# Hardwood flooring on concrete



## jamestrd (Oct 26, 2008)

Floormasta78 said:


> You can glue and nail 3/4 inch plywood to concrete then nail down wood flooring..


You need to invest in a pin nailer.... Your working too hard... Go Aerosmith.. Worth the 900-1000. 
Can fasten a sheet in about 30seconds..


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## Floormasta78 (Apr 6, 2011)

this is what i used to nail down plywood .. :thumbup:


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## hoogy (Jan 1, 2013)

Floormasta78 said:


> this is what i used to nail down plywood .. :thumbup:


How long size and what size hole to drill


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## hoogy (Jan 1, 2013)

ArtisanRemod said:


> http://www.hoskinghardwood.com/radiant-heat/default.asp


Thanks for the info


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## Floormasta78 (Apr 6, 2011)

Plywood was 1 inch so i used 1 1/2 nails.


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## hoogy (Jan 1, 2013)

So you really see no problem with laying 3/4 plywood down then fasten the wood floor to the plywood?


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## astor (Dec 19, 2008)

jamestrd said:


> Thanks for the hook up... But dont see pricing or specials


Wow, it just happens that they upload a new website, just call them, they e mail you current price list and specials.


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## astor (Dec 19, 2008)

Floormasta78 said:


> this is what i used to nail down plywood .. :thumbup:


Those are nail-on anchors, I had been using them over 15 years, great holding power, but a lot of work IMO. For 1" ply you need min 2" anchors, 1 1/2" wont hold that good.
About 2 years now instead of anchoring, I use this system:
-Be sure you have flat surface,cover with 6 mil poly (go over 3'" up towards baseboards) or use Bostik MVP.
-I cut 3/8 ply into 1' x 4' strips,overlap and stagger seams for second layer and attach to each other with 3/4 crown staples.
-Use Aquabar paper and install wood floors. Be sure to leave enough spaces at perimeters.


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## hoogy (Jan 1, 2013)

astor said:


> -I cut 3/8 ply into 1' x 4' strips,overlap and stagger seams for second layer and attach to each other with 3/4 crown staples.
> -Use Aquabar paper and install wood floors. Be sure to leave enough spaces at perimeters.


Why don't you just use 4' x 8' 3/4 plywood. Why are you cutting strips and putting down two layers instead of just one layer


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## Metro M & L (Jun 3, 2009)

astor said:


> Those are nail-on anchors, I had been using them over 15 years, great holding power, but a lot of work IMO. For 1" ply you need min 2" anchors, 1 1/2" wont hold that good.
> About 2 years now instead of anchoring, I use this system:
> -Be sure you have flat surface,cover with 6 mil poly (go over 3'" up towards baseboards) or use Bostik MVP.
> -I cut 3/8 ply into 1' x 4' strips,overlap and stagger seams for second layer and attach to each other with 3/4 crown staples.
> -Use Aquabar paper and install wood floors. Be sure to leave enough spaces at perimeters.


Are cutting the strips to allow the floor to conform to the substrate? Dont really see a reason for breaking down the sheets...


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## hoogy (Jan 1, 2013)

Metro M & L Have you put plywood on concrete before then installed flooring or just the one you have stated


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## astor (Dec 19, 2008)

I use rough both side-read cheap- 3/8" ply and does has some bow and tends to curl. I leave dime size spacing for expansion between strips as well.
I have tried with full sheets but felt spongy even my helper swears to bible that there is no movement.


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## astor (Dec 19, 2008)

hoogy said:


> Why don't you just use 4' x 8' 3/4 plywood. Why are you cutting strips and putting down two layers instead of just one layer


It will cause hollow spots specially at the wall edges. You will need 100% flat subfloor which is time/money consuming.


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## hoogy (Jan 1, 2013)

astor said:


> I use rough both side-read cheap- 3/8" ply and does has some bow and tends to curl. I leave dime size spacing for expansion between strips as well.
> I have tried with full sheets but felt spongy even my helper swears to bible that there is no movement.


How do you fasten down the first sheet glue or nail or both


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## astor (Dec 19, 2008)

hoogy said:


> How do you fasten down the first sheet glue or nail or both


fasten down the first sheet???do you mean first layer :whistling:blink:
3/4" crown staples,no glue unless I need to do a narrow spot less than 12" wide.


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## hoogy (Jan 1, 2013)

astor said:


> fasten down the first sheet???do you mean first layer :whistling:blink:
> 3/4" crown staples,no glue unless I need to do a narrow spot less than 12" wide.


Yes first layer of plywood to concrete. You use crown stapler to concrete


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## astor (Dec 19, 2008)

I learned this idea from Stephen of Arizona or here "Ernesto"
He was doing like this for a long time with success, my arms was getting sore of hitting anchors.:laughing:


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## astor (Dec 19, 2008)

hoogy said:


> Yes first layer of plywood to concrete. You use crown stapler to concrete


The whole thing is floating :boat:as one piece, nothing-zip-nada attached to concrete....I guess staples won't go to concrete:whistling


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## hoogy (Jan 1, 2013)

astor said:


> The whole thing is floating as one piece, nothing-zip-nada attached to concrete....I guess staples won't go to concrete:whistling


Ok thats what i thought. two layers of 3/8 those are nailed together. then the sub- floor floats. Then you nail the new floor to the floating floor. On the staples in the concrete i didn't think they would but you never know.:thumbup:


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## ccoffer (Jan 30, 2005)

I did all sorts of things to secure plywood to concrete until it dawned on me that there's no good reason to attach it in any way. Want an easy as hell way to do it? Put down 10 mil polyethylene and then just float 3/4 inch Advantek on a 45˚ angle making sure to glue the seams. 

There. You're done. After you nail a 3/4 inch floor to it, no one will know it's floating. That's just how it works when you have an inch and a half of material on the floor. Not only is this method greasy fast, it leaves you with a perfectly intact vapor barrier under the entire installation. Use blue tape to secure the plastic to the walls until everything is nailed and then cut it flush. A popular method is to float two layers of 3/8" plywood and then pin the two together with short staples. Thing is, the only reason this method exists is because plywood is never flat. Advantek, on the other hand, is flat as a pancake. I've done this on several projects and the results are superb.


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