HomeSpot HQ

Your Home Maintenance Partner

howto

How to Install Bamboo Flooring

by

In today’s more eco conscious world more people moving towards a more environmentally friendly home environment by replacing standard hardwood floors with the greener alternative bamboo. Bamboo flooring is growing in popularity not only because it is one of the most sustainable materials on the planet but also for its extreme strength (stronger than even steel!) and beautiful aesthetic.

Installing a bamboo floor in your home can seem like a daunting task but it is actually quite simple and can make a fun weekend project. Following these installation instructions will get you started on the road to a beautiful and more sustainable home.


Pre Installation

  • Let the bamboo adjust to the natural climate of your home for at least 72 hours
  • Be sure your sub-floor is flat and smooth
  • Inspect each piece of bamboo floor panels for damage or defects
  • Make sure you have a tapping block – you never want to hit bamboo flooring directly
  • Determine what kind of floor you have: either a floating floor (does not require adhesive or face nailing) or a standard plank floor (requires face nailing).
  • Make sure you read all instructions that come with your bamboo carefully

Tools needed

The tools you would use to install normal hardwood floors will work for bamboo flooring. Depending on the type of flooring you will need either special glue, a flooring stapler or nail gun. Other basic tools include a miter saw, a rubber mallet and a handsaw.

Installation

1. Start at one side and begin laying down the bamboo panels. If your flooring requires face nailing, make sure you apply enough pressure to close the joints between each plank of flooring before you fire the nails. If you are installing a floating floor, firmly close the joints between each piece with a rubber mallet.

2. Always begin each row at the same side of the room. Also, for best appearance, a bamboo floor is often laid parallel to the longest wall or outside wall.

3. There are three times of installment methods: nail down, gluing or floating floor.

Nail down: Nail down flooring is the most traditional way to install your floor. Nail each board every 8″ and within 2″ of each end. Once starter rows are placed, the next planks should be nailed directly above the tongue at a 45o angle. A face nail might be needed in doorways or tight areas where the nail gun can’t fit.

Glue: This method involves gluing the bamboo floor to the subfloor. Bamboo can be glued down using moisture resistant flooring adhesive on both concrete subfloors and plywood. When doing this method, start with the outside wall and spread as much adhesive as you can in one hour. After applying the adhesive to the subfloor the planks should be placed immediately. Walk on the flooring within 30 minutes of laying the floor to ensure a solid bond with the adhesive.

Floating: A floating floor is attached to itself and not the subfloor. This method is suitable with any subfloor and is recommended for radiant heat. This method involves gluing the tongue and joints of together over an underlay. Start first row with grooves facing the wall and glue end-joints of first row by applying adhesive to the second row. Make sure to use a rubber mallet or tapping block to gently fit the planks together.

4. After you install the flooring inspect the entire surface to make sure there are no misalignments or mistakes before you reinstall your base moldings and corner beadwork.

If you’re looking for more reasons to choose bamboo flooring, read more at Bambooki.com.

Plan Now to Prevent Damaging Ice Dams this Winter

by

As Summer transitions to Fall, it may seem premature to already be thinking about the effects of heavy snowfall this winter.  But key preventative maintenance tasks now while the weather is cooling can make a huge impact on reducing your risk of severe damage to your home during the Winter season.

Ice dams occur when snow accumulates on the roofs of homes that do not have adequate insulation. Heat escapes from the lower levels through a poorly insulated attic, causing the roof to warm. When the piled up snow on the roof starts to melt from the heat under the roof, the snow melts. The melted snow then runs down the roof until it reaches a colder area near the eaves and gutters, and then refreezes. The result is large mounds of ice that prevent water from running down the roof through the gutters. Instead, the melted snow pools behind the ice dams. When this happens, the water can seep through the roof shingles and into the attic. Once the water moves through the roof it can cause the roof to rot and insulation damage. In a lot cases the water soaks through the ceilings and into the walls, causing discoloration, wallpaper damage and excess moisture. These water-related problems can result in damper conditions where mold is likely to grow if not addressed quickly.

Even if you don’t have any visible water damage, you could still have ice dams. You can check without going up on the roof. Just take a look at the outside of your home. Are there a lot of icicles hanging from the eaves? Although the icicles may look very nice and sparkly, they are actually a sign that you may have an ice dam. Smaller icicles are usually not indicative of an ice dam. However, large icicles that have a diameter of over 4 inches can mean problems upstairs. The larger icicles are not attached to the roof, but are instead anchored by the ice dams. What happens is the pools of water behind the ice flow over the dams and freeze before they hit the ground, resulting in icicles.

Weekly Roundup: Tips And Tricks Edition

by

This week I’ve been on the hunt for clever tips, tricks and tools for all around your home.

The DIYDiva shares some great 2nd hand guidance on Finishing Drywall Joints.

Interested in carpentry perfection?  Learn how to use a coping saw from the Pro Handyman blog.

If you have an unfinished basement waiting to be converted into a new living space, you might want to check out the ReFit system from ARXX, which simplifies the process.

Ready for a change of color?  Consider these tips for successful spray painting.

Learn how to keep ice off your pavement with these tips for driveway and sidewalk deicers.

HomeSpot How-To: Using the Browser Add-on

by

This is the first in a new blog series highlighting how you can use HomeSpot HQ to organize, manage and maintain information about your home.

If you are do-it-yourself inclined, you’ve probably learned the hard way that the more planning and preparation you can do before starting a project, the easier that project will be to complete.  At HomeSpot, we want to make planning your home improvement projects easy, and one way we do that is through the Browser Add-on feature.

This short screencast will show you how to enable and use the Browser Add-on to bookmarks links on your HomeSpot project, maintenance and task entries.