Today, many materials are used to finish the floor. Natural wood coatings are popular. They are distinguished by beauty and durability. Such material is a floorboard. The features of this material, methods of laying it will be discussed later.
What is a floor shaped board?
The floor from the floorboard harmoniously fits into almost any style of interior. There are various types of this material. Sexual is called a profile type board. It is made from natural wood of different species. This material is used to finish the floor. This is a quality processed material that can vary in shape, size. Parquet board differs from this material in the manufacturing method. It is glued from several thin layers of wood. The floor milled board is most often made from a solid array.
For fixing when laying this material has fastenings in the form of a groove and a crest. To produce the presented variety of materials can only be made of natural wood. At the same time, material is selected for the manufacture of high-quality finishes. It should not have defects, knots, blackening.
This production method allows the production of environmentally friendly flooring. It does not cause allergies, while in the room you can feel the pleasant aroma of wood. At the same time, the floor looks luxurious and expensive. This finish is suitable for a restrained high-tech style, and for a rustic style of Provence. For the latter, natural flooring is a mandatory requirement of style.
Natural material is made from different types of wood. Preference is given to its hard grades. So, on sale most often you can find a floorboard made of larch, oak, pine or ash. They can also be used in the production of flooring aspen, walnut or alder. Almost never make a floor shaped board from linden, poplar. They do not differ in sufficient strength and durability.
Material Features
Wooden flooring has a number of positive operational characteristics that distinguish it from other varieties of finishes. This is a very durable material. He is not afraid of mechanical stresses, which contributes to the long term of its operation. This indicator is largely determined by the type of wood from which the board is made.
Natural material is characterized by high sound and heat insulation characteristics. This makes the room comfortable. In this case, the coating will not be subject to deformation. Since the board is made of natural wood, it does not cause allergies. This material can be mounted in the bedroom and children's room.
At the same time, flooring can be used to make flooring for different types of interior. The shade and pattern of wood may be different. This is determined by the type of floorboard. This material allows you to really decorate the interior. The room will look cozy and warm.
However, it is worth considering that the presented material has a number of disadvantages. Natural wood is a combustible material. Therefore, not every room can be used. Also, wood can be susceptible to decay, the formation of fungus. The material is quite difficult to care for. Scratches and bumps may appear on it.
If the room changes humidity and temperature, the material can change its dimensions and even shape. Therefore, when operating such a floor, the requirements for its operation must be met. Due to temperature fluctuations, gaps may appear between the boards. This can ruin the look of the floor.
Thickness and density
The thickness of the floorboard, as well as its density are indicators that characterize the durability of the floor covering. Therefore, when choosing, you need to pay attention to them. The thickness of the material varies from 2 to 7 cm.
The choice of the thickness of the boards depends on the step with which the logs are laid. So, if the distance between the support beam is 60 cm, then you can purchase a floorboard with a thickness of 3-3.5 cm. Sometimes, the logs are laid in large increments, for example, 80 cm. In this case, the thickness of the board should be greater. It should be between 4 and 4.5 cm.
When choosing a finishing material, you need to pay attention to the permeability indicator in the room. If a lot of people live in the house, and the room is often visited, you need to give preference to materials with medium or high thickness.
Usually, a board with a thickness of 3.5-4 cm is used for a living room. This is quite enough for the floor covering to be used for a long time. If it’s a gym, a living room, you need to purchase a board with a thickness of 4 cm or more. Please note that the cost of finishing also depends on this indicator. It is necessary to find the optimal ratio of price and thickness of the floorboard.
This indicator must be correlated with the density of the material from which the finish is made. It depends on whether the flooring will be durable, resistant to mechanical stress. The most dense are such wood species as oak, maple and beech. Less hardy are pine, spruce. But the cost of boards made of these materials will be lower. Therefore, this finish is in demand. Working with such materials is much easier. They are soft, therefore, do not put forward special requirements for the choice of fixing materials.
The size
The width of the floorboard can vary from 8 to 14 cm. The narrower the finishing material, the more joints will be on the floor. It also complicates the installation somewhat. It’s easier to install a board if it has an average width. If this figure is as high as possible, the master requires certain skills in laying boards. In this case, high demands are made on the moisture content of wood. The geometry of the boards is also important. A wide board should have the highest quality so that it can be mounted independently.
Also, when choosing a material for finishing the floor, you need to take into account the thickness indicator. As a rule, this parameter and width are interconnected. A good floorboard must be stable. Therefore, it is better to choose a medium-sized board. Most often, 10-10.5 cm wide and 3-3.5 cm thick are used in construction. It will be less prone to warping due to changes in temperature and humidity.
The length of the floorboards may also vary. It can vary from 3 to 6 m. The choice depends on the installation. Before starting work, a plan is compiled, which indicates the dimensions of the room, as well as the method of laying the material. As a result, the master, after going through several options, chooses the one at which less waste remains and a minimum of joints is obtained.
Euroboard is also on sale. It can have a size of 2 m. If the finish is more economical when using a short board, you need to choose it. Therefore, before starting installation, consider all installation options.
Varieties
The floorboard from oak, larch or other types of wood can be made using two different technologies. There is a massive board (solid) and spliced ​​(glued). Each of these varieties has its own advantages and disadvantages.
The advantage of a massive board is its naturalness. However, tar pockets, knots may be present in such material. This significantly reduces the quality of the finish. But this is really a natural material, which is made from a solid wood. The whole euroboard is distinguished by the presence of grooves for ventilation. This allows you to extend the life of the floor. In this case, the board will not be subject to warpage.
A spliced ​​board consists of several parts. They allow you to increase the length of the array. The advantages of this material are the absence of knots, as well as high strength. Such a board has impeccable geometry. The disadvantage of spliced ​​boards is the presence of glue in its composition. In this case, the lags will need to be laid in increments of not more than 40 cm.
The floorboard from larch, ash, beech or other materials can also be grooved or without special protrusions for fixing. In the first case, the board has a thorn-groove connection.
On sale is a regular and euro board. The second option is more expensive. However, its performance is much higher than conventional flooring boards. Such material has a low moisture content. Euroboard has an ideal geometry, which greatly simplifies installation. There are also no defects in this material. The board has a smooth surface, which makes it easier to coat it with varnish. In this case, the pile will not rise.
Humidity
A floorboard made of oak, larch, and other materials can have different levels of humidity. It is permissible if this indicator varies from 12 to 14%. Otherwise, such a floor covering will be subject to deformation and will not be able to be used for a long time.
It should be noted that different types of wood differ in different coefficients of linear expansion. Moreover, deformation can be observed in the transverse and longitudinal directions. The oak has the lowest coefficient of expansion. Ash follows it.
The deformation index depends on the composition of wood, the presence of resins, tannins, oils, etc. The more such substances, the less the material is deformed under the influence of moisture. Therefore, wood is harvested in the cold season. At this time, sap flow slows down.
Dry flooring should be purchased. In this case, it is better to use your own moisture meter. If you purchase material that does not meet the requirements, you should not expect it to dry out over time. Wet wood is deformed during improper drying. It will become unusable.
Properly dried wood is processed in a special chamber. Moisture is removed from it at high temperature. Only such material is of high quality, will not warp during operation.
Packing and calculation
Many buyers are interested in the question of how to correctly calculate the amount of materials in the package. How many cubes are there in the floorboard? This is an important issue that buyers must decide when choosing materials. Also on sale is a material that is measured in square meters.
You should be aware that the area and volume of the boards are considered without taking into account fastenings (spike groove). However, some unscrupulous sellers may take into account the area of ​​fixtures in the total size of the material. They can also round the volume of the board.
So, to calculate the cubature of one board, you need to multiply its length by width and thickness. For example, a board with dimensions of 150 x25 x 6000 is on sale. The cubic capacity of such a board is 0.00225 mÂł. Suppose a cubic meter of material costs about 7.5 thousand rubles, then the cost of one board will be 168 rubles. 75 kopecks
Some sellers round a cubic board. As a result, an indicator of 0.0023 or even 0.0025 mÂł is obtained. In the first case, the cost of one board will be 172 rubles. 50 kopecks, and in the second - all 187 rubles. 50 kopecks Therefore, the cost of a cube of boards will not be 7.5 thousand rubles, but 8.3 thousand rubles. Therefore, when choosing a finish, you need to take into account the actual dimensions of the board with the size indicated on the package. Otherwise, the floor from the floorboard will cost unreasonably more.
Also, when choosing, you need to pay attention to the packaging. It should be made of heat-shrink PVC. In this case, condensate will not collect during temperature changes inside the package.
Styling features
Installation of the floorboard is carried out in various ways. To fix the materials in their design provides for the protrusions and grooves. They run along the entire side surface of the boards. The grooves may be rectangular or trapezoidal. The second option is more practical, therefore it is used when creating a board more often.
When laying the presented type of finish, you need to adhere to a number of rules. Installation is carried out in a dry room. The material should also have a good geometry, not have defects. Its humidity must meet the requirements. Indoor humidity should not exceed 60%.
Before installation, the board must adapt to the conditions of the room. To do this, it must be opened and laid out indoors. So it should lie about 3 days. If the base of the floor is concrete, it must be waterproofed. It should also be noted that you can start finishing the base with a board only after the rest of the work in the room is completed.
Installation of floor shaped boards can be performed on any base. It can be concrete, plywood, logs. Mounting technology will slightly differ from the type of base.
Glue laying
The floorboard is laid in one of two ways. The first approach involves the use of glue in the finishing process. It is also called the "parquet" method. The second method involves fixing to the logs.
An advantage of the first installation method is the fact that the ceiling height does not significantly decrease. However, the floor for this type of installation should be perfectly flat. This installation method is similar to laying parquet. However, there is a difference. The parquet board is more dimensional. Therefore, it is fixed not only on glue, but also using self-tapping screws.
For fixing, different glue is suitable. It can be epoxy, polyurethane, dispersed. The last option is better not to use if the boards are made of exotic wood. It is worth giving preference to glue strong, but at the same time elastic. Polyurethane adhesives can also be used. They can be one or two components.
Lagging
The floorboard is often laid on logs. This method is suitable if the ceiling is high and the floor is uneven. First lay the lags. The step between them should be 40-70 cm. The cross-section of the beam used for logs should be 5-7 cm. Before installation, the logs are treated with an antiseptic.
Between the lags you can lay a layer of mineral wool. It will serve as heat and sound insulation. After this, you can begin to fix the boards. They need to be stacked correctly. The first board should be mounted so that the wooden floor skirting board is covered with self-tapping screws.
When all boards are laid, the surface is ground. Movements are first performed across, and after that - along. The diagonal grinding completes the processing. After this, the boards are covered with a layer of varnish. It should be distinguished by increased strength. Varnish is applied in at least 2 layers. When it dries, you can operate the room.
Having considered how to choose and mount the floor covering from the floorboard, you can purchase the right material and install it on the base with your own hands. The finish will be durable and spectacular.