Need some advice from the hardwood gurus about which way a new hardwood floor should be laid; namely, does it have to be laid perpendicular to the floor joists or can it run parallel to them? We have TGI 550’s overlaid with 3/4 glued and screwed T&G on 16″ centers so the floor deflection should be minimal. DW wants the floor to run parallel for esthetic reasons but I am wondering if this is common practice and if it will cause us problems down the road.
Rick
“The reason women fart less than men is that they never stop talking long enough to build up any pressure.”
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Running parallel shouldn't be a problem, especially if the subfloor is plywood, which is preferred subfloor for floor nails IMO.
I've run flooring both parallel and perpendicular on a good base, as you describe, and have had no problems or call backs on any of those installations going back about a dozen years.
I do use cleat nails and not staples, though I doubt there shoud be an issue there....just happens both my floor guns shoot nails.
I'm assuming 3/4" unfinished floor, although I've layed a lot of 5/8" bamboo with good results.
That is an excellent frame and subfloor.
No problem.
I usually lay in paralell with the predominant direction of light coming into the room, but there are reasons for exceptions to that too.
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Thanks for the comments guys. My wife is now very happy!
"The reason women fart less than men is that they never stop talking long enough to build up any pressure."