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As a natural product, floors are manufactured in accordance with accepted industry standards which permit a grading tolerance of 5%. Due to this being a natural product, 5% – 10% wastage may be produced during the fitting process and still remain within specification. The product should be acclimatised for at least 2 days in its expected environment prior to installing. Do not open packs until immediately before installation. If you require to inspect the goods before fitting, completely reseal the packaging immediately afterwards to retain the flexibility of the boards.

Some boards may exhibit minor bowing due to the lamination process however this disappears during the installation procedure. Do not install any obvious faulty pieces; these can normally be exchanged if they are outside the normally allowed 5% – 10% wastage.

Timber is a living material. Due to its hygroscopic properties it either absorbs or releases moisture. For that reason, a minimum gap of 1 cm must be left between the boards and the walls of a room and also around fixtures like pipes. This allows the floor to shrink and expand. For floors that are longer or wider than 20 ft, this tolerance gap should be increased by 1.5 mm per extra 3 ft. For floors that are longer or wider than 40 ft, a movement joint should be incorporated.

Packages must be stored in a dry place and only opened immediately prior to fitting. This is required to prevent possible short-term humidity changes from affecting the boards. Never store the product on its side or end. When removing parquet boards from packing, the boards must not be bent or the varnish may crack. Take special care.

A concrete sub floor can be levelled with self-levelling compound or screed. A wooden sub floor can be levelled using a sander. If the sub floor is an existing wood floor, ensure prior to installing that there is adequate support and, if necessary, use 1/2 – 3/4 inch plywood preferably with tongue and groove joints to provide extra rigidity between the parquet and the wooden sub floor.

The monitoring of humidity in newly constructed premises is vital. To avoid damage and to achieve the best possible end result, the relative humidity of the ambient air must be 40 – 60 %, both during installation and thereafter. Measuring the relative humidity of the sub floor prior to laying the boards is of great importance. When the floor is laid in newly constructed premises and the sub floor is recently cast concrete, it is essential to use a moisture barrier (e.g. 0.2 mm thick plastic membrane with joints overlapping 8 inches or with joints taped).

Always use an appropriate underlay designed for this type of flooring unless you are fully bonding to the sub floor. If the flooring is to be permanently glued to the sub floor, use a professional installer.

Where there is under floor heating, use only appropriate wood flooring detailed by the manufacturer.

A sound insulation layer can be laid under the parquet.

It is advisable to measure the width of the room prior to starting the installation in order to identify the width of the last row to be installed. If the last row seems too narrow, adjust by making the first row narrower, to achieve a professional-looking finish.

Glue has to be spread evenly on the top edge, not on the bottom, of the female groove. Some manufacturers may vary always check.

End joints of adjoining rows have to be at least 20 inches apart.

When tapping parquet boards together, a piece of parquet must never be used as a tapping block because this or other inappropriate methods may damage the edge of the top layer lamina or lacquer. We recommend a professional proprietary tapping block. Always use professional straps to draw the boards tightly together for a final fit. Cut out pieces with glaring defects and it is normal practice to use stain putty or filler stick for small defect correction or minor dimension differences.

Glue squeezed out from the joints when tapping the boards together must be wiped away immediately with a damp cloth.

If thresholds are installed by screwing them directly through the parquet boards, a gap of 1 cm has to be allowed between the screws and board edges.

Skirting boards installed after laying the wood flooring have to be nailed onto the wall only, not onto the installed parquet.

Laying wood flooring should be the final phase in any premises where several jobs are being carried out. However if after laying the parquet other work remains to be done, carefully protect the installed parquet with porous material such as fibreboard or corrugated cardboard.

Installation instructions - 1/2 inch engineered wood flooring

1/2 inch engineered flooring is laid either as a floating floor or is glued permanently to the sub floor using glue with a high solid matter content. It is recommended that you use a professional installer if you are gluing to the sub floor.

The installation surface must be dry, solid and level, e.g. concrete, plywood or an existing wooden floor are suitable sub floors. Parquet can be installed also on vinyl floor covering. The laying surface has to be thoroughly cleaned before installation.

Humidity of the installation surface must be suitable as detailed above. The relative humidity of the ambient air has to be 40 – 60 %.

Preparation (floating floor)

1. Clean the sub floor and check that it is even – a length of parquet is ideal for this purpose (+/-2 mm within 6.5 ft. distance allowed).

2. If the unevenness exceeds the limits given in step 1, use a self-levelling compound or screed, or for wooden floors use a sander.

3. Saw the bottom of the doorframe to allow for the parquet board and insulation to fit under it.

4. On the concrete sub floors spread a plastic membrane and soundproofing insulation if required. Always use an underlay with the appropriate joint tape.

Installation (floating floor)

5. Lay the boards to face the incoming daylight. If the sub floor is an existing wooden plank floor, lay the parquet crosswise to the planks. Lay the first row of boards with female grooves against the wall and keep the board from the wall approx. 1 cm with the help of the wooden spacers provided.

6. Attach the final board of the first row with the help of the laying jemmy. Tap the professional jemmy to close the final header joint and create a 1 cm space at the narrow end of the board to set the wooden spacers in the same way as you have already done along the long edge.

7. Squeeze some glue on the end joints and all the way along the joint lengthwise.

8. Squeeze some glue on the top edge of the female groove. Tap the boards together using a hammer and professional tapping block. Professional compression straps should be used to complete the joint.

9. Start the next row with the leftover piece from the previous row. Always ensure that the end joints of adjoining rows are at least 20 inches apart.

10. Tap the boards together with the help of the tapping block. In order to avoid gaps between the end joints, fit the next board from the open side as shown. I.e. fit header joint tightly: working from open end. Tap down the length working toward the header joint. Tongues and grooves must be tightly fitted and interlocking using pva glue to all adjacent flooring boards use compression straps to complete the joint and avoid damage.

11. Drill holes to accommodate pipes and cut the piece off with a saw. When the board is in position, glue the sawn-out section back in its place and cover with pipe ferrules.

12. Install the last row using a piece of parquet as a guide.

13. When the glue has dried, remove the spacers and fix the skirting boards or scotia. Do not set them too tightly against the floor that is being fitted.

Leave overnight for the glue to dry.

It is recommended that floors, especially engineered flooring laid in kitchen or high traffic areas, are re-coated with a further coat or coats of lacquer before general use. Further advice on click fit flooring is usually included in the manufacturers packs.