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Posted on April 1, 2006 by Alphonso Sirtle.. | Posted under Home Improvement
How to install a wood floor medallion
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Before you can start installing that great wood floor medallion, you will need to gather the tools you need, including a router and routing bit, a pencil, ruler and template and the flooring adhesive and something to spread it with. There are several different types of medallions made for wood floors, and they vary in thickness and in size. The installation procedures will vary slightly depending on the type of medallion you choose. The two basic types of medallion are: The face-shaped medallion. This medallion will generally come unfinished, and consist of solid wood approximately 5/8" thick. All the wood pieces are held together using a special tape which has been press glued to the surface. These types of medallions often come with a precut plywood backer to the desired thickness, and they will always come with an installation template.Pre-glued medallions. Pre-glued medallions are generally available in either unfinished or prefinished varieties. The pre-glued medallion will be glued to the plywood base to the desired thickness. For instance, a " thick wood floor medallion the wear layer will be a 5/8" solid piece of wood which has been glued to a 1/8" plywood backer.Installing the wood floor medallionThe first step is to choose the right location for the medallion by drawing lines to locate the center of the medallion. If you are using a medallion it can be placed in the appropriate spot.In order to use the template, first line up the installation template so the lines are lined up with the lines drawn on the subfloor. You will then trace around the inside of the template so the shape of the medallion has been drawn on the subfloor.The next step is to install the wood flooring according to the manufacturers instructions, making sure that the flooring overlaps the medallion shape traced on the subfloor by between " and 1". When nailing the flooring in place be sure that none of the nails are too close to where the medallion will be placed.If the floor is unfinished, it should be sanded in the area where the medallion will be placed in order to make sure that the template sits flush with the new floor.After the floor has been installed the template should be lined back to the center lines that were traced at the beginning of the installation, temporarily fastening the template to the floor. Double sided tape works well for this purpose. Be sure that the template covers the flooring that has been installed.The next step is to place the router bit on the router and to set the depth to approximately 3/16" of the flooring per pass. The flush cutter should be dropped down, being sure that the bearing sits along the edge of the template. Continuing routing around the interior of the template in a clockwise direction until it has been routed flush with the subfloor, then remove the router template.Next, vacuum the floor and clean up all wood dust. A pre-glued medallion should be test fit into the hole that has been prepared, and it should be close to flush with the remainder of the floor. Flooring adhesive should then be applied to the hole and spread evenly.If you are using a wood floor medallion with a plywood backer the backer should be placed into the hole and secured to the subfloor with some drywall screws and the glue should be applied to the backer.The medallion should be placed into the hole and weighted down with something heavy. Bags of concrete or sand work perfectly for this purpose. The glue should be allowed to cure according to the manufacturer's instructions, but never for less than 24 hours.Congratulations - your new wood floor medallion is in place and all you have to do now is enjoy it. About The Author: Alphonso has been working in the home remodeling industry for last 5 years. Take advantage of his experience and written material on flooring ideas at his website at http://www.improve-home.com |
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