Should Hardwood Floors Be Glued To Concrete

Always start with the longest wall in.

Should hardwood floors be glued to concrete. When working on a clean concrete subfloor the glue down method is often the go to choice. Gluing down solid wood flooring to concretethis is a question that i have started to receive more and more. Installations of solid wood are never recommended below grade. But the catch is that the solid wood flooring we have that can be glued over concrete and warranted is 5 16 and 7 16 solid hardwood not 3 4 solid hardwood and can be only on on grade and suspended concrete.

Contrary to what you may hear not all products can be glued easily. You should use flexible flooring adhesive to allow your flooring to expand and contract with natural changes in temperature and humidity. These products regardless of species thickness or width can be glued down successfully over concrete or gypsum based sub floors. Put another way gluing solid 3 4 hardwood has always been risky business but some premium urethane glue manufacturers will warrant their use.

The other concern has always been that water in a concrete slab will be absorbed by wood. The glue down method of engineered wood flooring installation is typically the most common and creates a highly stable floor. The only limitation is the slabs must be above or on grade. Not all types of hardwood should be glued.

My answer to that is yes and it is still warranted. Expansion gaps should be left between the flooring and wall. Boards adhere well to the rough surface of the concrete subfloor and therefore lead to less gaps or planks lifting and buckling.