When installing gym floors my dad would always make shure we kept the flooring 2" away from the wall all the way around the gym for expansion. One day I told him it was impossible for the board near the wall to move 2" or even 3/4" and he said NOFMA requires it so do it. If this floor fails for ANY REASON, we will be at fault if we don't go by the book.
Through the years we replaced many gym floors that had water damage. Sometimes the flooring would be buckled 3' high in places the length of the gym and I would always show him the 2" expansion space was still there.
Buddy

And

Buddy,
I envy all that experience doing gyms. I have only done a few. It was a practice to allow for expansion in the field by using washers or pennies for spacers every four feet or so. Did you employ this concept as well?

One

Yes, we have always used washer rows not only on gym floors but on almost every new install we do. Job conditions determine how far apart the rows will be.
Chuck, tell us more about the electrical wire, I am always looking for a better way.
Buddy

Seen it only once--it was flooded--pushed the base out. Wires. Hmmmn, haven't heard that one before. I have done the washer thing before when I was a greenhorn and it was requested. Be nice if some real gurus in this business would chip in from time to time to offer their expertise and reasoning--but then regional differences always play a role in hardwood flooring. I've had ocassional emails from NOFMA before regarding customer queries. I'm sure some have lurked here from time to time.

The " real guns" do not give their stuff away.

Chuck, we almost always start in the middle of a gym or other large room.
This is a small 5,800s.f. gym we just installed,sanded and finished. It is 3/4"x2 1/4" True Pecan.
Buddy

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This is the finished Pecan gym floor. It has too much color variation for some people but it is a hard dense wood and it will darken some with time.


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Holy

So Buddy,
Got a question about the sleepers/screeds. It appears they are pressure treated. Yes/No? Also, they look kinds close. Are they glued/ nailed? I thought one needed to offset every 4 ft. I see these aren't. Does that pose a problem? And you're laying polyethylene over the screeds so they must be PT, right? Is the slab covered with ashalt? Sorta looks like it. The pecan looks good, IMO. And harder than maple; maybe more stable, Thanks!

Ken, WHAT? We're not flooring guru's? Just cause we're not famous doesn't mean we aren't experts. When I attended the advanced NWFA school a few years back, of course I learned some stuff. But I also taught those instructors a thing or two myself. No one knows it all; except Howard B. perhaps! The reason those guys don't post here is cause they're too busy and some do post over at another site that has more to do with floor finishing. Besides, you got Chuck, Perry, Buddy, and me, plus SK and William. What more could ya want? You got the best in the biz now!

So

Ooops, you guys are fantastic. I was referring to the guys that write the stuff in manuals.

Gonna hafta write me a book I suppose!