Laying Solid Wood Floors: Knowing the Right Board Size
Choosing to install solid wood flooring in your home has several advantages. Hardwood floors have a timeless appeal that is hard to beat, or even match, using any other type of flooring. They also allow you to create a look with minimal effort and work towards giving your home a feeling of flow – creating a cohesive whole rather than a group of parts. Finally, well-maintained hardwood floors can add value to your home in the event of resale.
When choosing your solid wood boards, it’s important to select the right board sizes –not only for look, but for durability. A general rule of thumb is that the width should never exceed depth by more than 10 times the thickness (for instance, a 10 mm-thick board should never be wider than 100 mm). Otherwise, your floor will be prone to buckling and cupping.
If you’re floating your boards, the minimum width should be 100mm and it is recommended that your room should be no than 5 to 6m wide. For tongue-and-groove boards installed directly onto joists, your minimum thickness should be 18mm. It’s also advisable to select tongue-and-groove boards with the tongue-and-groove central to the board; those with it near the bottom are more susceptible to cupping.
Finally, to ensure you’re not creating too many joins and creating an unstable floor, minimise the use of boards shorter than 400mm, allowing them in no more than 15% of your flooring area.
