I'm a DIYer looking to install the BR-111 Victorian Padouk (Casanova Engineered) in my ~800sq/ft apartment. I've been reading the articles and browsing around the site for a few hours now; however I'd greatly appreciate some additional info and advice.

(1) The current floor is an old solid parquet, glued to a concrete sub-floor.
(2) I live in New York, where the humidity for summer is ~75%.
So my questions are:
To avoid the 'hassle' of removing the parquet as well as any complications with the concrete sub-floor, would it be wise to just float the new floor over the existing parquet?
Also, is it especially risky to install given the current weather conditions? Would it be advisable to wait or can a couple weeks with the AC on prior to acclimation be sufficiant?

Any feedback will be much appreciated. Thanks.

-Shawn

Over concrete, you would be very wise to remove the parquet. Laying over it with a floater will cause the parquet to buckle under the new flooring, making it heave, also.


75% is the humidity out doors or inside your climate controlled home?

Every manufacturer will recommend keeping conditions similar to the acclimation and installation levels, or they will not warranty a claim, when it moves by either gapping, cupping or buckling. It will become your expensive problem, with no recoarse by replacement, on your dime.

Thanks for the reply.

75% humidity is what's going on outside. Without the windows closed and the AC running constantly the inside would match that very quickly...I guess that answers my question.
I know humidity and moisture levels need to be monitored and maintained before and during the installation, but what about afterwards? I'm unclear on the 'science' of it all.

-Shawn

If it gains moisture from a higher temperature and humidity, the the boards will swell and take up more space then it originally did. Say it gained enough moisture for each board to grow in dimensions 1/32th of an inch, and you have 64 boards across your installation. That is a full 2 inches of growth at the perimeter, or up in the air off the subfloor, in what we call buckling.

It's a floating floor. Just be sure you have enough room on the perimeter for expansion. Leave the parquet floor as is--float over it.

Ken, do you suggest a moisture barrier with that floating floor, over concrete, with a sandwich of wood between.

I would highly suggest contacting Wayne in the tech department at BR-111, before doing what Ken, suggests. Your warranty depends on it.