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What is Sturdi-Floor, who makes it and which is better to use as an underlayment to which a 3/4 inch hardwood floor will be nailed to, 3/4 inch sturdi-floor or 3/4 ACX plywood.
Patti & I pulled up the carpeting and discovered there was only a single sheet of 3/4 inch particle board resting on the joists with the carpeting on top. We want to put the right material down to nail the hardwood floor into.
Never heard of Sturdi-floor but a couple of the lumber yards claim that its perfect to use as a subfloor/underlayment (tongue & groove) for a nailed hardwood floor. Is this true? Your assistance will be greatly appreciated.
Ken & Patti
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K&P, Sturdi-Floor is just one company's name for OSB subflooring. I have used it for years and it's a very good material . The one drawback that it has, is that you can't let it repeatedly get soaked or the edges tend to swell up. If we get caught in a few storms, we usually have to knock down the joints with a belt sander before carpeting. It is sanded one side and you can carpet right over it. Be sure to use adhesive on the T&G as well as on top of the joists.
Now to get to your hardwood floor question...I have never had trouble with OSB under a hardwood floor. BUT, I just came back from tearing up a hardwood floor job we did last year using 3/4" T&G plywood. The plywood delaminated and was crunching and squeaking something terrible. This was an expensive mess and fortunately I didn't suck it up because I warned the client about this potential problem beforehand and he insisted on the plywood!
I have had so many problems with plywood that I will try and use almost anything else....
I like to use 15# roofing felt under the hardwood flooring. I think it's a good hedge against squeaks.
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Sturdi-floor is the APA's trademark for their specifications for combination subfloor/underlayment. Sturdi-floor can be either plywood or OSB, and can be various thicknesses from 5/8 to 1 1/8. It is t&g on the long edges and as such needs no blocking. The good side is equivalent to a C face that has been plugged and sanded, and is adequate for carpet or hardwood without any other underlayment. [It can under certain circumstances be used under vinyl without any other underlayment.] It is generally the material of choice for floor sheathing.
ACX would be an expensive form of overkill for a subfloor. There is no need for an A face, which is intended for exposed finished surfaces.
I'm supprised you haven't fallen through your particle board floor. It probably never got wet.
*This question was asked or the subject was brought up on an earlier post. Here is the response I recieved from APA:"Sir, APA Rated Sturd-I-Floor? is a registered trademark of APA-The Engineered Wood Association. An APA RATED STURD-I-FLOOR is designed and manufactured specifically for residential and other light frame single-floor (combined subfloor-underlayment) applications for use under carpet. APA RATED STURD-I-FLOOR can be manufactured with Span Ratings of 16, 20, 24, 32 and 48 oc, in thicknesses ranging from 19/32 to 1-1/8 inch, and in three exposure durability classifications - Exterior, Exposure 1 and Exposure 2. Panels are available with either square edges or tongue-and-groove edges as specified. APA RATED STURD-I-FLOOR 48 oc plywood, commonly called 2-4-1, is also used in heavy timber roof construction. I hope this information is helpful. If you have further questions, feel free to contact APA Product Support at (253)620-7400 phone, (253)565-7265 fax, or e-mail [email protected] L. WrightProduct Support SpecialistTechnical Services Division"So, Sturdi Floor is a rating or lable can be affixed to any number of structural panel products - including plywood or osb. It is a performance rating. The issue of plywood or osb has other concerns but just specifying Sturdi Floor guarantees neither.
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Mike, You're right about the classification of "Sturdi-Floor" including both plywood and OSB. I have not seen plywood T&G subfloor labeled as Sturdi-Floor in our area. That name here is synonymous with the OSB product. I would bet the product K & P's lumber yard is referring to is OSB!
Now , I would like to ask you if you have ever used this product or if this is some theory of yours? You label it as particle board. Is this actually what you think OSB is? I have been using this material for subflooring for at least 10 years and I can tell you it is very strong and durable and in my opinion, much more dependable than plywood.
We get southern yellow pine plywood shipped up here and the quality is very poor. You may well get a better quality of fir plywood in your area. I try to use the best stuff I can buy and in my case it's OSB.
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G. Take another look at the first post by Ken & Pattie . I dont think Mike was refering to osb as particle board.
*Mike, bill et al. don't forget that the gluing, type of nails and spacing are pert of the Sturdi Floor. NOTE: According to research done by one of the Canadian Maritime province's universities, the gluing is not as beneficial as claimed by APA. Gene L.
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Ken & Patti, 5 yrs ago when I built I used Trus Joist I beams with 3/4 Sturdi Floor. It is glued and ring shank nailed. The carpet is put directly over the Sturdi Floor, the vinyl is put down over a 3/8 plyood waterproof underlayment( made for vinyl underlayment)on top of the Sturdi Floor, and my hardwood floor is a Harris Tarkett long strip floating on a foam backing direcly over the Sturdi Floor. So far happy with all. Randy
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What is Sturdi-Floor, who makes it and which is better to use as an underlayment to which a 3/4 inch hardwood floor will be nailed to, 3/4 inch sturdi-floor or 3/4 ACX plywood.
Patti & I pulled up the carpeting and discovered there was only a single sheet of 3/4 inch particle board resting on the joists with the carpeting on top. We want to put the right material down to nail the hardwood floor into.
Never heard of Sturdi-floor but a couple of the lumber yards claim that its perfect to use as a subfloor/underlayment (tongue & groove) for a nailed hardwood floor. Is this true? Your assistance will be greatly appreciated.
Ken & Patti