Engineered Wood Flooring On Plywood Over Concrete Slab

For a nailed down subfloor over concrete nwfa installation guidelines call for a minimum of 4 by 8 foot sheets of 5 8 inch cdx grade plywood or preferably 4 by 8 foot sheets of 3 4 inch cdx grade plywood.

Engineered wood flooring on plywood over concrete slab.

Install a subfloor solution. The nwfa guidelines say that a vapor retarder over concrete needs to be impermeable meaning a class i membrane according to building codes. Two possibilities for subfloors are plywood on slab and sleeper. In general use a notched trowel to spread the adhesive.

Lay 6 mil polyethylene sheeting over the concrete to minimize moisture migration from the concrete up into the wood flooring. Each engineered board consists of thin strips of durable wood compressed onto high grade plywood. Installing engineered hardwood flooring over concrete too tight against a stationary object will not allow room for normal expansion and may cause a failure. Consult the product data sheet for instructions regarding specific trowel requirements.

Plank flooring four inches and wider requires either the plywood on slab system or the sleeper system topped with a minimum of 5 8 inch thick plywood or osb. Use a minimum of two layers 3 8 10 mm cd exposure 1 plywood subfloor panels cdx in 4 x 8 sheets. Treated plywood to the concrete with concrete screws spaced every 16 in. Engineered wood owes its water resistance to its unique structure.

Plywood on slab begin by covering the slab with a vapor retarder. Alternatively screw rows of treated 1x4s to the concrete 16 in. These layers enable the wood to remain rigid and resist contracting and expanding when moisture is present. This may be as simple as a 6 mil polyethylene plastic covering 100 percent of the concrete and brought up all walls then trimmed after the floor has been installed.

A subfloor is necessary to install before the flooring can be put into place.