Expansion allowance

An expansion allowance should be made for all wood flooring - solid, solidengineered and engineered wood flooring. We recommend an expansion gap of about 12-15mm all round the perimeter of the room, including doorframes, radiator pipes etc.

The finish looks best when this gap is covered with matching hardwood skirting. Alternatively cover it with a Scotia moulding strip or similar profiled moulding. If the skirting board, architrave and doorframes are painted white then it's worth considering a white painted Scotia trim.

In much larger floor areas, the gap should be calculated using the industry standard of 1.5mm for each metre across the width of the floorboards. Hence, a floor eight metres across would require a 12mm gap minimum.

Where a floor has a width of more than eight metres we advise the following:

- choose the most dimensionally stable board available, the 21mm solidengineered board
- it may also be necessary to use an expansion joint at the midpoint of the floor. The gap should be covered with a standard T bar, a T profile moulding.

> Expansion allowance
> Wood floorboard direction
> Starting the first rows of a wooden floor
> Tap the boards into the T & G joint
> Secure each wood floorboard
> Fitting the last row of wood flooring
> Cutting around pipework and other objects
> Cutting in expansion at door frames
> Fitting hardwood skirting/Scotia trim mouldings

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