Hiya Folks,
New poster here. I've searched quite a bit on the web and asked local installers a lot of questions but I still have a couple of questions. I'm gluing down 1/2" hardwood to my concrete slab. I've flattened the slab and the wood has acclimated. I've gone ahead and dry fitted about 1/4 of the room as there is an angled wall and a heater register I needed to account for. Essentially, I am starting my floor against a wall vs. in the middle of the room. I plan to use spacers/shims against the walls to ensure I keep my expansion space and was looking at nailing blocks in place on a mark at 3 or 6 boards from the wall (straight line). Next I would put the adhesive (Bostik's Best) down, trowel it (1/4" notch), and start laying the planks, starting with the one against the blocks that I nailed down. In essence, I'd be working toward the wall vs. towards the middle of the room. So a couple of questions.
1. How long should I leave the "starter rows" in place with the shims/blocks before removing the blocks and starting another section? I do plan to tape the planks with blue tape but I can't see that really holding some boards together (I've got some that will take a bit of persuasion to align properly).
2. Should I roll the floor with a floor roller (the type used for vinyl flooring) or put weights on it?

I'd really like to be able to do more than just the starter rows in one day, so I'm hoping this adhesive will hold the planks in place pretty quickly (although with an open time of 1-2 hours, I'm not sure that'll happen).

Thanks for any help you can lend. I really appreciate it!!!
Cheers,
James

1) Allow the adhesive to set up overnight before walking or getting on the newly laid floor. 24 hours is best. 1&1/2" blue painter's masking tape will hold the boards together but you need to get them to snug up first. If you're trying to install flooring that is real crooked, warped and bowed, or with t&g's damaged, you'll end up very frustrated. Put the funky pieces aside for the time being. Use only straight, well fitting boards to start with. Once you have gotten started and are in the middle of the floor, it's a bit easier to install those difficult boards.
2) Follow the instructions on the bucket of adhesive. Some floors and adhesives call for rolling and some don't. Most of the urethane adhesives can be walked in. By that I mean that one walks up and down the rows of boards after they have been laid and they are well taped and secured but the glue is still not completely set up (within 4 hours of speading). This will seat the flooring into the adhesive, similar to rolling. But always follow the directions that come with the wood and adhesive.

One thing I will toss in there. If you nailed down your blocks when you were dry fitting the floor, you may find that after you spread the adhesive, that they won't slide together quite so easily.
I've good luck using hotmelt on my backer blocks, but only if you have bought a good quality wood floor that you don't have to beat together.

Thanks folks for the replies. So it looks like I'm going to just have to be patient and let my starter rows dry before moving on. I consulted Bostik and they recommended waiting overnight before putting any stress against the starter rows. As well, they did recommend rolling the floor just before the adhesive tacks up. As for my set up blocks, I was planning on anchoring them with tapcons. I couldn't find small cut nails so I bit the bullet and got some of them. I hope I can re-use them!
Thanks again for all the suggestions and advice.
Cheers,
james