New hardwood flooring question.

[Steve Evans]

Greg

Just to add to some of your earlier points. Any of the engineered floors that I have installed, I have nailed down. That's engineered, not Laminate. I realize that they can be glued, but as your experience indicates, I think that gluing exposes the installer to problems down the road. Out of all the flooring types that I've put dowm, the Mirage engineered looks the best when installed. NO bevel. It will look the closest to a post install finish. That being said, if you don't mind spending a couple of days sanding the floor out with the Rotex, have at er. At least it won't be dusty

[Jeff Bradley]

I am in perpetual hardwood floor installation research mode as it is a long term project I have always wanted to do. I have a foyer that is pre-finished oak strips and have never liked it. The bevels are just too distracting (visually) and they do nothing but make it difficult to clean. Haven't seen the micro-bevels but they would have to be pretty micro to offer the seamless look I have always liked in a hardwood floor. The no-bevel stuff sounds interesting but I can't imagine the result being truely flat due to variations in materials as well as the subfloor.

Although it doesn't help Greg, the dust issues associated with a post-install finish seem to be at least partially solved (if you believe their website) by Oneida with their setup for floor sanders (http://www.oneidavac.com). Seems like it would be a lot more viable for a professional than spending two days on your hands and knees with a Rotex at least

Not to hijack the thread, but I have always had a hard time finding information on hardwood floor installation for anything but the basic arrangment. Anyone have good resources for information on how to install a floor with borders (in constrasting woods), inlays, or other decorative elements. When I ever get around to putting down hardwood, I would like to justify my time/energy/tools investment by doing more than a basic install.

[Bill Spievak]

You might want to try hardwoodinstaller.com I've found it to be a excellent source of info and comparison data.

[Greg Ladd]

Bill,

Thanks for the reply. It sounds as if I need to stock up on some sandpaper if I want to tackle this project this way.

I actually think the roller idea makes sense. It certainly would speed things up and the finish should look nice.

How long does the Parks need to dry between coats?

Greg

[Bill Spievak]

Despiet what the label says, I give it 24 to 48 hours, depending upon temp. and humidity. I have done second coats in as little as 12 hours, but then I felt it took longer for the finish to completely cure. I tell my customers to give the floor a full seven days before putting furniture on it, or walking on it with shoes. Most of my clients move furniture on after 4 to 5 days, but if I told them 4 to 5 days they would be on it in 2 or 3.

[Dev Emch]

To Jeff and anyone else with an interest....

First of all, the term "Micro Bevel" applies to the slight bevel on the wear surface of prefinished flooring. The bevel that you do not like *IS* a micro bevel. They call it that to differentiate it from a bevel that one would find on say beveled tonque and groove paneling. From the sounds of it, you have already run into to the negative cons of this type of flooring. Also mentioned, repairs to this flooring is very unpleasant. Thanks for bringing up this issue.

In terms of buying flooring. This is a real pain. The flooring trades tend to be a closed shop and outsiders are only welcome if you bring your checkbook and pay the installers. Having said that, there are some flooring outfits that will sell to you and they usually purchase flooring from a wholesale to the trade only warehouse operation. I use Timbeck Mills strip maple. This is unfinished maple strip from canada and the folks at timbeck mills do an outstanding job. The stock is clean and straight and the moulder work is perfect! Often I have to go to one of these design shops and buy the stock from them. I do the paper work and then drive over to Denver Hardwoods and give them the purchase order. They then pull the bundles from the stacks and put them on my trailer. It seems like a major effort but I have found that my most popular hardwood flooring material is 3.25 inch Timbeck maple. Man Oh Man does this stuff lay down and finish out well! It fits so well that if you do your prelim work on the subflooring correctly, you hardly need to do any finish sanding!

As for borders, medalians, etc. You have just opened up a real can of worms. I am going to start a new thread on this as its such an awsome and involved topic.

Regards...

[Greg Ladd]

Dev,

Do you by chance have a phone number for the flooring you mentioned? It sounds like something that would be nice to use if I can find it in my area or possibly have some shipped to me.

Thanks - Greg

[Greg Ladd]

Bill,


Thanks for the advice on the finish and the curing times. I certainly would not have waited that long. You probably saved me a lot of grief!

Greg

[Dev Emch]

Gregg...

I have to buy the flooring from ....

Rock Solid Hardwoods @ 303-572-1234. They are one of the larger flooring dealers in the Denver area. They in turn get it from

Denver Hardwood Co. Inc. @ 303-296-1168. But these guys sell only to the trade. They will not even sell to a contractor... your business has to be 100 percent dedicated to reselling and/or installing hardwood flooring.

I have even considered opening up a new business that deals only in hardwood flooring which my other business simply has to subcontract to. This way, my flooring business can gain direct access to denver hardwoods. But I dont know how much business i have to do per year to justify keeping the account channel with Denver Hardwoods open. Its an idea.

If you look up wholesale flooring supply companies in the closest large city where you live and ask them if they handle Timbeck Mills out of canada, you may be able to get it from your neck of the woods. Timbeck or Tembeck are actually the guys who make this stuff.

What I like about maple is that it is rock hard but not so hard as to hurt your feet. It also has a warm, honey shaded, neutral color about it. Makes it easy to fit into all sorts of interior decor and it provides a wonderful field for the addition of flooring decor elements which themselves use darker woods such as walnut or mahag or ebony or wenge or paduck.

Its also the ultimate shop floor. That or hickory as Lou used in his shop. Maybe that is why it was used years ago in so many older mills and factories.

[jack duren]

pre-finished is ok but i wouldnt have it. ill put the second coat on these i just installed tomorrow. its work but the rewards are worth it.....jack

[Greg Ladd]

Dev,
Thanks for the information. That should help me find someone who can sell to me.

Greg

[Greg Ladd]

Jack,

That looks great!

Greg

[Chris Padilla]

Ah, freshly finished solid hardwood floor...beautiful!

[Kevin Murdock]

My wife and I just finnished laying Jatoba down on the 1st floor of our house.

The wood is 3/4 solid unfinnished Jatoba which is milled here in Willimington, NC at Dean Hardwoods Inc.

Best part about this product is that it comes in 10' bundles and quite a few of the piece lengths we that long. Most were longer than 4' and it was very rare to come across any less than 3'. And not many boards were unusable. Very different from what we saw at the Borgs.

We were lucky enough to have the time to allow the wood to darken for two weeks after we sanded. Having the raw, sanded wood sit makes all the difference as the floors are almost as dark as the Jatoba we layed about a year ago in the upstairs of the house.

Once it was layed, we also allowed the floor to cure for 2 full weeks before placing anything on it. Not having children or pets in the house makes all the waiting between work possible.

We used Bona Mega poly for the finnish. It was recommended by many on this forum and I can't say enough about it. We're happy with the results.

The first image is of the north room in the house still wet right after applying the poly. Others are of the finnished product in both of the larger rooms on the first floor.

The work was hard, removing the old carpet with particle board, and some cheap glue down eng. oak, but the wife and I had fun and are pleased with the results.

/Kevin

[Jason Roehl]

That sure is a purrrrdy floor, Kevin. I like Jatoba, and I like Bona Mega, too. In fact, I may be using some by mid-week.