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• All major building work including plastering, decorating and kitchen fitting must be completed prior to fitting the new flooring.

• The bundles of flooring shall be stored in a protected dry place on site where the flooring is to be laid.

• The bundles should ideally be allowed to acclimatise to the room environment for at least 48 hours prior to installation.

• Each board should be carefully checked prior to installation, never install any damaged boards.

• During installation the temperature of the subfloor should be at least 15°C

• During installation the ambient temperature of the room should be around 20°C

• During installation the relative humidity of the room should be between 45-65%, ideal is 55%.

• The subfloor should be clean, dry, absolutely flat and free from any cracks or movement.

• Irregularities on the subfloor should not exceed 3mm over 1 metre in any direction.

• Subfloors should not exceed the following humidity levels:

      Cement=no more than 2%

      Wooden=no more than 10%

      Anhydrite=no more 0.5%

      If the moisture reading is high on a cement based subfloor then you must apply a liquid DPM

• If you are using the floating method you must install a vapour barrier of at least 0.2mm thickness and to tape the joints.

In order for your product to perform adequately for years to come it is important that the relative humidity and temperature parameters detailed above are consistent within the property at all times. On some occasions properties with poor ventilation or very high levels of heating and insulation can have very low relative humidity levels, particularly during colder months. In this situation there is a risk of shrinkage and possibly even structural deficiencies within the product, therefore a re-humidifier would be recommended.

You can install a FixBox to monitor for temperature (°C) and relative humidity (%) as well as a data log for long-term data recording all in one, which is concealed in the hardwood flooring itself.

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• If you are laying the planks onto an existing floorboard subfloor then you must ensure that each of the existing floorboards are independently fixed securely to the joist below with no independent movement. If the floorboards have an uneven surface then correct levelling needs to be done prior to installation either by levelling the joists or for minor unevenness using a sheet material could be sufficient. If the engineered flooring is to be laid in the same orientation of the existing floorboards then sheet material must be fixed down first. Sheet material must be screwed down every 15cm in both directions.

• An allowance of approximately 15mm around the perimeter of the room should be provided to accommodate any expansion, including under door frames, central heating pipes and connection with tiles.

Bigger rooms will need bigger expansion gaps, please allow a further 2mm expansion gap for every 1 metre of floor width greater than 5 metres.

• For direct glue down installation flexible flooring adhesive must be used and the manufacturer’s recommendations must be followed, never use a rigid or water based glue.

• A minimum of 30cm distance between one header joint and the other of the next row shall be applied when arranging the installation.

• Any contractor fitting this engineered flooring should adhere to these guidelines, if there are any queries or concerns relating to these guidelines then please do not hesitate to contact your us.

We can not be held responsible for any product failure caused or associated with sub-floor or on site environmental conditions.

JS Woodcraft can recommend fitters, who are more than happy to visit the site to determine:

• Site conditions

• Quantity of material required

• Any specific fitting detail needed

• Any trims or accessories required

• How the floor will be fitted - floated or stuck down

• Depending on when the site survey takes place the site may change between this time and when the installation takes place, therefore the following assumptions are made unless stipulated otherwise:

• The site will adhere to the conditions detailed in the ‘Installation Guidelines’ section of this document, For example:

  • The sub-floor is sound, level and of the appropriate moisture reading

• There will be no skirtings fitted prior to the installation of the floor.

• The area where the floor is to be fit is to be clear from debris, furniture and any other materials, and will not have other contractors working or needing access to that area at the same time.

If any of these installation conditions are not in place at the time of installation we reserve the right to charge for any additional works required (removal of skirtings, sub-floor levelling etc). If we feel the site is not in the correct condition to receive the flooring we will remove the product and arrange an alternative date to fit (re-arrangement fees may be charged), please note our next available fitting date may not be in the immediate future.

Prior to installation it is the customer’s responsibility to check the material is in accordance to their invoice, once installation is started this is deemed as your acceptance of the product provided.

Protection & additional coats of finish

We strongly advise your floor has the correct protection whilst being fitted, to prevent any damage to the finish.

• If the heating system is new, the system must have been switched on and operable at normal capacity for at least 3 weeks prior to installation.

• The heating system must be switched off at least 48 hours prior to installation.

• All otherwise detailed environmental conditions must be adhered to.

• On the day of installation the subfloor should not exceed a temperature of 18°C

• The underfloor heating system can be switched on again 1 week after the installation but it must be turned on initially very low and increasing the temperature by 1°C per day.

• It is crucial to ensure the floor temperature does not exceed 27°C, in order to achieve this, the system should have an underfloor sensor and suitable cut off capability.

• Underfloor heating systems can dry the relative humidity out lower than the required levels detailed previously therefore a re-humidifier may be necessary to ensure a consistent relative humidity all year round.

• During the floor fitting process we strongly recommend covering the floor immediately after each 5m2 section is fit using a semi rigid corrugated plastic (Corex) type covering. This must be clean and new and applied to a clean, dust free surface ensuring all edges of the floor are sealed using low tac blue or green masking tape and the Corex applied on top of the low tac masking tape, and finally a high strength cloth tape applied between the masking tape and the Corex.

• Once the floor has been fully installed and the protective covering carefully removed it is always recommended that an extra coat of the top coat finish is applied prior to the introduction of any furniture. This will remove and slight scratches created during the installation process and it will seal all of the joints between the boards preventing and potential water ingress. This is particularly imperative if the flooring is fitted into a bathroom, kitchen or high traffic area.

• Please check with your supplier what the appropriate top coat finish is and follow the application guidelines of this finish.

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