ᐅ Is it possible to install hardwood flooring by gluing it yourself, or is it better to hire a professional?
Created on: 3 Sep 2018 21:32
S
Snowy36
Hello,
we wanted to choose the flooring today, and the flooring specialist told us that the 85 sqm (915 sq ft) of parquet could also be glued down or installed by ourselves.
I know that with floating installation, this should not be a problem, but what do you think about gluing?
Is 5 full days realistic for this, what is your estimate? Having it professionally installed costs 22 euros per sqm, so the potential savings would be about 1500 euros including the discount we would receive.
we wanted to choose the flooring today, and the flooring specialist told us that the 85 sqm (915 sq ft) of parquet could also be glued down or installed by ourselves.
I know that with floating installation, this should not be a problem, but what do you think about gluing?
Is 5 full days realistic for this, what is your estimate? Having it professionally installed costs 22 euros per sqm, so the potential savings would be about 1500 euros including the discount we would receive.
Snowy36 schrieb:
Is 5 full days realistic for this? What do you think? Having it professionally installed costs 22 euros per square meter, so the potential savings are about 1500 euros including the discount we would get.Just look at the price. Of the 1500 euros, maybe 200 euros go toward materials (adhesive, etc.), leaving the labor cost for 3 days for one person. After deducting the contractor’s profit, that leaves about 2.5 days of work for the specialist, maybe even just 2.
We have the same issue: due to underfloor heating, we would prefer to have the parquet glued down.
We visited two parquet suppliers who offer complete services (including installation).
Both gave similar quotes: around 100 EUR/sqm (for ash parquet, one of them "Haro Country"), which adds up significantly for 60 sqm (approximately 650 sq ft).
If I were to install the parquet myself, I would probably only pay about 70 EUR for the material and could save around 1800 EUR (30 EUR/sqm * 60 sqm).
However, one supplier advised against "self-gluing": It’s better not to do it unless you have done it before. Otherwise, you might glue a plank a few millimeters askew and only notice it when you reach the other wall. By then everything is glued down, and it looks off or no longer fits properly.
We visited two parquet suppliers who offer complete services (including installation).
Both gave similar quotes: around 100 EUR/sqm (for ash parquet, one of them "Haro Country"), which adds up significantly for 60 sqm (approximately 650 sq ft).
If I were to install the parquet myself, I would probably only pay about 70 EUR for the material and could save around 1800 EUR (30 EUR/sqm * 60 sqm).
However, one supplier advised against "self-gluing": It’s better not to do it unless you have done it before. Otherwise, you might glue a plank a few millimeters askew and only notice it when you reach the other wall. By then everything is glued down, and it looks off or no longer fits properly.
Doing this as a team of two works well and is quite manageable for skilled DIYers. However, everything must be properly prepared:
- correct and good-quality tools (appropriate notched trowels, cleaners, straightedge, parquet pull bar, miter saw, enough spacer wedges, mohair rollers for the oil, etc.)
- suitable screed substrate (earth-moist screed can and often will be quite uneven and must be leveled)
- all materials (adhesive, possibly primer) from the same system
If you need to buy all the tools first AND work alone, it quickly becomes uneconomical. If you have no time pressure and enjoy doing it yourself, it’s a great option. Careful workmanship is essential in any case; otherwise, the result can look really bad.
I say this after installing 140m² (1506 sq ft) of glued bamboo flooring. But I already had most of the tools beforehand; just the saw alone cost between 400 and 500 euros, which makes a significant dent in the budget.
- correct and good-quality tools (appropriate notched trowels, cleaners, straightedge, parquet pull bar, miter saw, enough spacer wedges, mohair rollers for the oil, etc.)
- suitable screed substrate (earth-moist screed can and often will be quite uneven and must be leveled)
- all materials (adhesive, possibly primer) from the same system
If you need to buy all the tools first AND work alone, it quickly becomes uneconomical. If you have no time pressure and enjoy doing it yourself, it’s a great option. Careful workmanship is essential in any case; otherwise, the result can look really bad.
I say this after installing 140m² (1506 sq ft) of glued bamboo flooring. But I already had most of the tools beforehand; just the saw alone cost between 400 and 500 euros, which makes a significant dent in the budget.
Domski schrieb:
(correct notched trowels, cleaners, straightedges, parquet chisels, miter saw, enough spacing wedges, mohair rollers for the oil, ...)Just the names alone make me nervous. I don’t even have an idea what these tools look like or what they’re used for... I think I’d better leave the gluing to the professionals.
sco0ter schrieb:
Just the names alone already scare me. Scared of what exactly? The notched trowel only consumes adhesive.
Domski schrieb:
What exactly are you afraid of now? The notched trowel only consumes adhesive Because I’ve never heard of these names before (except for cleaner and spacer wedges). For the rest, I have no idea what they look like or what you do with them.
You see, for the notched trowel, I thought it was some kind of plastic or metal piece with teeth to spread and roughen the adhesive, like a kitchen scraper.
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