Best Plywood For Hardwood Subfloor

Before you install your plywood subfloor first calculate the room s square footage to find out how much flooring you ll need to buy.

Best plywood for hardwood subfloor.

The finished floor is then installed on top of the subfloor. Re secure any loose wood subfloor planks osb or plywood subfloors to the floor joists using 2 1 2 deck screws. Floating sub floors for solid hardwood installations generally consist of two layers of plywood or allowing enough wood for a 1 inch flooring cleat to hold effectively. Different plywoods use various materials and methods of manufacture depending on the application for which they re intended.

A moisture meter should be your best friend on the job. The most common types of subfloors you ll find in homes today are made from either plywood or osb. Tongue and groove plywood is available to reduce squeaks and help the subfloor fit together better. Plywood is the best subfloor for hardwood flooring installation.

Cdx plywood ranging from 1 2 to 3 4 inch thick and rated a c will serve well for any hardwood flooring installation. Osb is similar to plywood but has a different construction. Sub floor construction should have expansion areas of their own in the area of 1 8 1 4 between boards or sheets of ply. Enhanced plywood and subfloor products.

The subfloor is the decking installed on top of flooring joists. The thickness of plywood panels in a subfloor is regulated by the. A subfloor is a wooden structural substrate to which durable finished flooring is attached. A typical wood framed residential flooring system is more complicated than you think.

In addition to the visible surface flooring material the carpet tile or hardwood there is usually an underlayment and beneath that is a subfloor that serves as the foundation and structural reinforcement for the floor. There are many types sizes and configurations of plywood. Another critical part of the subfloor inspection process is checking the moisture content mc of the subfloor and joists. Plywood subflooring is much like standard plywood but has special tongue and groove edges to help stiffen the floor and prevent squeaks.

The subfloor can be flattened by sanding down the high areas or by installing shims such as roofing shingles or various thicknesses of plywood. Plywood is usually used as subfloor today. Loose or damaged subfloors can cause squeaking and affect the performance of the finished flooring that is installed over it. Concrete slabs should be flat use a leveling compound to fill any depression or voids.

When a roofless partially built structure takes on water the plywood or osb used for floor decking can absorb water swell.