Solid Hardwood, Engineered and Laminate Flooring - Acclimating hardwood boards

I've been told three things so far:

1) Buy your flooring two weeks in advance and let it sit in your house before you install it.

2) Buy your hardwood floor one week early, install it, then wait one week before finishing it.

3) Install the hardwood floor immediately, then wait two weeks before finishing.

Please let me know if this is a stupid question, but which is the right answer?

Thanks,

Antun

Hardwood flooring needs to acclimate in the rooms where it is going to be installed for several days to allow it to adjust to temperature and humidity. Doors and windows need to be closed and temperature and humidity within occupancy levels with HVAC unit running. Once it is installed, you can sand and finish.

Hardwood flooring is kiln-dried to low moisture levels and must adjust to humidity of home due to potential expansion and contraction problems. Professional installers test moisture in both flooring and subfloor. 2 1/4" strip should have no greater than 4% difference in moisture level in subfloor. Plank no more than 2% difference.

It seems like the best way for the flooring to meet the moisture content of the subfloor is option 3), because each plank will be very close to the subfloor.

So is 3) the best choice?

-Antun

Option 3 is not an option. Wood needs to adjust to temperature and humidity before installing.

Hardwood flooring needs to acclimate in the rooms where it is going to be installed for several days to allow it to adjust to temperature and humidity. Doors and windows need to be closed and temperature and humidity within occupancy levels with HVAC unit running. Once installed, you can sand and finish.

Antun, FYI Acclimation is not a time thing.

Thanks. I understand time is not a pure measure, but more of a guideline.

Take care,

Antun



Antun, FYI Acclimation is not a time thing.

Lumber is kiln dried to an acceptable level for clean milling. It might not be as low as you think. Pine is milled at 18% MC for framing lumber, and 12% for flooring.

It is kiln dried to a certain MC so after milling and installation, and the flooring gains or looses MC, to achieve equillibrium in MC, according to the ambient interior conditions, all the boards will be the same dimensions. throughout the installation. Just think if your installing a floor and some boards are 3" wide and some are 3-1/16" and some are 3-1/8"


It takes a moisture meter and a hygrometer to properly acclimate wood flooring.

I live in Phoenix, AZ and am installing dance floors at my studio. Is it possible to purchase the hardwood and allow it to acclimate at my current location for several days, then bring it to the new location (which is being built out) and allow it to acclimate a couple of more days. Our humidity level is hovering around 15% and our temps are in the 80's.
Thanks

Proper acclimation is done by spreading the boards out so they all get equal air flow. If they sit in bundles or in cardboard cartons in a bundle, the outside boards will acclimate much faster then the inner boards.

The longest I have had to let boards sit to properly acclimate and come to moisture content equalibrium, is 2 weeks.

Acclimating to 15%rH, can and will cause the wood to split. As that is very dry for wood.

Our humidity level is hovering around 15% and our temps are in the 80's.
Thanks

Measure the levels in the building, not outside.

Out of curiousity what type of wood did you purchase? Solid, engineered? and how are you installing it?