Floating Wood Floor In The Shop

[Eric Commarato]

Hi Folks,

I have a concrete floor in my shop and would like to install a wood floor. My shop is about 18 feet square. We have a Lumber Liquidators flooring store near us. I was thinking about installing a "floating floor" in my shop. Apparently you don't glue or nail it down and hence no need for sleepers or a plywood subfloor. They offer some bamboo and exotic wood flooring in the "floating floor click in place and use" variety which is very economical. I was wondering if anyone here has ever installed on of these engineered wood floor systems in their shop. They are pre-finished and have a 30 year wear warranty. The nice thing is that if I ever move, which I doubt I will, I can take the floor with me. Any suggestions or pictures would be appreciated.

Disclaimer: I am not an employee of Lumber Liquidators and have never been to their store.

[Caleb Dietrich]

I've installed a few floors, both solid hardwood and a few types of floating floors. Floating floors are not all that durable. Most of what I've seen in and MDF base with a thin veneer of whatever wood you choose. I don't know what kind of shop you run, but even pushing a wheeled machine across a laminated floor would cause problem. Plus, MDF and water don't get along too well, if you had a spill of some sort. Again it depends what type of shop you have. You could use it in a bench room with hand tools and bench top machines.

[Don Bullock]

I have a floating floor in my kitchen. It's a Pergo (don't remember which company) style laminated product that is very durable. Perhaps that would work better and cost less than real wood.

[Ben Grunow]

With only 18 square feet? 2x9, 3x6? Maybe 180?

I have seen T&G plywood with small rubber squares on the bottom available as sound deadening and comfort adding subfloor. You could install any floor you wanted over that.

No experience with pergo stuff.

[Pete Brown]

With only 18 square feet? 2x9, 3x6? Maybe 180?

I have seen T&G plywood with small rubber squares on the bottom available as sound deadening and comfort adding subfloor. You could install any floor you wanted over that.

No experience with pergo stuff.

I assume it is 18x18 as he said 18 feet square, not 18 square feet :)

I have used Pergo. It's decent and hard as a rock. I didn't put heavy machinery on it, though. I doubt the MDF body would hold up to that kind of pressure.

That being said, people use it in kitchens, and refrigerators are not known for their low weight :)

Pete

[Ted Miller]

Whatever wood you put on that crete floor make sure you use a vapor barrier of some kind. If you go with real wood you can get roll on barrier or you can use vinyl flooring then the wood on top. Floaters you can use 3 in 1 underlayment its like a soft foam padding and you can get in any thickness you like, overlap the edges and tape them together and lay the laminate on top...

[Eric Commarato]

Thank you all for the responses so far. The area is 18'x18' about 325 square feet. The floor I am talking about is not pergo attached is a link to their website.

http://www.lumberliquidators.com/catalog/flooring.jsp?categoryId=3

Thanks,

Eric

[Dick Sylvan]

I am putting down red oak from Lumber Liquidators over a plastic vapor barrier and 1x4 treated pine screeds. My shop is about the size of yours. I'll give you a report when it is finished.

[Ed Breen]

Eric
My living room is floating oak over a blue pad. We like it fine, and we live in the country so sand and dirt are al;ways with us.
Ed:)

[Greg Cole]

I have installed a few hundred square feet of floating floors on subflooring and directly on concrete. Vapor barrier & the padded underlayment are a must on the concrete and the underlayment is needed for any installation. FYI, if you want a COLD floor in the spring, fall and winter... put a laminate floor in the basement directly on the concrete (the underlayment has no insulating properties to speak of), not a concern for the shop though.
If you really wanted to use it for a shop floor, I'd suggest gluing it together to keep "stuff" out of the joints, as the floor moves (and they can & do move) you get dust etc in the joints... they'll never close back up. And the glue will help to keep water, paint etc etc etc from getting to the MDF backing. Bathroom installations are usually the glue together type.
Also if your shop is a garage, you'll have issues with the floor not being captured on all 4 sides as normal with at least some 1/4 round or base trim.

$0.02 donation....

Greg

[Bob Michaels]

Eric, you didn't mention what your motivation was for installing a "floating floor", either aesthetics or anti-fatigue qualities. If the motivation is to save your legs, feet, and back from the pain of standing on a concrete floor, you may want to look into an industrial grade anti-fatigue interlocking floor mat system. Please don't confuse this with the cheapie thin anti-fatigue mats sold at the woodworking stores, they're ok for a few weeks until they flatten out. I put this industrial grade system in my shop and I love it. It's like walking on air and an added benefit is if you drop a tool it just slightly bounces with no harm done. A bit pricey at 5.50 - 6.00 per sf with shipping but these are the best.

http://www1.mscdirect.com/CGI/NNSRIT?PMCTLG=00&PMAKA=55037964&partnerURL=http://catalogs.shoplocal.com/mscdirect/index.aspx%6Fpagename=shopmain%50circularid=9086%5 0pagenumber=2999%50mode=

[William Hutchinson]

There are other options for floating floors beside wood, I am currently in the process of renovation of my (garage) shop-- insulation and sheet rock just finished. This past weekend I tiled the concrete floor with those snap together PVC tiles, which can be easily removed if needed.

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y66/wlhutch/FloorandWalls.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y66/wlhutch/ShopFloor.jpg

[Chris Stolicky]

When I was building my shop use old laminate flooring that used to be in my house. It was an earlier vintage that did not snap together well. I can tell that is is pretty durable; experience in the workshop and roughly 1400sf of newer styles throughout my house.

I would just point out that it can get slippery if its wet or has saw dust on it. If you try to move or push something heavy in the shop your feet can slide easily.

[jason lambert]

I would be hesident. If you have the stuff why not but I would buy it. Besides getting slippery my experiance with it is if it gets wet it tends to bubble. Froget it if you drop thinner in it or anything like that it will attack it. Basically it seeps in betweent hte seams and causes the mdf below to bubble. Since I am not fimilar with the paticular floor you are looking at I can not tell you for sure but I would be careful.

[brad kellner]

the laminate hardwood floors are good and durable. especially when you go to a better quality like alloc brand. it is pretty much indestructable, you can beat it with a hammer and wont dent it. the only way that you could really damage it would be to pour water on it and just leave it there and never mop it up. that is the only thing that would really damage it. they have a 30 or 35 yr warranty. and it is truely good stuff. i have installed about 40-50 kitchens with it and have never had any problems or complaints about it getting damaged. but it isnt a cheap brand either and it is a little more pricy i think it was about 3-4 dollars a sq ft. personally with that small of a space i would get naturestone put down instaid. it is extreamily durable and just about anything you get on it will come up. it is pricy but with the size of your shop it wouldnt be too bad and nothing will hurt it water heavy machines or anything else you throw at it.

[Jake Helmboldt]

Eric, I wouldn't go with bamboo as it dents and gouges easily. Rolling or moving stuff (or dropping things) would beat it up badly. We have it in our kitchen, and while it looks nice it is definately soft.

[Bob Antoniewicz]

I was thinking the same thing. Cheapest wood floor I could find that has some real strength.

But they all are so expensive if they have any real meat to them that it just seemed too much. However, when the shop was built I had the contractor put in OSB with one face of radiant barrier on it. So I took a piece and put it on the floor, aluminum side down. That piece looked good, so I tried a full sheet. The sheet was about $9. For grins and giggles I tried wood side down first (to see if OSB was the trick) and it bowed up, as you'd expect. Then I flipped it over, and surprisingly, it has layed flat on that floor lo these past 2 months.

I think I'd still prefer the machines on the concrete to help mitigate vibration. Don't want to give them any room to move. But in between and under the mobile machines, it might be a good thing.

Now, OSB is about as pretty as a cesspool. But if I painted it, it might not be terrible. However, before I put in a bunch with the intent to paint, I'd do my test sheet first. I am afraid the OSB is picking up a litle moisture, but before it expands enough to cause a problem, the moisture propogates through the board and you don't have the bending forces anymore. Painting might screw that up.

Just my theory.

Bob A.

[Paul Saffold]

I just read an article in Fine Home Building (Feb/Mar'05) that recommends 1" rigid foam covered with 2 layers of 1/2" ply. I not too sure how the ply would be under the machinery. The article was about finishing basements, which is where my shop is going to be. Someday...