Acclimating Hardwood Flooring Prevents Buckling, Gapping, and Squeaking

When planning your hardwood flooring project, it is important to make sure that you allow enough time for the wood flooring to properly acclimate in the space prior to the installation.  Hardwood flooring expands and contracts based on relative humidity (RH). As a certified wood flooring inspector (CWFI), I commonly see floor failures due to installers not acclimating the flooring prior to installation, either because they are cutting corners, or giving in to customer demands for completion dates. That is really unfortunate, as it is an easily preventable problem.

What is hardwood flooring acclimation?

Acclimation is the process by which the moisture content (MC) of the hardwood flooring is brought to an equilibrium with moisture content of the space it will be installed in.  This process requires that the wood flooring materials sit in the space where they will be installed, while the building or home is kept at it’s normal temperature and humidity level.  For example, if the location will normally be kept at 70 degrees with a whole house humidifier running, then the house should be heated (or cooled) to about 70 degrees and the humidifier should be running while the wood is acclimating.

Why is hardwood flooring acclimation important?

Hardwood flooring shrinks and contracts based on humidity levels.  When temperature and humidity changes, wood moves. In general, wood is most dimensionally stable at around 30% MC.  When it’s below or above that, it can fail, causing gaps between boards, or buckling and cracking of the boards.  Movement of the boards during expansion and contraction can also cause fasteners to loosen, resulting in squeaks

Essential tools for hardwood flooring acclimation.

The only real way to tell if a wood is properly acclimated is to use a moisture meter. Delmhorst makes a nice digital wood moisture meter, and you can find many other digital and analog moisure meter options on Amazon.

The Cost of Hardwood Floors

As a floor guy, I run into many customers asking what makes one hardwood floors cost more than another. I frequently get asked: ” How much does a hardwood floor cost?”  That can be tricky, as there are so many options, choices and variations.

Overall, the main things that affect the cost of solid hardwood floors are species, grade, width and finish.

How does the species of a hardwood floor affect the price?

Species of hardwood is the largest factor in determining the cost of a hardwood floor.  All things being equal, oak flooring is about the cheapest hardwood you can get.  As you go to less common species such as maple, hickory or cherry, the price will go up.  Moving into exotic flooring like wenge, zebrawood or ipe will drive up the cost of flooring materials even more.

How is does the grade of flooring affect the price?

Wood flooring comes in a variety of grades, which determine the overall character and variation between the planks.  For example, oak hardwood flooring is graded accordingly:

• Clear – wood is free of defects, with a uniform appearance and few character marks
• Select – wood has a relatively uniform appearance, but has more natural character marks like knots and color variation than clear wood
• Common No. 1 – wood has more natural variation including color, mineral streaking and knots
• Common No. 2 – wood has a rustic appearance with larger knots and natural markings, or marks from machining.

In any particular tree, there is less wood that meets the criteria for a grade of “clear” than “common”.  As a result, higher grades of wood within a species are more expensive than lower grades.

How does the width of hardwood flooring affect the price?

The wider the width of hardwood flooring, the more expensive it is going to be. The width may not seem like an obvious cost factor, but it is important.  When you cut trees into wider  boards, you will get less yield from a given tree.  Wider boards are also more likely to have defects that will throw the entire piece out of grade, so a high grade, wide plank floor can be particularly costly.

How does the hardwood floor finish affect price?

When you are choosing the finish for your hardwood floor, your basic options are oil based polyurethane, water based polyurethane, or a more durable commercial grade finish.  Prices vary due to the time involved in applying different types of finish, different drying times and the cost of the finish materials themselves.

In general, oil based finishes are the least expensive, followed by water based.  Two part commercial finishes like Bona Traffic are most expensive because of the cost of the products themselves, and the fact that left over materials harden and cannot be saved and used for later coats or other projects.

Dance Floor and Commercial Hardwood Floor Maintenance Tips

Dear Rob:

We recently replaced our old dance floor.  And I’m wondering how to maintain it on a daily, weekly and monthly basis.  Since it is a dance floor there is a certain amount of wear and tear.  I would like to know what you would recommend to use for cleaning and polishing.  I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you.

-Nikole

Dear Nikole:

It’s great to know that you are looking to maintain your new dance floor.  A hardwood floor, especially a commercial hardwood floor, is a great investment.  Being a commercial dance floor, there are a lot of hazards and abuse that your floor will be subjected to.  There are several ways that you can keep that floor looking and performing great for years to come.

Here are some tips for protecting your commercial dance floor:

1. Clean up liquid spills immediately.  Moisture and can damage a hardwood floors by seeping into cracks and gaps and swell the hardwood floor.
2. Dust, dirt, and debris can grind into the hardwood floor when walked on, thus wearing and dulling the finish, so sweep the floor nightly, using a microfiber dust mop, such as the
   Bona Kemi Commercial Cleaning Pad.
3. Damp mop the floor with a spray on hardwood floor cleaner such as Bona Hardwood Spray Mop and cleaner at least weekly, or when needed.
4. Screen and coat your floor every 6 months with a commercial grade hardwood floor finish, such as Bona Traffic.  This requires a professional hardwood floor refinishing company to come in and lightly buff the floor with a screen, and then apply a maintenance coat.

Because the experiences and preferences of flooring companies vary, it’s important to keep in mind that when you choose a professional to refinish the floors, they may recommend a different brand that is of equal quality that they are more comfortable working with. Be sure to discuss this with your flooring professional so they know what your needs and concerns are.

-Rob