You usually determine this with a meter that compares the relative humidity of the slab with the ambient humidity.
Laying hardwood over slab.
Experienced professionals pay close attention to managing moisture and minimizing wood floor expansion and contraction when preparing to install hardwood floors on concrete slabs.
Hardwood floors are durable low maintenance and easy to clean.
Water used within the mix of newly poured slabs can take up to 3 months or more to.
Before you prepare the concrete for hardwood flooring it must be dry.
If there is anything already laid over the concrete you should remove it before you can start installing hardwood flooring that might mean pulling up a carpet or possibly removing paint from the concrete.
Proper planning will save money time and minimize mistakes.
Get a comprehensive breakdown on which materials to use what to take into consideration and what steps to take for four subfloor systems.
Black felt hardwood flooring underlayment paper over the subfloor overlapping the seams 4 6 inches to help retard moisture transfer.
Installing hardwood flooring over concrete.
Treated plywood to the concrete with concrete screws spaced every 16 in.
Read manufacturer s directions before installation to maintain warranty coverage.
Installing hardwood floors over concrete slab before you make any decision on flooring the first thing you need to do is contact an experienced professional.
Alternatively screw rows of treated 1x4s to the concrete 16 in.
Concrete slabs usually consist of a 4 6 thick 3 500 5 550 lb strength concrete pour.
Lay 6 mil polyethylene sheeting over the concrete to minimize moisture migration from the concrete up into the wood flooring.
We recommend laying 15 lb.
Cost skill level start to finish 2 days.
Deciding factors before installing hardwood flooring over concrete.
The concrete slab needs to be completely cured and moisture free before you can install hardwood on top.
Learn how to install beautiful hardwood floors over a concrete slab.
Once you ve made up your mind about installing a hardwood floor over your concrete slab you need to put some thought into it.
Floated subfloor alternate subfloor glue down sub floor and the nail down subfloor system.
Concrete naturally breathes and takes in expels moisture and this can.
Of course if you want to install new flooring it s often best to remove any existing flooring.
Installing a hardwood floor over a concrete slab even if your home was built on a concrete slab you can still enjoy the beauty and charm of hardwood floors.