Installation method

Installation guide
In order to ensure the quality of a job, the installer must make sure that the environment meets the ideal installation conditions for a wood floor. For one week, the house must be constantly heated at 22 °C, in order to stabilize the temperature and humidity level on the premises. A few days before installation, humidity level in the house must be stabilized between 40% and 50%. Ambient temperature of the installation premises must be between 18 °C and 22 °C, ideally 20 °C.
 
Storage of the boards is done on the premises at least 3 days before installing the floor.  Do not pile up more than 3 boxes. This minimal length of time gives wood the time to fully acclimate to ambient conditions.
 
Sub floor preparation
Once the old floor covering removed, the sub floor must be meticulously inspected, then prepared for the installation of the floor. The inspection of the sub floor is made on its whole surface. The creaks and imperfections found will define the weak points of the sub floor and the corrections to be made. Preparing the sub floor must consist of:

1. Eliminating all leftover of glue, staples and nails that held the old covering.
2. Leveling the area, correcting the differences in height by sanding and with a floor leveler.
3. When needed, the sub floor must be firmly fixed to the joists with screws driven in every eight inches. To ensure this fastening, use thread-free top screws.
4. The floor must be installed on a 5/8'' veneer not exceeding 12% MC.
   

Once the inspection and the corrections completed, the sub floor will look like a plane surface with no differences in height.
 
Installation with nails fastener
It is better to use 2'' long nails or staples. For the 2 π'', 3 π'' and 4'' boards, the recommended nailing spacing is 8'' to 10'' and for the 5’’ boards, the spacing should not exceed 6''. Operating pressure recommended for pneumatic tools is 75 to 80 pounds per in” for the larch and 100 pounds per in” for the hard wood. It is recommended to stick the end of each board of 5'' and 7'' of width (with white glue wood). Recommendations for 7'': During a nail down installation ensure that the gap between nails does not exceed 4''. Glue (yellow woodworkers glue or sub-floor adhesive) must be applied to the underside and to the ends of the board to eliminate the possibility of cracks.

 
Remarks:
For the 5'' and 7'', a special attention must be given to the control of the room ambient humidity to ensure optimal efficiency. For a better stability, Bois Ditton recommends a 43% constant relative humidity level. A spacing variation is considered normal. A low relative humidity will have the effect of causing shrinking of the boards that causes spacing between them. A high relative humidity will have the effect of closing the spacing between boards.
 
Expansion joints:
The expansion joint located all around the room plays a fundamental role in the life span of the installed floor. Only it allows the floor to react to the variations of humidity in the room as well as those of the wood itself. The established norm is an expansion of 3/4'' (1.9 cm) in the width of the board and of 1/4'' (0.6 cm) in the length of the boards. For basement or any other higher relative humidity situation, we recommend to double expansion joint (1 ∏ inch).

 
Assembling the first rows of boards:
The first row of the floor requires the drawing of a chalk line to determine its installation. The method consists in putting a nail on top of the board 1 inch from the wall. We make sure that the nail is well hammered in and we conceal it with putty having the same color as the shade of the board. You can use repair stick kit. The first boards of the first row are also fixed on the tongue of their width with a nail hammered in at 45° using the finishing pneumatic hammer. Afterwards, the boards on the following rows must be nailed according to the same method with a nail hammered in at 45° on the tongue of their length, this time using the conventional pneumatic hammer instead of the finishing pneumatic hammer. Each board, for the first rows as well as for the followings, must necessarily receive a minimum of two nails, ideally spaced by 8'' all the while respecting the length of the board.
 
Pneumatic tools and sledgehammer with rubber ends:
Final adjustment of the board must be realized only with a two rubber-end sledgehammer. This sledgehammer allows for slightly moving the board without ever damaging the wood.
 
The pneumatic hammer must be used only to fix the board, once and only once the board is precisely adjusted. The force put on the pneumatic hammer must therefore be measured with this finality in mind.
 
Both pneumatic hammers, the finishing one as well as the conventional one, must be calibrated according to the norms required by the maker of the said tool. In order to validate the required norm, test the necessary movement force beforehand on a scrap piece of wood.
 
This method allows you to avoid the possible damaging of the wood by a pressure of the pneumatic hammer on the board too strong, badly measured or badly put. Using a seven inches hammerhead distributes the pressure on the board on a wider surface and decreases the chances of damaging the wood.
 
The joint of the boards on each row of the floor must be spaced at least 6" from those of the preceding row. This gap benefits the aesthetic of the floor as well as its stability during the variation of the level of humidity. The pressure of the boards in expansion or in contraction is then mainly put effectively on the next row. Thus limited and standardized, this pressure tends to accumulate less throughout the floor.
 
Verify on a regular basis the parallelism of the installed row which will allow you to know earlier the possible adjustment that have to be made.
 
Finishing (the last rows):
When the wall makes the use of the pneumatic hammer impossible, (usually the last three rows), the installation can be made like followed:
 
After having chosen the board, we drill 45° holes alongside its tongue. Once the board is installed, we use those holes to fix it with finishing nails and a hand hammer.
 
Nail heads are hidden with a driving punch. The method consists in putting a nail on top of the board 1 inch from the wall. We make sure that the nail is well hammered in and we conceal it with putty having the same color as the shade of the board.

Direct installation on concrete floors:
L'utilisateur doit se référer aux normes de construction et aux instructions sur les matériaux utilisés en complément de ce guide pour nos produits. Les instructions qui suivent ne servent que de guide et d'exemple pour déterminer les conditions techniques minimales pour le collage sur béton.
 
Technique number 1:

1. It is necessary that the moisture level of concrete be checked with moisture meter and it must be 5% or less, measured with a carbon hygrometer.
2. Bois Ditton wood should be acclimated for 4 or 5 days prior to installation.
3. Bois Ditton recommends using a urethane adhesive, spread with a π'' triangular wood trowel. Proper application is necessary to develop a strong bond between the flooring and the substrate.
4. Use of strap clamps and rolling after installation will improve the success of the installation. This adhesive will bond to wood, concrete, ceramic, rubber and plastic, providing a strong, moisture resistant and flexible bond.
5. Concrete surface must be clean and dry, free of all oil residue and old adhesive. The surface must be sound and not flaking or dusty. Pre-heating the floor during acclimation will help stabilize the humidity and stability of the installation.
6. In severe conditions, mixed width planks will increase the floors stability. All wood floors should be in climate controlled environments (22°C), keeping the relative humidity to 45%.
   

Installation over radiant heat and concrete floors
All species can be used for installation over radiant heat and on concrete. The use of a certified hardwood floor installer is always recommended. In addition the following must be considered:
 
Bois Ditton wood should be acclimated for 4 to 5 days prior to installation with the floor preheated to 22°C. Boxes should be stacked no more than three high. At the time of installation, ambient room temperature should be between 18°C to 22°C and a relative humidity between 40% and 50%. An expansion space of 1 1/2” is recommended for below grade installations.
 
For the choice of adhesive, use an adhesive for radiant heat floor. Proper application is necessary to develop a strong bond between the flooring and the substrate. Use of strap clamps and rolling after installation will improve the success of the installation. This adhesive will bond to wood, concrete, ceramic, rubber and plastics, providing a strong, moisture resistant and flexible bond.
 
Care must be paid to all warnings and instructions on the label. The surface must be sound and not flaking or dusty. Pre-heating the floor during acclimation will help stabilize the humidity and stability of the installation. In severe conditions, mixed width planks will increase the floor’s stability.
 
Installation of a warranted plywood sub-floor would be recommended. All wood floors should be in climate controlled environments, keeping the relative humidity between 35% and 55%. Rooms with radiant heated floors should be kept at the higher end of this range.
 
Maximum use of the boards
A pre-oiled floor makes possible to recover the maximum boards which were cut during installation.
 
Sandblasting the end board enables us to remake the micro-v.  Touch-up will be necessary to complete the following steps.
 
Apply impregnating oil (primol) to the end (Micro-V). Let dry the impregnating oil at least 6 hours and then apply the finishing oil (greenol). It is now possible to use this board.