Why won't my tongue and groove go together?
If the tongue and groove does fit together correctly, the likely cause of difficulty may be the bending of the board shape, an uneven sub-floor, or debris. If the short pieces do easily not fit together, the tongue and groove fit is faulty, or the product has expanded in-situ.
Slide shims or spacers between the flooring and walls. Nail down the tongues every 10 inches. Make sure the tongue and groove align properly for each new piece. Gently use a rubber mallet to connect pieces before nailing.
For example, since tongue in groove joints are not glued together, and are left to expand and contract freely, food particles could find their way in there. I wonder if you are thinking about using splines to help align table top boards to help with gluing.
As with other fitting method, you should keep an expansion gap of 15mm around the edges to allow the floor to expand naturally in the face of temperature and humidity fluctuation. Moreover, the tongue and groove system provides some flexibility in installation methods.
Correctly made the joint, the tongue and groove, will handle this movement as long as the groove is not too tight or loose, there is a gap between the end of the tongue and the back of the groove. The tolerances are dependant on; the wood species, some move more than others.
To install the first strip, cut the tongue off one end then position the strip at an angle with the groove against the wall. For the following strips, simply apply glue to the tongue then slot into the preceding strip. In case of too much glue, keep a rag or sponge on hand and immediately wipe away the excess.
Gluing Gives Your Floors a Solid Feel
This makes a glued-down floor the most permanent type of hardwood floor installation. As it's firmly fixed, a glued-down floor doesn't shift underfoot and won't create that odd spongy feeling that's common with a floating floor.
Some manufacturers prefer gluing the top of the tongue and others prefer gluing of the groove. Titebond Tongue & Groove Flooring Glue is the professional installer's choice for either method.
The tongue or the groove does not need to be glued, although there is no reason not to. Some engineers require it in certain applications, but for standard subfloor applications none will be needed.
Not every board needs to hit a stud but knowing where your studs are will help secure the paneling. Start at one bottom corner of your wall and make sure that your first board is level by using a hand level or a laser level.
What are the disadvantages of tongue and groove?
- Repairs to tongue and groove boards can be relatively difficult. ...
- Installation may take longer than click flooring, due to glue and nailing requirements. ...
- If the tongue and groove system isn't held together properly, such as using too little glue, boards can separate over time.
With older tongue-and-groove hardwood flooring or even wide-plank floors, gaps inevitably develop between the boards mostly because the wood shrinks over time as it dries out and loses moisture content. The problem is magnified if the boards were not tightly laid in the first place.
An In-Depth Look at Tongue & Groove Hardwood Flooring. Hardwood flooring that features tongue and groove boards is today's industry standard, and for good reason. Even though flooring fads come and go, the popularity of tongue and groove wood flooring is nothing new.
Nailing down is probably the most common installation method for tongue and groove flooring. You can also glue it in place or use a combination of nails and glue. Check the Warranty, Installation, and Care (WIC) guide for your particular flooring product to find the installation methods allowed for your floors.
When using T&G along the 8' lengths will take care of the requisite spacing between panels. On the 4' ends be sure to leave a 1/8” gap between panels. A 10d nail is the perfect spacer to ensure you're getting the right amount of space between your panels.
Blind-nail the tongues
Drive the nails through the shoulder of the tongues into the framing at about a 45-degree angle. The next grooved edge will hide the nail holes. A 15- or 16-gauge brad nailer with 2-in. nails is the best choice for fastening, although an 18-gauge nailer will do the job, too.
Start at the corner of the room and place the first board with the tongue facing toward the wall. Be sure to leave a gap of about a ½-inch so the floor has room to expand and contract. 5. Place the second board next to the first so the shorter ends touch, and pull the second piece as close as possible.
Many tongue and groove floors can be floated over premium underlayment with good success. This is done by gluing the tongues and grooves together with a T&G adhesive. Unlike click-lock floating floors, T&G floors are not designed to be floated. It can be done, but it should be the exception not the rule.
Which side is the tongue, which the groove, and which goes first during installation? The tongue is the side that you will want to place against the wall as you start your laminate-flooring installation.
Step 4, tap the sheets together at the tongue and groove using a scrap and sledgehammer. Don't beat the sheets together tightly, you must leave 1/8” gap at all sides of the panels to allow for swelling.
Do tongue and groove floor boards have to be joined on top of a joist?
Tongue-and-groove does not have to end on a on a joist as long as the joists are not further apart than 350-400mm (14in – 16in). Before you start, follow the recommended requirements for board sizes and tongue-and-groove boards. Cut over-long boards to size.
We recommend using 16- or 18-gauge finish or brad nails. 1-½” to 2” in length should be sufficient. Both gauges are strong enough to hold the lumber securely, but small enough to not leave a large hole on the face of the board. Go ahead and buy the bulk pack: you're going to need it!
Install on a maximum joist spacing of 16” when boards are installed at a 90 degree angle to the joists. When installing on an angle, joist spacing should be on 12” centers. For best porch appearance and strength, end butted joints should be staggered to prevent direct alignment of the ends.
The tongue and groove woodworking joint is mostly used in panelling, ceiling or wall wood design, and flooring. The wood joint works by slotting the edges of the wooden tongues into the grooves.
Tongue and groove siding can be installed horizontally or vertically. In horizontal application, start at the bottom and work up with the groove edges facing downwards. Siding up to 6 inches wide can be blind nailed with one siding nail per bearing toe-nailed through the base of each tongue.
