Do-It-Yourself Hardwood Floors

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• Do-It-Yourself Hardwood Floors

Do-It-Yourself Hardwood Floors

If you wish to add beauty and value to your home, installing hardwood floors is a great way to go. New hardwood floors in your foyer and living spaces will attract immediate attention from your guests, and from prospective buyers if you plan to sell your home. Many people, however, are put off by the cost of installing a hardwood floor; depending on how much floor you want to cover and what quality of hardwood you select, new hardwood floors can cost tens of thousands of dollars.

However, you can save a substantial amount of money if you choose to install the floors yourself. Even if you are not that handy around the house, if you work slowly and carefully, you can still have beautiful floors that look as though they were professionally installed. Be sure to set aside the time for this job; don't rush it.

First, determine what kind of wood you wish to install, whether a hardwood such as oak or maple or a softer wood such as American cherry. Discuss your project with your dealer, to see whether the wood you have selected requires any special care or attention. Flooring can be purchased in different widths; widths under 3 inches are generally referred to as "strips," and three inches or more, "planks." Also, select between prefinished boards -- which require only installation, no sanding, staining, or sealing -- and unfinished boards, which will require significant work once the boards are laid in place. If you have limited time, or are inexperienced using a drum sander -- which takes a knack -- then purchase prefinished boards. However, many believe that a freshly sanded and finished hardwood floor is more beautiful and classic in appearance than prefinished flooring. Just don't take on more than you can manage!

Always purchase more than you will need -- as much as 20 to 30 percent more -- as you are bound to make mistakes, and will need extra boards. Even professional installers provide themselves with extra wood. When you floorboards first arrive at your home, let them acclimatize to your home's humidity and temperature levels for at least three days; your boards may expand or contract a little in their new environment, and it's best to let this process occur before the boards are already laid in place.

Before beginning installation, take a close look at your subfloor, which will likely be half-inch to three-quarter-inch plywood. It does not need to be perfectly level, but it needs to be flat. Any imperfections in the subfloor will result in a wavy and squeaky finished floor. If any of the subfloor is rotting or needs replacement, take care of this job first. Then, cover the subfloor with a layer of 15-lb. asphalt felt, overlapping the seams by about 3 inches. Tack down this layer with a staple gun. This extra layer also helps prevent squeaks, and acts as a moisture barrier.

Plan to lay your floorboards perpendicular to the floor joists. The first boards should be laid against a wall, about half an inch away from the wall -- to allow for expansion of the wood. The gap will be covered by baseboard or shoe molding. Use chalk lines to ensure that your strips are laid in exactly parallel to the wall. If they begin askew, they will only become more askew as you lay in more rows. For the first row, choose the longest boards, or the widest planks. Nail this first row into the subfloor with 1.5-inch finishing nails, and recess the nails below the face of the wood. Be sure the nails are driven in as close to the wall as possible, so the nailheads will be covered by your molding.

For subsequent rows, drill pilot holes through the tongues of each board, centered on each joist, at the ends of each board, and also every 10 inches along the lengths. Tighten the rows by giving each board a sharp rap with a mallet, and fasten them with 1.5-inch finishing nails, as with the first row. It is recommended to use a pneumatic blind nailer, designed specifically to fasten floorboards by nailing through the tongue. From row to row, end joints should never be closer than 6 inches to each other.

If you are covering a large surface, you can also use a wood floor nailer, which you may be able to rent from your wood dealer. If you have never used a wood floor nailer, be sure to get precise instructions, and practice on some old boards first. As above, drive the nails through the tongues of the floorboards. If you are not careful, you can scratch or other damage your floor, particularly if you are laying prefinished boards.

When you reach the far wall, use a crowbar and block to wedge the last boards into place. As with the first row, nail this last row into place directly through the face of the boards, close to the wall, where the nailheads will be hidden by molding.

If you have installed unfinished boards, you will next have to sand the floor using a drum sander, making several passes with consecutively finer grades of sandpaper. For the final sanding, you should use 100-grit paper. Using a drum sander takes some practice; if you mishandle the sander, you can gouge your floor beyond repair. Be very careful, and get some help or hire a professional for this step if you’re unsure.

Staining your floor is optional; you may prefer just to let the natural color of the wood come through. If you decide to stain, make sure to apply the stain evenly, to avoid blotchy areas. You can apply with rags, brushes, or a roller. Apply a generous coat, and wipe up the excess after five or ten minutes. Be sure to follow the manufacturer’s instructions precisely.

Finally, whether you apply stain or not, you will need to apply three or four coats of protective finish, usually polyurethane (which has largely replaced shellac, varnish, and lacquer as a floor finisher). A high-gloss finish will show dust easier than a satin finish. Keep the polyurethane well stirred, but stir slowly, so as not to create bubbles; apply it to your floor with a lamb’s wool applicator, in even fashion, moving the applicator in the direction of the grain. Between each coat, sand the previous coat with a fine-grade sandpaper, using a buffer and #2 steel wool disk. Be sure the previous coat is completely dry -- and not tacky -- before sanding, and remove all dust by vacuuming and using a damp mop before applying the next finish coat.

Installing your own hardwood floor can be labor intensive, but you will save a great deal of money and have the satisfaction of having laid your own floor.

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