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Why is hardwood flooring nailed on top of the tongue, instead of on top of the bottom finger of the groove? Tongue nailing allows the floor to be sanded down one quarter inch, before contacting the nail/staple head (thus ending the useful life of the floor). Nailing at the bottom finger of the groove would give one quarter inch more sanding space. (I agree that uneven sanding over the total surface of the floor would give some odd looking separation between the boards.) My suspicion is that the problem would be splitting of the wood at the base of the tongue, or possibly a potential bowing across the width of the plank. (I happen to be dealing with 2″ and 3″ planks–Oak and Maple). I’m very curious about this, but I’m sure that the experts have their reasons. Also, to do the end nailing on the first four courses, what is the size/description of the best nails, and how deep do I counter sink them? Thanks and regards, Buck.
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Buck,
I have never seen a floor sanded 1/4". It would take a lot of refinishing to ever expose nails in T&G flooring. With todays finishes, you most likely would never sand down into the wood when refinishing unless there was a problem of some sort. Sanding past the tounge would allow the strips to cup easily as there would be nothing to resist it.
As for nailing the first course, I nail with 10d finish nails on the joists and shoot two 8ds with my finish nailer at both ends of the strips as there is almost never a joist there. Countersink with a nail set about 1/8" or so and fill with a solvent based wood filler like Famowood. It may take more than 1 pass to fill the nails and cracks but solvent based fillers dry quickly. Then sand and finish and you'll have one of the best finished floors available. Barring exposure to water it should last a lifetime easily with a few refinishings in between.
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Got it!! The tongue would be unrestrained by any type of fastener as soon as you sanded off the upper lip of the groove. Crystal clear now. As for nailing the first course(s) on the joists, something I did not think about. Makes great sense. Now, for something a bit artistic. I read that one should save the dust from the 2nd sanding, mix two to one with an oil base of some kind (I assume Linseed or lacquer) forming a soft putty filler, than load up a rustic floor with it. (And believe me, this first floor is going to be rustic!!) Then wipe off, wait to dry, and do the third sanding. Also, do I have to nail across the joists, i.e. lay the floor across the joists. Can I lay the floor in line with the joists if I have a good subfloor to nail to? I have only 3/4 inch ply, but virtually no squeaks, and I'm going to nail 4" on center with ring shanks before I nail the hardwood. Also, any opinions on black felt versus resin paper? Anyone know anything about this? All help appreciated. Regards, Buck.
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Buck,
I think I can help you with two questions. I attended a class/workshop on hardwood installation given by a Robbins factory representative. This may fly in the face of what others believe, but this is what the rep said. With a 3/4" subfloor, supported by joists 16" o.c., 3/4" and wider t&g may be laid without regard to joist direction. In fact, and I believe you can read this in Hardwood Floors (Bollinger, Taunton press, a good resource) Often the best indicator of direction is wall placement, ie. running board parallel to the length of a hallway, etc. Regarding the use of felt vs. rosin paper the rep said that neither was required but he would recommend either for floors over crawl spaces or unheated living space. His story was that rosin paper was produced from manufacturing waste and the the convention of using it under hardwood was a result of efforts to create a market for the stuff.
Now I don't know how much stock I place in the last part of the preceding paragraph, but I can tell you that I've have laid hardwood with the joists and perpendicular, over felt and rosin paper with equal success. I haven't laid it over bare subfloor. I nail down on average 5000 s.f./yr., in the course of my business. Not as much as full time flooring sub by any stretch, but enough to have degenerative joint problems! Check out Bollinger's book.
Tom
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Tom,
Thank You!! And I mean it! I didn't know about the Taunton book, and with four floors to lay, I'm going to buy it. As for your experience, you're 5,000 Square feet ahead of me.
Regards,
Buck
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Why is hardwood flooring nailed on top of the tongue, instead of on top of the bottom finger of the groove? Tongue nailing allows the floor to be sanded down one quarter inch, before contacting the nail/staple head (thus ending the useful life of the floor). Nailing at the bottom finger of the groove would give one quarter inch more sanding space. (I agree that uneven sanding over the total surface of the floor would give some odd looking separation between the boards.) My suspicion is that the problem would be splitting of the wood at the base of the tongue, or possibly a potential bowing across the width of the plank. (I happen to be dealing with 2" and 3" planks--Oak and Maple). I'm very curious about this, but I'm sure that the experts have their reasons. Also, to do the end nailing on the first four courses, what is the size/description of the best nails, and how deep do I counter sink them? Thanks and regards, Buck.