Tips for installing pine flooring in your new home

Pine flooring was the only choice available to our ancestors and now many are realizing the beauty such flooring adds to a home. The pine flooring in a kitchen or living room gives a cozy feeling that is unmatched by any other type of floor. Where you are doing a lot of walking and think that the heart pine flooring may be cold to the feet, an old fashioned rug adds to the ambiance of the room.

Unlike our forefathers, the pine flooring we have is smooth, sanded and polished to a glossy shine. The light color of the pine is charming and inviting with hues ranging from cream to a pale reddish brown. When choosing pine for your home you also have a choice of wood grains. It is less expensive than hardwood, but is softer and it doesn’t stand up as well to the wear and tear of a family. Flooring tools include saws for cutting the boards to your specific measurements. They also include nailers and steel nails that remain exposed to add to the ambiance of the flooring.

How to install flooring

If you are wondering how to install pine flooring, here are a few tips to help you. It is best if you remove the existing baseboards to fit the pine snugly into the walls. A subfloor, usually plywood, is put down first and you have to ensure there are no loose spaces by nailing it about every 5 inches. You can reduce squeaks by installing rosin on the subfloor before you begin installing the flooring. When installing the floor around door, you should cut the base of the door casing so the pine will fit under it. Place the boards at right angles to the floor joints so that each board is nailed to the joist and further reduces any squeaking. When you have finished installing the floor, you will still need flooring tools such as sanders and polishers to have a brilliant shine on the floor.