How to lay and care for your wood flooring

If you're a competent DIYer and have the right tools and prep, fitting your own wood floor is an achievable project. In our expert guide, we explain how to get the job done.

Alternatively, if you'd prefer to hire a professional, we explain how you can use the Which? Trusted Traders website to find a local trader who knows what they're doing.

Whether you're looking for some assistance or fitting your wood floor yourself, keep scrolling for details on how to prepare your floor ahead of time and which tools and materials are a must. Plus, we have tips on maintaining the condition of your wood floor for years to come.

Read our expert guide to the various types of wood flooring, including laminate, engineered wood and solid wood.

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Hiring a professional to lay your wood flooring

Get price estimates from several fitters

If you’re paying a professional, you’ll usually first be visited by an estimator, who will work out how much you need and how long it will take.

Get a couple of quotes before you commit to a fitter to avoid paying over the odds.

The initial estimate usually assumes that the sub-floor on which the new floor will be laid is in good condition. However, this is not always the case – if, once your existing floor is lifted, you find that floors are uneven or floorboards are missing or squeaking, the duration of the work and the price can go up. Ask your fitter about this in advance if you have particular concerns.

Use a Which? Trusted Trader

Check Which? Trusted Traders for recommended fitters in your area who've been vetted by assessors.

You can also ask your retailer for a recommendation, as it may have a contract with a local company or provide its own fitting service. Ask local friends and neighbours whether they have had a positive experience with a local trader.

If you want to enlist the help of a professional, use the Which? Trusted Traders tool to find vetted local traders.

Prepare your floor in advance

Once you've agreed on a fitter and arranged a date for installation, ask them what they'd like you to do to prepare.

You'll usually find that it's up to you to remove all your furniture and existing floor coverings, and check that all the existing floorboards are fixed. Make sure the floor is clean and dry, and that all nails are knocked in.

Once a floor is laid, it is difficult to get to features under the floorboards. So if you are likely to need to access your central heating pipes or run cables under the floor for a surround-sound system, wired security monitors or telephone, you should do this before the floor is laid.

To get the best finish, remove skirting boards and put them back after the floor has been laid. Your fitter may do this for you.

You'll save time in the long run by pointing out any potential problems to the estimator who comes to see your property. For example, let them know if rooms have been knocked together, or chimney hearths have been removed, as this could affect the level of the sub-floor.

Underfloor heating costs and installation – we've worked with RICS (the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) to give you an idea of how much you can expect to shell out

How to lay a wood floor yourself: step-by-step

Step 1: work out how much wood flooring you need

There’s usually around two square metres of coverage in a pack. Measure your room and round up (to the nearest square metre) to make sure you've got enough, then calculate the number of packs you’ll need. 

It's worth adding an extra pack on top of that, especially if you're laying it yourself as you're likely to waste more.

Retailers usually take back unopened packs, so it's better to be safe than sorry.

Step 2: assemble your tools and materials

You'll need a tape measure, a carpenter’s square and a pencil for measuring and marking boards.

A decent handsaw is essential for trimming lengths, while a jigsaw is great for cutting along the length of a plank to fit it to walls – use one with the blade that cuts on the down stroke to avoid damaging the top layer.

You’ll need a hacksaw and spade drill bit for dealing with radiator pipes, and a coping saw if you need to cut out intricate shapes.

Other handy wood flooring tools and materials include:

• Tapping block – A plastic block used to protect planks as they are hammered together. Rather than hammering the edge of the plank directly, you hammer the block, so that you don’t damage the plank with the hammer.
• Pull bar – This is used to drive glued planks tightly together at the tongue-and-groove joints. It's especially helpful at the wall when driving the end tongues and grooves together, where it is not possible to use a tapping block.
• Wedges and spacers – Use these to maintain the expansion gap around the perimeter of your room when laying laminate and solid wood flooring. Wedges and spacers are also useful for creating a straight edge against a wobbly wall to give your floor a good start.
• Adhesive – Will glue tongue-and-groove boards together and fix beading or skirting in place above the edge of the floor. Some modern adhesives for fixing solid floorboards to a sub-floor expand as they dry, filling small voids under the boards so they don’t sound hollow when you walk on them.
• Radiator pipe roses – Used during the 'finishing touches' stage. These ring-doughnut-shaped pieces of wood or plastic are used to cover the expansion gaps left around radiator pipes.
• Leveller board – This is fixed to the ground with nails to create an even surface on which to lay the floor. It provides sound insulation and increases the floor’s durability. It can either be a thick, recycled paper board that provides good sound insulation, costing around £2-£3.50 per sqm, or multipurpose wood boards, such as hardboard or plywood, costing from £1 per sqm.
• Screed – This is used to level uneven floor surfaces. It's usually a liquid, such as latex, that is spread out across a floor to create a level surface. Once it's solidified, you are able to lay your floor over the top.
• Damp-proof membrane – A plastic sheeting that is essential when laying laminate or wooden boards over a concrete or sand and cement floor. It prevents moisture moving up into the boards, which would cause them to warp.

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Step 3: remove the existing floor and prepare the ground

First, remove old floor coverings and all furniture from the room. While your sub-floorboards are exposed, take the opportunity to run cables for telephones or sound systems, as it's hard to do this once the new floor is fitted.

You'll want to ensure that the floor is clean and dry. Hammer in any protruding nails, fix any loose or squeaking floorboards and, if possible, remove skirting boards from the room.

Next, remove the door. Mark off the thickness of your leveller board, underlay and laminate on the architrave (frame) around the door. Use a flat saw to remove architrave below the mark so you can slide the flooring in underneath it.

Check manufacturer instructions to find out whether you need to leave your laminate or flooring planks to acclimatise in the room, and whether you should remove any packaging before you do so.

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Step 4: fit your new floor

Lay the floor planks end to end, running from the strongest source of light. If there are significant changes in the level of the floor, create an even surface using leveller boards or screed. Height variations should not exceed 2-3mm per metre.

Fix wooden leveller boards at least every 150mm using ring shrank nails. Lay insulation material, being careful not overlap the edges of either the insulation material or leveller board.

Starting in the corner, lay your first board against the wall. Then, use a wedge or spacer to create an 8-14mm expansion gap in front of the wall. Take your second board and carefully fit it to the free end of the first board. Use a hammer and tapping block to create a firm fit between tongue-and-groove boards.

Fit subsequent boards until there is less than one board length left until the end of the wall.

Place your next board parallel to the first row, so that it butts up to the wall (with a wedge in between). Use a pencil to mark where the free end of the board that has already been installed meets the plank that needs to be cut down. Use a carpenter's square and pencil to mark the board for cutting.

Fit the last board, using a pull bar to hammer the joint firmly into place. Use the off-cut of the board to begin the next row – this should ensure that the joints between the ends of boards are staggered.

Continue to lay the boards, using wedges to create an 8-14mm expansion gap around the room.

When you get to the final row, you may find that the width of the board must be trimmed to fit your room. Use a jigsaw to trim along the length. When measuring, remember to leave an expansion gap up against the wall.

Reinstall skirting boards or apply beading to cover the expansion gap around the edge of the floor. Plane the door to take account of any increase in height. You can also install a door bar to hide the expansion gap between rooms.

Step 5: working around your radiator pipes

Pipes are end-on to the board

Take a small off-cut that will fit behind the pipe and mark the position of the pipe on that board. Join it to the end of the next board, then use a spade drill bit to drill through the join between the boards in the correct position. Disassemble the two boards and then refit them together, around the pipe.

Pipes are sideways to the board

Mark the position of the pipe on the board and then drill through the board to create the hole for the pipe.

Use a hacksaw with a very fine blade to cut a V-shape from the wall side of the board to the hole. Trim the end off. Fit the board and glue the V-cut back into place. In both cases you need to ensure that you have underlay beneath the board behind the pipe, as well as in front of it. Use a radiator rose (shown below) to cover the expansion gap.

Common mistakes when fitting a wood floor

It's generally easy for a professional to tell if someone has installed a floor themselves, especially if they’ve ignored the manufacturer's instructions.

The list of tell-tale signs includes:

• Regimented board patterns – Floors look best if you stagger where the ends join, so make sure you start each row with a different length board. Using off-cuts also reduces wastage.
• Poorly finished beading – Look out for badly mitred corners and beading that ends with unattractive gaps rather than a neat return.
• Butchered boards – Often seen around radiator pipes.
• Floors cut to fit around an architrave – This is the wooden moulding around a door or window. Ideally, you'd trim the architrave and slide the floor in underneath it.
• Gaps between boards – This usually occurs due to a lack of glue, or it might be that the tongue-and-groove boards were not held together overnight while the glue was setting.
• Hollow footfalls – Caused when there is a small void underneath a board, usually because the sub-floor is uneven or there is inadequate underlay.
• Creaking floors – An issue when loose floorboards in the sub-floor haven't been fixed before laying the new one on top.

Buckled wood floors

A wood floor can buckle because it hasn't been laid with an adequate expansion gap around the edge of the room. You can remedy the expansion-gap problem if you remove the last boards, trim them down and refit them, but swelling upwards can't be solved.

It's easier to renew the finish on a solid wood floor; you can fill it with a wood-coloured filler if it develops small gaps, and if the finish becomes worn you can always sand it back and re-oil or lacquer.

How to clean wood floors

Cleaning your wood floor on a regular basis will not only keep it looking good, it will also help it last longer, so it's a good idea to sweep or vacuum once or twice a week. 

If your floor needs some extra TLC, you can follow these simple steps:

1. Remove loose dirt – Sweep or vacuum your floor before cleaning to remove the surface layer of dirt. 
2. Choose your cleaner – Wood floors are sensitive and can be damaged by excessive water or harsh chemicals. When cleaning your floors, use a wood floor cleaner (prepared according to the instructions on the packet), or a small amount of diluted white vinegar for a natural approach. 
3. Mop the floor – To avoid scratching your floor, use a microfibre mop and your choice of cleaner to gently cleanse the surface. 
4. Tackle any stains – If you find any stubborn dirt that wasn't removed by mopping, try again using a cloth. Use a small amount of dish soap if the mark is particularly stubborn. Again, don't use too much water.
5. Dry the floor – Dry the floor thoroughly with a clean towel to prevent water damage and maintain its natural luster. 
6. Apply wood floor polish – Periodically applying a wood floor polish or wax can help protect the wood's finish and restore its shine. Follow the manufacturer's instructions for application.

How to care for your wood floor

As well as cleaning your floor regularly, you can also follow some basic maintenance tips to keep your floors in their best condition: 

• Be careful not to damage the surface by dragging heavy pieces of furniture across it. 
• Use felt protector pads on the feet of furniture to reduce damage. 
• You can also ask people wearing high heels to remove their shoes, so the pressure from their heels does not create indentations.

Note that the colour of wood flooring can change when it is exposed to sunlight, so avoid placing rugs on floors in front of windows.

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