There’s nothing quite as beautiful as richly detailed hardwood flooring in a home. It’s no wonder the hardwood craze has taken off so rapidly over the last decade or so – people just love the look, feel, and durability of wood flooring in their homes. Before we discuss the basics of installing hardwood flooring, there is a bit of confusion that should be laid aside.

First things first, it’s important to note the different kinds of hardwood flooring on the market today. Not every floor commonly referred to as a hardwood floor is really a true hardwood floor. In fact, these days, most new “hardwood floors” are anything but the real thing – not that there’s anything wrong with that.

A real traditional hardwood floor is comprised of actual planks or boards of real solid hardwood – substantial and beautiful woods like oak and mahogany. Many modern flooring systems that are described referred to as hardwood are actually engineered materials made of wood fibers and a type of glue binder. They’re usually topped off with either a thin layer of real wood veneer or a layer of composite material designed and manufactured to look like real wood.

While there are many really great products in all of these categories, it is necessary to differentiate the different types of wood flooring because they all install differently. There’s no concise “one size fits all” solution when it comes to installing hardwood flooring, so to start with, let’s just take a look at the basic aspects.

First, it’s imperative to start with a completely straight and level subfloor. Because any crooks or uneven spots are only exaggerated as the layers of flooring unfold above, subfloor perfection is a noble goal.

After the subflooring comes the underlayment. The underlayment serves several purposes, most importantly helping the wood flooring freely expand and contract while also serving to prevent squeaks and creaks. While the exact specs can be different according to the hardwood flooring to be installed, a 15 pound felt asphalt felt underlayment is one common standard.

Once the underlayment is tacked or stapled in place, it’s time to begin the installing the hardwood itself. This usually begins along a wall with a small spacing between the wall and the edge of the wood. A process called blind-nailing is used with the first strip – meaning that it will be fastened so the nails remain invisible or hidden underneath a baseboard or similar cover.

When this step is complete, the boards are laid one after another against the first strip in random staggering lengths. According to the type of wood floor, they are either nailed in place with a special nailing tool, or the boards might even just snap together (this is called a floating floor).

Then, it’s just a matter of filling in the remainder of the hardwood floor and finishing the far edge with another hidden nailed piece, or with a specially designed edging piece. Installing hardwood flooring does take some practice and experience, but by no means is it totally out of reach for the handy homeowner!