How to Install Wood Floors Over Travertine
You will need to use the glue-down method of installing hardwood floors to install wood flooring over travertine. The glue-down method allows you to install engineered hardwood flooring over almost any subfloor. Once the flooring is installed, it will be nearly impossible to tell the difference between solid hardwood and engineered hardwood flooring. Does this Spark an idea?
Things You'll Need
- Safety glasses
- Trim pry bar
- Scrub brush
- Dish soap
- 4-foot carpenter's level
- Tape measure
- Chalk line
- Miter saw
- Notched trowel
- Tap block
- Rubber mallet
Instructions
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1
Put your safety glasses on.
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2
Cut the caulk line at the top of the base board trim around the room. This will help in removing the trim and help keep it from pulling the paint off. Using a trim pry bar, carefully remove all the baseboard and number it to reinstall later.
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3
Purchase engineered hardwood flooring and let set inside the house at least 72 hours to acclimatize to the house's humidity level before you install.
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4
Use a 4-foot carpenter's level to check the subfloor levelness. The max variation of the floor is 1/8 inch in 10 feet. Also the max height difference between floor tiles is 1/8 inch. If the subfloor exceeds this you will need to use a leveling compound. This can be purchased at your local tile center or lumber yard. Follow the directions on the leveling compound for installation procedure.
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5
Clean the floor to remove any wax, oils, grease or dirt. A scrub brush and dish soap work well for this. Rinse to remove any soap residue.
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6
Determine in what direction you want the flooring to run. Usually the flooring runs in the short direction for a room.
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7
Pick an exterior wall and mark the travertine at both ends of the wall. The distance will be the width of two rows of flooring that have been snapped together plus 1/8 inch.
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8
Snap a chalk line between the marks on the floor to establish a reference line to work from.
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9
Dry fit two rows of engineered hardwood flooring together. Use a miter saw to make any required cuts. Start from the reference line and work toward the wall. This will leave a 1/8-inch expansion joint between the floor and the wall. Stagger the flooring's end joints; do not let any two rows of flooring break at the same point.
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10
Slide the assembled rows of flooring toward you carefully. Use a notched trowel to spread adhesive from the wall to the reference line. Follow the directions on the adhesive can for specific directions.
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11
Reassemble the two rows of hardwood flooring in the same order onto the adhesive. Ensure that the last row is touching the reference line all the way down the line. This will ensure that the flooring will run straight to the wall. Remove any glue that gets on the flooring following the adhesive label directions as you work.
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12
Use a tapping block--a piece of flooring 6 inches long--and a rubber mallet to tap the joints together to insure a tight fit.
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13
Put a piece of painter's tape across two rows of installed flooring. Put a piece of tape every 12 inches.
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14
Let the adhesive set up before you continue to the next step. Check the adhesive label for specific time needed.
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15
Dry fit four rows of hardwood flooring. Use the miter saw to make any required cuts. Stagger the flooring's end joints; do not let any two rows of flooring break at the same point.
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16
Make a mark on the travertine at both ends of the run of flooring. Slide the assembled rows of flooring toward you carefully. Use a notched trowel to spread adhesive from the last row of installed flooring to the new reference line.
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17
Reassemble the four rows of hardwood flooring in the same order onto the adhesive. Ensure that the last row is touching the reference line all the way down the line. Use the tapping block and rubber mallet to tap the joints together to insure a tight fit.
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18
Put a piece of painters tape between the tape from the last row and the new row. Stagger the tape in this manner and only tape two rows at a time.
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19
Repeat step 14 through 17 until you have completed the room.
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20
After the flooring adhesive has dried, remove the tape. Reinstall the base board that you saved in the same order.
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Tips & Warnings
Leave a 1/8-inch gap between the wall and the engineered flooring for a expansion joint.
Read miter saw instruction for safe use.
Read warning label on adhesive for specific safety precautions for application.
