To all:

After several months of replacing the particleboard underlayment, we finally started laying hardwood this weekend. I have all the necessary tools (compound miter saw, table saw, Bostitch floor stapler, 15 ga finish nailer etc), but dang, this was slow going. I'm pretty skilled for a homeowner, and my friend is a carpenter, but we only installed 210 sq feet of 2.25 inch Mullican white oak in 12 hours of work. Finished floor is gorgeous, but dang, I have another 800 sq feet to go. Any ideas on how to speed things up? Any advice would be much appreciated, thanks.

That's about all(250-average in 8 hours) nail down, I can get in in a day, of skinny boards, working solo.

Production! Working from the center, and a spline, One guy takes off one direction across the home, and you go the opposite.

Chuck is the production guru. I could never get as much as he claims to in one day. That's greasy fast!


It is work, and timely at that. The reason, it seems installation is so high.

If you were a contractor, you and your partner would only be making $10-$35 an hour,split each, depending in the "going rate" you work by.


Keep on going! For newbies, your not going very slow, considering. As you go, it gets faster as you get a rythum and a system for production.

Most of it boils down to ergonomics. Are you racking the floor? Is your saw set up near your work?

Racking is important for a couple of reasons. One: it is a much more efficient way to install. Two: You get to see the floor before you nail it. You can see an objectionable board much easier in a rack than you can individually.

How you rack will determine how fast you are able to nail. I always pyramid when I nail floors. It is a pretty simple system, but the difference in production between pyramiding and just putting wood on the floor"willy nilly" is pretty stark.

If you pm me,I will give you my phone number. I can probably save you some time. Two people should be able to do 400ft a day at a pretty leisurely pace. I nail that much by myself.

Like Chuck said, racking(laying the wood out) is what usually slows down the rookies. Lay out the entire room or have your buddy racking in front of you. Racking in a staircase pattern is faster, but be careful because it can look patterned when done if you don't break it up once in awhile. The more space between butts the better.
As you nail, slide the wood with your foot. Its like a dance when you get going, slide-slam-bam-bam-bam. Keep the chop saw right where you need it, you should be dragging it along behind you. I mark and cut three boards at a time. Less motions from the floor to the saw saves time and body. About the time you get good, you'll be done.

Rich,
I forgot a tip. If you have a stubborn crack, take a nailset and lay it on the tongue with the round part over the fastener. Smack it.

Chuck,

Thanks so much for all of your advice. I looked at the rest of the house, and can see that your techniques will literally save me dozens of hours, as well as yield a better result. Thanks again.

Were you able to find the mallet? I think it would be called a 200L-SH

Chuck,

I went with a Powernailer 5MI black mallet. We've done a few rooms since you and I spoke, and both quality and installation speed are much improved. Only one small room + stairs to do, but that will have to wait until I gut my kitchen and rebuild it.

groovy

When we (being two people) rack we lay out the whole room up to the end wall, including cutting all the end pieces. Then we push the saw out of the way and go go go. You can do a square-type room in no time that way. Even for one person, it goes pretty quick when you don't have to break stride to stop & cut. Plus when you're on your hands & knees laying out, you see boogers in the material you can miss otherwise and can leave them out.

For little boxy areas such as closets, frig spaces, narrow hallways, etc...we have a simple "jig" that we use to cut all the pieces. Measure the length of the area, count how many rows you need to fill it, then set the jig to that length, stack the wood and cut. You can cut thru a stack of 3/4 boards 5-6 high, so for frig spaces and coat closets that always seem to be about 10 rows deep, thats just two chops with the chop saw.

When we don't rack, we usually work together down the same row, staggering the ends. When we feel like we want to stop and cut, my partner kneels on the floor with the saw, marks & cuts, and I hammer it in. When you've worked with someone long enough, you get really choreographed and it's like clockwork.