UNDERFLOOR HEATING
Our engineered floors can be installed over underfloor heating systems. These underfloor heating system must be installed according to the manufacturer’s guidelines by qualified installers and strictly operated according to the manufacturer’s guidelines, in conjunction with the following instructions.
MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE
It is crucial to ensure that the contact temperature does not exceed 27°C. This is the temperature on the underside of the floor where the board and the subfloor meet. Surface temperature is measured on the surface of the floor. To obtain a certain surface temperature different contact temperatures are required for different products depending on a number of factors, including the construction type, thickness and wood species.
The contact temperature only needs to exceed the permitted 27°C for a short period of time to severely damage the floor. Therefore, the system must have underfloor sensors with a cut-off capability.
This is very important and must not be overlooked because without these sensors being installed, we cannot offer warranty for our floors. If the floor is installed on underfloor heating without underfloor sensors, the warranty is made void.
BEFORE INSTALLATION
The system must be commissioned and then run for 3 weeks to ensure that it is fully operational. After the successful commissioning and test run has been done, the installer should provide documentary evidence of the commissioning.
After the commissioning, the temperature of the underfloor heating should be reduced to the lowest level. It should be gradually reduced by 1-2 °C per day. On the day of installation, the subfloor temperature should not exceed 18 °C. The temperature should remain at the lowest level for 48-72 hours prior to installation.
Temperature should remain at the lowest level for 48 – 72 hours prior to installation.
AFTER INSTALLATION
Once the floor has been installed, the temperature should be kept at the lowest level for at least 48-72 hours. This enables the floor to acclimatise to its new surroundings, and it is important not to shock the timber by introducing heat too quickly after installation.
After the acclimatisation period has finished, the temperature can be gradually increased by 1 – 2 °C per day.
The temperature should be increased or reduced in a controlled fashion. Whether it is the beginning or the end of the heating season, the temperature must be changed gradually.
DELIVERIES
These are made between 8.00am and 6.00pm, Monday to Friday. We will do our best to accommodate any delivery requirements you may have, such as timed deliveries, but we are not able to guarantee these as we rely on third party delivery companies. Any special requests, redeliveries, partial deliveries or other incurred delivery costs will be charged additionally.
All goods must be checked and signed for upon delivery and any damaged goods must be signed for as damaged. We are not able to accept complaints or replace damaged goods unless they are signed for as damaged on delivery.
The customer is responsible for providing labour for the loading/unloading of the goods.
ACCLIMATIZATION
The installation of the floor should be one of the last jobs of any project. Therefore, the floor should only be delivered when the site is ready for installation. All painting, plastering and other wet elements should be already completed and fully dry.
Acclimatisation is the process of conditioning the moisture content of the wood to its new environment. This must be done in normal living conditions. The temperature should be within the range of 18-25 °C and humidity within the range of 40-60%. The temperature and humidity essentially need to match the conditions where the floor is expected to perform. Engineered floors should be acclimatised for 48 hours, and 10mm solid floors for 36 hours.
INSTALLATION
Before commencing installation, it is the customer’s responsibility to inspect the material and ensure it is according to their order. Once the installation has started, it is deemed that the goods have been accepted.
We recommend that installation is only performed by fully competent and experienced wood floor layers. Boards that show visible defects should not be installed, it is the responsibility of the customer/floor layer to deselect defective boards at the time of installation.
Wood is a natural material and is therefore subject to variations in colour and texture from board to board. Certain treatments will further accentuate this colour variation, and it is the responsibility of the floor layer to install the boards in a visually pleasing colour arrangement. We recommend that installation is always done at the same time with at least a few packs of flooring.
GRADING
As it is a natural product, wood contains inherent variations in its colour, grain, appearance and other visual imperfections. Our floors are manufactured in accordance with accepted industry standards which do not permit a defect tolerance that is more than 5%. These defects may be either the result of manufacturing or the naturally occurring characteristics of the material.
COLOUR VARIATION
Wood is a natural material and is therefore subject to variations in colour and texture, from board to board. Display panels and samples only give an indication of the variations in colour, texture and character that can be expected in a flooring, as the samples cannot display all of the characteristics of the wood due to their size. Pattern floors that consist of many smaller pieces will vary more in colour than plank floors do.
COLOUR CHANGE
Wood is an organic material and therefore wooden floors are subject to ageing and colour change over time. This ageing is a completely natural process that results from the wood’s exposure to the elements. The two main causes of ageing are wood oxidation (exposure to air) and UV light (exposure to sunlight).
The most noticeable colour change occurs in the first few weeks and months. After that, the ageing process slows down. Therefore, a newly produced and delivered flooring may differ in colour slightly from a display panel that has already had time to mature. For this reason, the colour of a floor will only be considered final after it has been installed for a few months and has had time to age.
AGED FLOORS
Ageing and distressing wooden floors will cause some damage to the sides and the tongue and groove of the floor. Pieces of the floor may break off, and certain parts of the tongue and groove may need to be rectified. Therefore, extra time needs to be allowed when an aged floor is being installed. We recommend that the installation of an aged floor should only be performed by experienced floor layers.
REORDERS
Our products are custom-made to order. Reorders or order shortages for floors/accessories are treated as new orders, and will be produced according to our normal lead times. We recommend adding a sufficient amount of cutting and grading allowance to ensure that enough material is ordered for a project, in order to avoid delaying the project’s completion.
Orders below the value of £1000 will be subject to a £100 surcharge for production and administration costs.
We recommend adding the following amount of extra material for different formats & sizes:
– Plank floors up to 220mm 10%
– Plank floors over 220mm 15%
– Patterns 15 – 25% depending on layout
– We recommend adding extra lenghts of accessories also
Furthermore, variations in colour and texture between different batches are possible due to the bespoke nature of our products.