excessive heat, rapid heating, and/or failure to
maintain humidity levels between 30% and 60% are
likely to cause cracking, cupping and other forms of
floor failure. Slight surface checking (cracking),
particularly at the ends of planks, should be expected
in installations over radiant heat and do not constitute
a product failure.
§ All concrete must be allowed to properly cure and dry
for a minimum of 4 weeks prior to the operation of the
radiant heat system. The system should then be
operated at least 2/3 maximum output for a minimum
of 2 weeks prior to installation of flooring to further
allow moisture from the subfloor to dissipate and
reach equilibrium. This procedure must be followed
regardless of the time of year. Four (4) days prior to
flooring installation, reduce thermostat to 65°F.
§ As always, relative humidity of the jobsite must be
maintained between 30% and 60%. Use of a
humidification/dehumidification system may be
required to maintain the proper humidity levels,
particularly over radiant heat. Failure to maintain
proper humidity levels will void all warranties.