Compare Floating Vs Glue for Installing Hardwood Floors

Installing hardwood floors is a major home improvement that can make a huge difference in the appearance and value of your home. But before the work starts, you will have to decide whether it's better to glue down your floors or let them float.

Glued hardwood floors are glued to the subfloor beneath by a special type of adhesive, while floating floors aren't secured to the subfloor but are attached to a thin pad placed on top of the subfloor.

According to hardwoodinstaller.com, glued-down floors often feel more solid than a floating floor. Also, you'll be able to use solid wood, which many homeowners prefer to engineered wood for its look and feel.

For home improvement do-it-yourselfers, gluing the floor down might not be the way to go. According to hardwoodinstaller.com, gluing isn't for the faint of heart, and is best left to the experts. The website says that the glue is spread on a subfloor with a trowel, and it can be difficult for beginners to ensure they are using the right amount of adhesive. Also, the subfloor must be adequately prepared before the installation starts. This means it must be completely flat and clean of any materials such as paint or drywall splatters. Also, the website says, gluing can be an expensive proposition, with adhesives costing around 80 cents per square foot.

If you're planning on covering up a floor instead of removing previous bad flooring, floating hardwood might be the way to go, according to hardwoodinstaller.com. Floating hardwood can easily cover up old flooring, whereas it would have to be removed first if you were going to glue down the floor. According to the World Floor Covering Association (wfca.org), floating your floor is a simple, quick and clean way to install hardwood floors.

You will be limited in the types of wood you can choose if you decide to float your hardwood floor. Hardwoodinstaller.com says that the majority of floating floors are made of engineered wood, because solid wood will expand and contract too much to make it practical to float. For example, armstrong.com lists four basic categories of hardwood floors: Solid, thick wood, which must be nailed; solid, thick wood that can be stapled or glued; standard engineered wood that can be glued, stapled or floated; or interlocking floating engineered wood, which floats.

Floating your hardwood floor has fewer associated costs than gluing. Remember that your subfloor might need some work to get it ready before the installation starts, and the flooring adhesive can be a relatively expensive added cost as well.