Calling all wood flooring experts: brass inlay in engineered wood??
6 years ago
After having my heart set on a brass inlay border in our new engineered wood, the flooring company says they can't do it because 1) it's finished flooring (no sanding needed post installation) and the style is 2) softly scraped (creating a touch of variation in the height of the grain in the planks). They are thinking that the brass will catch on toes in some areas and be ever so slightly lower in other areas.
Experts, PLEASE help me figure out how to get that brass inlay laid in my wood floor.
We are using Provenzia Old World Falcon engineered wood.
Thanks!
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Wood Floor Experts - need help!
Comments (7)The MUSTS are disappearing fast with the advent of hardwood flooring adhesives which will permanently bond solid hardwood to concrete. However, the engineered option is probably still the best choice. Not all engineered hardwood is built the same. Some prefinished have substantial top layers which make them sandable several times. And, there are a few sources for unfinished engineered that you then sand and finish as you would a solid hardwood floor. I just finished one for a customer by the Owens Flooring Company that you cannot tell is engineered. The top layer is a sawn veneer and from the top the boards look just like a solid. The other company is UA Floors, which manufactures their product overseas. Finish your floor with a commercial waterborne polyurethane and you will have a floor that although not bullet proof will be attractive and seviceable for many years. Wood flooring finished with the best materials need not be resanded in an average household for at least ten years or more...at least that is my experience as a professional wood floor finisher....See MoreWood Floor in Kitchen - How do you all do it...
Comments (33)So sorry for your dilemma. Have you considered refinishing the floor with a high quality product? And perhaps removing your shoes, etc. If you aren't used to removing your shoes when entering the house, it will take time to get in the habit. But so worth it. All your floors will last alot longer. Our old 1916 Arts and Crafts house had QS oak on the main level, and birdseye maple upstairs. Although not really dented, it was more like scuffed up. The POs had refinished the floors themselves (horrors) with hand held sanders, and used a cheap finish. The finish was most of the problem, I think. Our new house has hickory, which is one of the hardest woods of those commonly used for floors. We even have it by the back door/garage entrance. No problems at all. They were finished with 3 coats of a swedish finish called "Glitsa" in a matte finish, and nothing shows. Very, very happy. I dropped 12 cans of soda the other day, and nothing dented or scratched. I've dropped pans, lids, dishes, etc....and so far, so good. Shoes, especially sneakers, are the worst for floors. Tiny pebbles can become embedded in the sole, and cause lots of damage to even the best of floors. Popcorn, or dried beans/peas are hard on floors. If spilled, and then walked on, they can make tiny impressions. Pets, too. Especially if their nails aren't kept trimmed. I can't imagine anyone pulling out a heavy fridge without protecting the floor, no matter what kind of floor. One of the most important things for wood floors is to keep them swept, or vacuumed. I hope have a happy resolution to your problem. Good luck....See MoreGlued down engineered wood floors have hollow spots and popping
Comments (16)Sorry, I misread the statement. The humidity in SUMMER was 20% (too low) and the humidity NOW is 43% (perfect)??? That's a bit odd. Usually it is the reverse (winter is dry and and summer is often humid). So we still have an issue with maintaining humidity, it is just the reverse of what I described above. Again - HOLLOW sound is from lack of preparation where "low spots" in the concrete could have/should have been filled. So your summer humidity levels are low (and the floors were installed during the driest time of the year) and now the floors are sitting in "perfect" conditions (43% humidity). The other issue is the adhesive use and coverage rate for the slab you have. The COVERAGE rate is how much glue is used to get the floor to stick. Too little and the floor won't GRAB the concrete. This is where there *MIGHT be another issue with the installation. If you feel you want to have the installer pull up a plank to see how much COVERAGE there was during the initial install, then you are within your rights to ask for a piece or two be lifted (do this at an edge so that it is easier to see). If you do this, make SURE you have enough planks on hand to repair the areas....it is possible the planks will be damaged in the process. The installation directions for the glue indicate the planks MUST be 90% covered in glue (the installer is supposed to check this periodically). That's what you are looking for = 90% of the plank COVERED in glue. http://www.royaladhesives.com/Files/Fortane/Fortane_One-TDS_08222016Rev1.pdf Then there is ONE MORE thing to check - the instructions for the hardwood floor you purchased. The floor will have installation instructions. So long as "glue down" is allowed as an installation format (most engineered are allowed to be glued....but not all) then we can eliminate the wood itself as the problem (ie. wrong product installed in the wrong way). Good luck. Have the installer check the GLUE coverage...(a few planks can be pulled at the wall edge to see how much coverage the back of the planks have). And check the installation for the HARDWOOD just to make sure the glue down option is listed. If all of it checks out, then the humidity control is going to be the only other thing you can do for your floor (other than rip it out and start again)....See MoreIs This A Reasonable Charge To Install Engineered Wood Floors?
Comments (17)The plywood over the cork is needed for a NAIL DOWN hardwood. Nail down is the CHEAPEST method for installing any form of hardwood. Glue down hardwood is the most expensive. It is also the BEST for sound. So....the sound deadening for the area REQUIRES the plywood. You can't get around that. The cork is required so you can't get around that. You cannot nail INTO cork. You must glue to cork. That is the only option. So... you are adding the plywood for the sound requirements AND for the installation options. With all those layers, the labour costs are bang on. If you estimate $2/sf for EACH LAYER of prep....you come up with $8/sf without MUCH EFFORT. The glue for the cork to concrete = only option. The glue for the PLYWOOD onto the cork = only option. We call this a double stick. If you glue the hardwood to the plywood you would have a TRIPLE stick. This is the MOST IMPRESSIVE option out there. It is also the MOST expensive option. You can nail into the plywood = no problem SO LONG AS the plywood is THICKER than the nail shanks. You do NOT want nails reaching into the cork layer. If the cork layer is pierced by nails, you start to LOSE the acoustic properties of the installation. If you think of each nail as a small telephone wire (ahem...metal TRANSMITS NOISE REALLY WELL) that is transmitting noise from your space to someone else's...and vice verse, you get the idea. One nail is no big deal. A floor with 10,000 nails = 10,000 telephone wires transmitting noise THROUGH the cork insulation and into your space. This is a HUGE deal. Again, the nail down install into the plywood is NOT an issue so long as the nail shank does NOT reach the cork. That means you want a plywood layer that is roughly 1/2". And with cork costs that are MORE EXPENSIVE than the plywood, you must be purchasing 1/2" cork. The cost of 1/4" cork should be the SAME as 1/2" plywood. Check your thicknesses so that you can feel confident that the right thicknesses are being used for the type of install that is about to occur. Most of LA likes to see 1/2" cork. I hope this helps....See MoreRelated Professionals
Lakewood Flooring Contractors · Raleigh Flooring Contractors · Willoughby Flooring Contractors · Murraysville General Contractors · Leominster General Contractors · Panama City Beach General Contractors · Baileys Crossroads General Contractors · Jacinto City Interior Designers & Decorators · Shorewood Interior Designers & Decorators · Washington Architects & Building Designers · Franklin Furniture & Accessories · Silver Spring Furniture & Accessories · Tucker Furniture & Accessories · Evans General Contractors · Poquoson General Contractors
6 years agoThanks all for your early comments. Here are two inspiration images of the brass inlay. I don't know if the wood is engineered or not.
To answer Oak & Board's question, we have already spent considerable time selecting the wood floor and feel the color / style is very suitable to our home. The wood is suppose to be installed imminently The fact that we can't use the brass inlay came as a huge surprise after waiting for installation for about three months. We are just hoping someone has insight into a solution.
Johnson Flooring Co, thanks for your suggestion. Will discuss with our flooring company.
Other ideas?
PRO6 years ago- 6 years ago
PRO6 years ago- 3 years ago
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- PRO3 years agolast modified: 3 years ago
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