Air Conditioning before wood floor install?

cindylou2006

16 years ago

Our installer will be nailing down our spotted gum wood floor the day after delivery and then allow time for it to acclimate before sanding. At this point our heat pump is not installed. Will that cause to wood to dry and shrink once we get it going? Would you recommend having air installed first or no big deal. We live in Seattle area.

Thanks.

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Comments (6)

soonermagic
16 years ago
I only have experience as a client to speak from, as we're in the middle of a build (nailed-down, real wood to be sanded and finished on site) before HVAC was up and running. We have buckling and swelling hardwoods, but that's because we are having an unusally wet summer and humidity is well above normal. I looked at some other new constructions in the area this weekend with hardwoods buckling worse than mine. It appears to be customary around here to install the HW before HVAC is running and everyone is running into problems right now because we're not having the customary weather. I think to be safe, you should have your air installed. However, our builder is taking the hit on re-doing our floors (so he says thus far), so we're not really being damaged by the damage to the floors (except, of course, the time delay and the worry).
casa1
16 years ago
Our GC is installing window AC units until the HVAC is installed.
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cindylou2006
Original Author
16 years ago
So this does seem to be a concern. It makes common sense that by installing in our uncommon 95 degree humid weather we are setting ourselves up for shrinkage and possible buckling come fall/winter. I'm sure our HVAC guy has nothing better to do in this heatwave!
momfromthenorth
16 years ago
Normally a wood floor is not installed until the HVAC is up and running. Check the NOFMA website for their recommendations. Also, most manufacturers state that the HVAC needs to be up and running or it will void the warranty.

After that, the hardwood flooring is normally acclimated inside the house before it is installed. (usually inside the boxes or stick-stacked inside the house) The installer should check the moisture levels of the flooring and the subfloor to make sure they are within, I think it's 4% of each other. Again, all of this is stated on the manufacturers installation information as well as what NOFMA recommends.

I'm not an installer - just another homeowner who did alot of research on all of this before we had our hardwood floors installed. If you do it right the first time, you will save alot of grief in the long run :)

Good luck!
casa1
16 years ago
Also, our GC said that the reason the HVAC is not hooked up yet, is that the construction has to be 80% completed to be able to get power to the house.
We are using temporary power from the street right now.
glennsfc
16 years ago
If you acclimate your wood to the prevalent atmospheric conditions or a "wet" house and not to the conditions that the wood will "live" in...then get ready to see some serious gapping of the wood when the HVAC system is finally up and running.

Air Conditioning before wood floor install?

Comments (6)

soonermagic

casa1

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Air Conditioning before wood floor install?

Comments (6)

soonermagic

casa1

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