Wood flooring has been a popular flooring material for centuries. As a natural product, it is alive, swelling with damp and contracting with heat. For this reason, most people believe that laying hardwood floors in winter is a no-no. But there are numerous pros to laying wood floors during the winter months…
1 Humidity Level
Humidity is the amount of water vapour in the air; it is the muggy feeling on a hot summer’s day. In winter, the temperatures are lower and thus the water vapour saturation (humidity) of the air around us is low. Most hardwood floor experts advise laying the floor when humidity is low for two reasons;
· Moisture trapped beneath the floor will cause it to warp and undulate
· A damp sub-floor leads to mould and mildew
How do you know if there is too much humidity in the sub-floor? A few days before laying the top hardwood floor, wrap the lower sub-floor in plastic and duct tape. If humidity is low, after a few days the plastic will still be dry but if humidity is high, there will be moisture or dampness on the plastic.
If there is dampness in the subfloor, use a humidifier to dry out the room before laying the top layer of floor.
2 Acclimatise the Wooden Boards BEFORE You Lay it
Wood, as mentioned, is a natural product. This means it ‘breathes’, taking in moisture and swelling, but contracting again when this moisture evaporates.
A common mistake is that the wooden boards are not acclimatised in the property before they are laid. It makes sense to store the wood outside – after all, you don’t want it damaged as you renovate the property – but bringing in the boards and laying straight onto the floor, fixing into position means that the wood has not had time to swell or contract as per the conditions in the property.
Acclimatising wood is a slow process, so don’t think bringing it in overnight will do the trick. If you can, bring the wood into the property for at least 10 days before you lay it on the floor, allowing the wood to adjust to ambient temperature and humidity levels.
3 An Organic Material
Many people underestimate the organic, flexible nature of wood and this leads to all kinds of issues when it comes to laying hardwood floors. Hot weather dries out wood but colder, wetter weather makes it swell.
This is because, within the structure of the wood, the veins or vessels are vertically aligned as the tree grows. Like our veins, these carry water and nutrients throughout the trunk and branches in order for the tree to grow.
Effectively, if you ignore this tip, you won’t be satisfied with the final results. Place the boards too close together in a ‘dry’ state and when they swell with colder, damper weather, they will butt up against each other. If the gap is so small that the boards cannot expand at all, the boards will lift, creating a trip hazard.
Likewise, leaving gaps that are too wide also spoil the final finish.
This is also strengthening the argument for acclimatising wood in the property before you lay the floor but also bear in mind that humidity and temperature will affect the floor.
4 Professional Floor Installers
Renovations and home improvement tasks tend to be left until the warmer weather. The reasons are obvious – it is more comfortable to have doors and windows open etc. during warmer weather. But what this does contribute to, is a busy building season on which trying to get hold of a reputable and professional floor installer is almost impossible.
But in winter, you will not only have the ideal conditions for laying a hardwood floor, you will be able to use the best hardwood floor installation company too.
With all these advantages, there’s no reason the colder weather should put you off getting a new wooden floor – just in time to welcome your festive guests.
