Hi all!

I am in the middle of my first try at installing wood flooring (3/4 inch think, 2 1/4 inch wide prefinished ash strip flooring), and have some questions about tongues that are partially missing.  Should I avoid using boards that don’t have a full width tongue? 

Out of 12 boxes (20 sq ft each), I now have at least one box worth of boards with partially missing tongues.  When I say “partially missing” I mean they are not the normal width, sometimes as small as about 3/32.  Typically, the tongue on these “defective” boards taper from full size to something less than full size, but I do have some boards that don’t have a full width tongue the full length of the board.  Unfortunately, the problem tends to be on the longest boards.

Is it normal to have this many boards (about 8%) with short tongues, and can they be used (for example, if scattered about in the floor)?  I ordered 10% extra (to account for inexperience, knots in this natural grade flooring, and defects), but most of that extra is being taken up in these short tongued boards and I am afraid I won’t have enough to finish.  But I don’t want to harm the integrity of the floor by using these boards if that would be the result.

FYI in case it helps answer the questions: this is in a home built in 1978; subfloor is 1/2 inch ply over 3/4 inch ply on standard floor joists on the main level over a finished basement; flooring installed perpendicular to the joists; using a Porta-nail Hammerhead2 pneumatic nailer; flooring is at 8% moisture level; house typically kept at 40-60% relative humidity level throughout the year.

Thanks for any help or suggestions you can give.

Nat

Fairfax, Virginia