A: Absolutely!

Our GreenBay line of engineered hardwood flooring is very suitable for a floating installation. Some tips to remember:

• Floating floors must be installed over a quality pad.
• Use a vapor barrier if your slab or subfloor has an unknown moisture content or is above the moisture content recommended.
• Use a quality wood glue.
• Glue only on the tongue of the wood, using a thin bead of glue.
• Leave expansion gaps at the vertical surfaces (walls, built-in cabinets, etc.).
• Use molding to cover the expansion gaps.

In a nutshell, yes, our GreenBay engineered hardwood flooring can be installed as a floating floor as well as a nail-down or glue-down installation.

This recent press release details many of the advantages of Elastilon!

New underlay membrane cuts install time up to 70%, allows ¾” hardwood over concrete and provides improved floor stability, resilience and sound reduction.

(PRWEB) June 10, 2010 — Elastilon®, a product that is transforming the way floors are installed in Europe, is now available in the U.S. and Canada. An emission-free membrane with ergonomic, thermal and sound deadening properties, Elastilon allows stick-and-peel installation of 5/16” to 1” solid hardwood to save 50-70% on installation time.

While Elastilon can be used in any residential or commercial flooring application, it opens up exciting new vistas for installing solid hardwood on above and below grade concrete, eliminating the need for costly subfloor construction, nails or glue. Elastilon is also well suited to multi-level construction, as it reduces both airborne and impact sound transmission (IIC 62 and STC 54). With the hardwood, Elastilon creates a floating floor that can be walked on immediately and affords easier access to the floor beneath than hardwood installed the conventional way.

During installation, Elastilon is simply unrolled to cover all surfaces, leaving expansion room at walls. As the floor is assembled, the plastic backing on the 1/8” (3mm) thick, high density polyethylene membrane is peeled back and the flooring slipped into position on the adhesive surface. Adjustments are possible for up to 20 minutes; then Elastilon forms an inseparable bond with the hardwood. This creates continuous tension across the boards to prevent the gapping, warping or buckling that can occur with nailed or glued floors. The resulting floor provides superior walking comfort, noise absorption and stability.

Because Elastilon accommodates the natural expansion and contraction of hardwood floors due to humidity, it can be used with all solid hardwood species (pre- or unfinished), including environmentally-friendly exotics with high expansion characteristics, such as palm and bamboo.

Elastilon can be used on new concrete floors, handling up to 3.9 percent moisture content. A vapor barrier of at least 6 mil PE should be used below grade and on newly poured concrete above grade where the moisture content is above 3.9 percent.

In South Africa, one of the most demanding climates in the world with respect to humidity, more than 400,000 square feet of Elastilon-backed wood floors have been installed with zero callbacks.

Elastilon features a limited, 70-year warranty. Developed in the Netherlands by wood flooring industry veteran Fred van Bers, this patented product was launched nearly a decade ago and is now sold in 40 countries. For availability in your area, visit www.elastilonusa.com or elastilon.ca or call toll-free to (877) 526-9663.

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It is fairly common to see the advice to never install solid hardwood floors in a basement or below-grade. Conventional wisdom is that sub-grade spaces are limited to engineered woods due to the changes in temperature and humidity, and the likelihood of too much moisture in the subfloor. With the Elastilon Self-Adhesive Membrane for installation of wood floors, conventional wisdom has been tilted on its head. Elastilon is perfect for installing a solid wood floor in the challenging environment of a basement because:

• It creates a floating floor that allows for overall expansion and contraction of the wood.
• It expands & contracts with the wood, eliminating gapping and visible seams.
• It seals the bottom surface of the wood and is waterproof, virtually eliminating cupping.
• It is quickly installed over a vapor barrier where the moisture content of the subfloor exceeds 3.9%.
• It provides cushioning of the floor, for both comfort and sound reduction.

If you’ve wanted to install a solid wood floor in your basement or sub-grade space and have always been told it isn’t an option, times have changed! Ask your installer, hardwood supplier, or us about the Elastilon system for wood flooring installation.