When dealing with oak flooring, and wood flooring in general, a critical factor is the acclimatisation of the oak boards. Acclimatisation is where the oak flooring adjusts and adapts to its new environment.

Oak flooring is a natural product, meaning it will naturally move. This movement is caused by changes in humidity. This natural movement is only an issue when the movement is excessive.

Excessive expansion or contraction of your oak flooring boards can lead to problems such as cupping, warping and gaps appearing.

Acclimatisation helps to stop excessive movement occurring after the floor has been laid.

Acclimatisation needs to take place in your natural living conditions, in the room in which you plan to lay the oak floor. The boards should not be brought into the room until all previous work has been completed. This means that all plastering or paint work should be completed beforehand. Failure to do so will mean your oak boards will take in all the moisture from this work.

Once the room is in its liveable condition, the boards can be brought into the room. The oak flooring should be stacked in a way to allow air flow to naturally flow through the boards. Any packaging should be opened.

These boards should then be left in this state for the acclimatisation to occur. With our solid oak flooring we recommend the boards be left for at least 2 weeks. Despite engineered oak flooring boards being more stable than solid, we still recommend acclimatising them. At least a week is normally sufficient.

If you would like to discuss the acclimatisation process with us further, please give us a call on 01538 304584.

Add a comment

Name *

Email * (will not be published)

Comment *

Type the text shown here into the box *

* required field