Hello All and thanks for giving me the confidence to start my first flooring project. I'm in a better situation than some as I'm fortunate enough to have tools that many don't have. I've been woodworking for years now and have a Delta cabinet saw with dado blades, a nice Makita compound sliding miter saw, a bunch of routers with a bunch of bits and an assortment of sharp shoulder handplanes. Last year I also picked up at a garage sale a nearly new Bostich MIII air nailer, an assortment of Porter Cable finish nailers AND a powered jamb saw.

I intend to pull some crappy carpenting from a hallway that leads into a small bedroom, and add hardwood flooring to both the bedroom and hallway. I picked up 500+ sq feet of an assortment of pre-finished Brazilian Tiger wood (150+ sq ft), distressed maple (150 sq ft+) and clear maple (200+ sq ft) for $1000 total. All boxes are sealed except for one per type which holds an assortment of pieces of the same species. My hallway is 120 sq ft and bedroom 200 sq ft.


*************
*-----------------*
*-----------------**O Tile O***********--------Tile-------***Stairs******
*--------------------------------Hallway--------------------------------------------*
*--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------*
*-----------------**O Tile O**O Tile O****------Carpet-------***O Door O*
*---Bedroom---*
*-----------------*
*-----------------*
*-----------------*
*-----------------*
*************

"O" = Vertical Trimmed Jamb

Now my questions:

1a) The carpeted floors are bordered by a white painted 4" tall wall moulding. If I run the wood strips lengthwise down the hall, can I leave the moulding in place and leave a 1/8" gap for expansion? The hall is only 3 ft wide. I would then cover the gap with white painted quarter round. The hall would take the distressed maple, with one strip of Tiger cherry at the edges of the 3' width. Of course, the hallway has two big openings, access to stairs and three doorways to make it interesting!

1b) Rather than pull off the moulding, can I not cut the moulding with my jamb saw down its entire length and slide the flooring underneath? Then I'd add the quarter moulding as above. I'd hate to pull the moulding then have to repaint the walls!

2a) Wifey wants a border of 1 foot wide Tiger in the bedroom (12' x 17'). What is the best plan to start laying the Tiger around the edges? I assume I would start at the long side then lay out perpendicular lines at each end of the long wall. I would need to cut 45s at each end. Would I need to set up my dado blade in my table saw and cut female grooves at each 45 cut to accept a spline or would I just nail close to the cuts and forget about the added short spline?

2b) The Lengths of the shorter sides need to be exact such that the opening is perfectly parallel and perpendicular. Any tips?

2c) The center of the bedroom would take the clear maple. Wifey wants it running parallel to the boards coming from the hallway but I see a 45 angle to the boards being easier. In either case, how do I best fit the last board into the opening of the Tiger frame? I expect a lot of trial and error with the miter saw, and if I cut a piece too short, then that piece becomes the start of the next row. But I see a tight fit as problamatic all along the way. Maybe one side of the Tiger boarder needs to be open, then I cut the maple lengths all at once using some type of long straightedge. ???

2d) I may not put a header into the bedroom if I can "flow" the distressed maple into clear maple in the bedroom. But then I'll need to build up the bedroom flooring going both left and right from a center strip. So I'll need to cut a spline and add it along the entire width of the first row at the female side. Do I toe nail into the female end of the single center board to secure it from both sides?

2e) Again, do I need to pull the moulding or do I need to trim it with my jamb saw at all? Can I rip it while it's still on the wall?

This project will be started during Xmas and I hope to finish some time in January.

Yes, but I'd use at least 1/4" gap. If you're using baseshoe, you can leave even more.



No reason to bother. Just do as you proposed in 1a.




In this case, I'd install the field flooring first, running past where the border would be. Then trim excess off CLEANLY with a circular saw or Router and a guide/fence. Using an EZ Groover bit, rout a groove around the entire field and install spline to engage the first row of border flooring. Then install to the wall. Pretty simple really.



If you lay the field first, 45 is easy. You trim excess after install.

Do this. Install the field in bedroom first. Trim excess, install border then run flooring into hallway. This is a fairly easy install. It will take some skill and careful cutting but you have some good tools and I'm guessing you know how to use them.

Gary, thanks so much for the reply. I really appreciate the tips and as you can tell, I was thinking of doing the bedroom all backwards!



Wouldn't I only need to trip the ends of the boards? One side will already have the tongue and the other side with the groove should be parallel to the first board (I'll measure, of course). Then I'll need to add three splines, rather than four, right?

Once I get the "field" complete, then the problems comes into how to create tight miters around the field. Is the final 45 cut at one edge done by eye, with a sharp pencil or awl, with trial and error and many trips to the miter saw to tune the fit or is there some other trick? Too short or long on that last 45 will create a gap at the corner and a problem fitting the next row around the perimter.

And that router bit is only $59 at www.onlinefloorstore.com. Yikes!

Again Gary, thanks a bunch!

What is "trip" the ends? Never heard that term before. Do you mean trim?

Not if you run the flooring on a diagonal, like you mentioned doing.

When building borders using miters or log cabin corners, I construct the corners first, getting the joints tight. It's a good idea to spline those joints/seams as well. Then I work toward the middle of that particular row. Not uncommon to make a few trips to the saws to get a nice cut and tight fit.

Yep, it ain't cheap. But less than hiring a pro to lay your floors.

Yes, sorry, I meant "trim". I think we'd like to not lay them at a 45, that is, lay them parallel with the hall. Then route only two sides, and make three splines... correct?

But then, this is our first time. Does a 45 generally look better? We'd like your opinion. How do you fasten the last two triangular corners to the floor?



How, exactly do you get that last piece into the opening? I imagine you'd need to tap it in with a hammer very gently. Do you mill a slot in the end you cut to fit a spline with the adjacent grooved board? Do you tap the spline in after the fit or try to put the spline in first, like you would put in a metal keyway in a shaft?



Is this easiest done on a router table or a table saw with a dado set and tenoning jig?

Also, how do you most easily make the splines?

Again, thanks in advance.

Will a 1/4" slot cutter bit work? I have one of those.

Buy the splines.

Most slot cutting router bits have the guide bearing on the bottom of the bit, which will hit the subfloor and not allow the cutter to adjust low enough to cut a groove in the flooring. If your bit has the guide up by the shaft with the cutter on the bottom, it may work.

You could lay down some boards loosely on a 45 to see if you like the look. Also, browse around and look at pictures of wood floors to get ideas. Got some good photos here:
http://www.hardwoodflooringtalk.com/php ... um.php?f=7

Each board has a tongue on one end and a groove on the other. To fit the last middle board in a row, I cut to length the groove end. Then I rout another groove to replace the one I just cut off. Then tap into place. You will need a rubber faced mallet to tap the floor boards into place. Not supposed to use a regular hammer as it will damage tongues and the face of the floor boards.

Thanks again Gary! I'll think I'll get a good start on this over the Xmas break.

Now I understand how to wrap around the field. But I still have some general questions about securing the two opposing corners of the field if I lay the strips at a 45.

How do you fasten the last two triangular corners to the floor? The largest pieces would be small triangles only 2-3" on edge?

What is the proces of starting to lay the 45 degree field? Would I start at one corner and work to the opposite corner, beginning with a small piece, or start in the middle and work both ways? If I start at the corner, how would I secure the piece knowing that I'm going to cut nearly all of it away?

Oh, where can I purchase splines already milled?

Again, thanks in advance.

If I understand your question about the field. I would liberally use wood glue on the groove side of the joint, construction adhesive underneath and top nail with a finish nailer for good measure.

If you are laying the field on a 45º, start in the middle and work both directions.

Where ever you are able to purchase your wood you should also be able to purchase wood splines.

I've never looked at Home Depot or Lowes for splines. Do you know if either carry them?

No, they don't. Go to your local hardwood floor distributor that carries unfinished flooring and sells to the general public. Some do, some don't. If not, order online. Don't ask me from whom as I buy local. Google it. Barquios got it right on installing the field. Start in the middle, lay one half, glue down last triangle of flooring IF going diagonal. Return to center of field, install the spline and work toward the other corner, installing in the same manner.

OK, I'll either buy or fabricate the splines myself from a bunch of leftover poplar I have. No one at Home Depot or Lowes knows what a "spline" is! As long as they fit properly, I assume that would be OK, right?

Another problem... after pulling up the carpet I see that I have a drop off in the floor at one end of the bedroom that falls 1/2" in 32". It's not a ridge, just a fall off that runs about 8' tapering sideways to 1/4" at the left side of the room and 1/2" on the right. One choice would be to lay down 1/4" ply then belt sand the heck out of them, or cut the 1/4" ply into 6" strips and taper them on my bandsaw.

What do you think?

I ended up rip cutting a 12 inch tall, 24 inch wide 3/4" plywood on my bandsaw set at a 1 degree angle, then cut more thinner ones to taper to 1/8" thickness. I nailed these down with a few finish nails, countersinking the heads. Tried the belt sander with little effect, then pulled out my hand plane to get the work done. I'll post some pics next of how the project is going, but the hand plane was the trick I needed to make some real progress flattening my existing floor and leveling the new tapered pieces I added.

Regarding your second to last post about splines: I wound up buying a 1/4" oak baord from the local borg and ripped that into 1/2" slices. This worked very well for splines.

I did need to take the belt sander to most of them as my groove was slightly less than 1/4" high, but it still worked out well.

If your flooring has different measurements for the groove, you will need to compensate.

Best of times.