Glue Down Vs. Floating Wood Flooring

There are various methods of installing wooden flooring. It depends on various factors and each method has its own pros and cons. The two methods under discussion are Glue Down and Floating wood flooring. Floating wood flooring refers to the method where the flooring rests on an underlay and is not essentially fixed to any subflooring or substrate so basically it’s just the gravity that is holding the flooring. The features are as follows:

 

1. It is easier to install, this is an advantage for the ‘do-it-yourself’ people

 

2. Compared to glue down, it is less expansive since there is minimal adhesive cost and takes less time to install.

 

3. The two air pockets under the flooring and underlay and between the underlay and concrete break the sound being carried. Hence making it a sound proof alternative.

 

4. Floating floors are great for people who are concerned about raising the overall floor height

 

It has a few drawbacks too. Mainly being that this kind of flooring moves while you walk on it, this is not a defect in the flooring but simply happens when installed. Another being that to even replace a single board a large portion of the flooring has to be removed. Glue down is pretty self-explanatory. It is when the wooden flooring is installed with the use of an adhesive such as glue. The features are as follows:

 

1. When installed with the help of glue down. The flooring becomes more strong and solid underfoot. This does not allow the flooring to move as in the case of floating wood flooring.

 

This is mainly the only advantage glue down has over floating wood. The drawbacks:

 

1. It is more expensive to install flooring using this method as requires more labour and needs adhesive. If a sound barrier is put it will cost even more, since the barrier will have to be glued to the subfloor first.

 

2. It makes a lot more noise than floating wood flooring.

 

3. To remove this kind of flooring is very difficult as the flooring with the help of adhesives which are designed to not let go.

 

4. Gluing hardwood to concrete usually requires a special moisture barrier, which will further add to the cost.

 

5. Glue takes a lot of time to dry, hence it is more time consuming.

 

Even after numerous drawbacks of this method, it has a very strong feature and that is a steady strong floor, which is the most important thing in flooring.