Floating wooden floors explained

A floating oak floor may sound somewhat like something from a space age movie. However, in fact floating wooden floors is simply the name which has been given to oak flooring which has not been which has not been attached to the floor beneath it (known as the sub-floor to those who fit solid oak flooring for a living) either using nails, staples or glue. Instead, these solid oak floors are left to float on top of the sub-floor.



Any type of floor, be it a solid oak floor, natural oak flooring, oak wood flooring, or solid wood flooring can be made in a floating version. However, when thinking about installing a floating floor you will need to carefully consider if the location you plan on installing the floor is right. This is important to think about as installing a floating floor in an unsuitable place can inhibit the quality of the floor sooner than if the floating floor had been installed in a more suitable place.



One of the most commonly asked questions about floating wood floors is if the floorboards are not secured using nails or glue then won’t the boards become loose and make the floor uneven and unsteady to walk on? However, the majority of floating floors are made up of extremely sturdy wooden boards which have a snap and lock mechanism. This secures each plank of wood together to the plank next to it- which achieves a secure looking and feeling wooden floor.



There are various benefits for opting for a floating wood floor rather than a secured one. The first advantage is that there are no chemical adhesives used to secure the floor down, which means that the air quality inside the building remains a much higher standard than when wood floors are installed where the floor is glued to the sub floor beneath. The second is that the installation process of a floating floor is much tidier to complete too.



Another benefit of opting for a floating wooden floor rather than one which is secured down is that these floors are more prone to withstand expansion and contraction caused by changes in humidity and temperature.



Floating hardwood floors are also a more environmentally friendly choice because they require less wood to make them than solid wood floors do.



Another advantage is that because they need less timber, they are generally a more cost effective option than solid wood floors. And they are also fairly simply to install yourself too- saving you on labour costs also. Finally, thanks to their snap and lock mechanism you will not need to buy other products to install them such as flooring supplies such as adhesive and trowels and so on.



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