Hardwood Floors December 2017/January 2018

AT THE SITE

By Kjell Nymark

Ma i nta i n i ng Installation Efficiency

Wood flooring contractors often find themselves “under the gun” to meet deadlines. Since the flooring installer is one of the last trades working on the job site, we often see that we’re pushed to complete the installation quickly because the project is behind schedule before we’ve even arrived. It seems we just can’t work hard enough, or fast enough, to complete the job so we can get to the next one. However, working long days and working quickly can often lead to inefficiencies that can affect quality and performance. Here are some tips that can help improve daily efficiency that can translate into optimum performance.

Bidding the Job oroughly inspect the exterior and interior of the home while measuring the oors for your estimate. It’s essential to address situations like missing exterior doors or earth crawl spaces that have yet to be covered or insulated. It’s important to educate the general contractor or homeowner about what is required to ensure the site condition is acceptable before the delivery of the wood. Discovering these issues at the time of delivery means that the job will be delayed and your schedule must be altered. Document the relative humidity (RH) and moisture content (MC) of the sub oor if possible. When measuring up remodel situations where the sub oor may be covered, take MC readings of other identi able solid wood that exists in the home such as solid wood chairs or banisters. is is a simple way to determine the target for

acclimation of the ooring. Recording RH andMCwhile bidding the job also gives you an opportunity to educate the end user of the importance of proper acclimation and maintaining a stable environment post installation. Whenever possible, incorporate a few bundles/boxes of a wider width format. For example, if you are installing a 2¼” strip oor, include a few bundles of 3¼” boards to eliminate any possible rippings of an inch or narrower. Ripping wider boards is safer than a empting to rip small pieces, and the oor will look be er, especially if the ripping is tapered to match up with a crooked wall. Make sure that the transitions and accessories are available at the time the oor is delivered. Sourcing transitions, while the installation is ongoing, may result in having to return a er the installation has been completed.

Delivering the Material When delivering material, determine where the starting point will be and place the material on the opposite wall to minimize handling of the material while racking out. If starting in the middle of the room, place equal amounts of material along both walls that run parallel to the installation direction. If installing in multiple rooms, bring in the material required for each room and place the material along the walls that will be installed last. Placing material in one room and then distributing the material in the other rooms you will be working in will result in over handling the material and increase the risk of damaging walls and doorways. If installing on multiple oors, make sure that you only bring up the amount of ooring necessary for the upper oors. Having an excessive amount of ooring on the upper oors will result in over handling the material because you have to bring material back down to the main oor.

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