Installing hardwood flooring is somewhat a tough task. You need to think of a lot of factors while doing it like the subfloor, installation technique, etc. But when it comes to laying hardwood flooring in multiple rooms, it becomes a bigger mess. Matching the planks to the entrance of the other room is truly a challenging task.
Not only do you need to match the color shade and plank width to the planks of the other room but also have to adjust the positions. Now that is what you need to learn: adjusting the position of the planks through a doorway or simply matching the planks. To do so, you need to know all the tricks to install hardwood flooring in different rooms.
Knowing that the task is troublesome, I have experimented and studied well about it to present this article. Here, I will be solving your issues regarding laying hardwood flooring in multiple rooms. Therefore, stay with me, take notes of the parts you want to remember, and proceed in installing hardwood flooring across multiple rooms.
Let’s get started!
3 Steps To Layout Hardwood Flooring In Multiple Rooms: The Easiest Way
To Install hardwood flooring in multiple rooms, you can start with the doorways. And this is the most challenging part: to install flooring across the doorways. The uneven planks and width of the planks have to be adjusted into the space of the doorway. In fact, you need to pass the planks across the jambs of doors. So yes, the process is long, time-consuming as well as labor-intensive.
Here are 3 steps to layout hardwood flooring in multiple rooms across doorways:
Step 1: Cut The Door Jambs Or Casing
The door frames have molding that has to be removed before you install hardwood flooring through the doorway. If you remove the casing, you can pass the hardwood plank beneath the casing and the setting would be good.
To do so, use a gauge block to measure the height of a hardwood plank. Cut the plank into small pieces. Place the piece of plank along the edge of the casing. This would determine the height of the casing you would need to remove. As this is the height of the plank you are going to install, the measurement is going to be accurate.
Take the measurement of the hardwood plank piece with the gauge block and lock the measurement you have taken. Now hold the gauge block across the casing to determine the height.
Next, you should use a backsaw to cut and trim the casing or molding. Make sure that you don’t accidentally cut the wooden frame of the door. Maintain the height as well as the width up to which you would cut the casing.
Step 2: Fit The Hardwood Plank Under The Cutaway Space Of The Casing
As you have exposed the area beneath the casing, you can now check the fit by passing a hardwood plank. If it doesn’t slide down the casing easily, you may need to cut away the casing a bit more.
As you place the hardwood plank beneath the casing, you would need to mark the edges of the plank where you would trim. Make a small cut line along the plank using a framing square. The framing square would make the measurement precise and accurate.
This, use it to mark the scribes on the plank. Make sure to leave a 0.5-inch gap in each plank for expanding and compressing during temperature changes.
Basically, in this step, you have to set the plank beneath the casing. Take the measurement of the plank using a framing square. And in the next step, you have to cut the plank according to the measurement.
Step 3: Cut The Plank To Fit It Beneath The Door Casing
Now that the measurement is taken, note the scribe marks on the backside of the hardwood plank. As trimming the wood makes the edges rough and uneven, you have to cut it from the backside of the plank.
For this task, use a jigsaw to slowly trim away the portion that has been marked. Go slow and do the task with patience to make the cut precise and accurate. Make sure to wear a face mask and goggles to stay safe from the dust.
After you have cut the plank, place the trimmed hardwood plank beneath the frame. Check the adjustment once again and then install the plank under the casing of the door frame. It is better to nail the hardwood plank for a strong fitting.
In the end, you have to reinstall the door casing.
Laying Out Hardwood Flooring Transition In Multiple Rooms:
It often happens that people don’t install the same hardwood flooring in the different rooms. In fact, when you are transitioning from the dining room to the attached kitchen, the hardwood grade, color, and design may change. This is when the problem becomes even more severe.
When the hardwood flooring changes, the design, and thickness change too. This is why matching one plank to the other plank of another room becomes a bit challenging. However, you can still do it by following a few strategies.
The easiest way to fix this issue of hardwood plank difference is to trim off the plank and make it the same size as the other plank in the adjacent room. To do so, you have to use a jigsaw to slice the plank across the tongue and groove. Now where the plank transition point is located, you have to place this portion beneath the casing of the wooden door frame.
Now when the joining part goes under the casing, it looks a lot less messy. In fact, the transition point can be blended nicely using a T-strip. This simply mends the seams of the planks as if the seams are at the same level.
Laying Out Hardwood Flooring With Other Floorings In Multiple Rooms:
This happens often when hardwood flooring is placed in one room but the other room has laminate or another flooring. This is when the problem is much more severe than the previous situation. Because when the materials are different, the characteristics of the planks would vary as well.
When you are trying to blend hardwood flooring with some other type of flooring, you have to be a bit tricky and strategic. Get excited to know that though the problem is severe, the solution is very simple.
All you need is to use a transitional strip named reducer. The rough and uneven edges of the two different planks can be covered neatly by the reducer. If the planks from both sides meet at the center of the doorway, you have to paste the reducer strips on one side. It should be at the side of the flooring that is thinner than the other. This would beautifully mend the seams and create a slight slope. Therefore, the transition is visible but aesthetically pleasing too.
Related Questions:
How To Layout A Hardwood Floor Pattern?
The direction of the hardwood flooring matters a lot. Not only does it determine the beauty of the flooring but also makes laying the planks across rooms easier.
Ideally, the hardwood flooring planks should be placed in the direction of the longest wall of the room. This means the planks go perpendicular to the joists of the floor. This pattern of floor layout makes the space look bigger than it is as well as keeps them attached to each other.
It also prevents breaking or sagging of the planks making the flooring stronger. Besides, the transition from one room to the other looks better when planks are laid in this way.
How To Transition Hardwood Flooring From One Room To Another?
When the hardwood plank is crossing the door and moving to the adjacent room, it gets a bit tricky. But in reality, it is quite simple to install hardwood flooring across the transition from one room to the other.
You can simply create a transition in the doorway by cutting a plank according to the measurement of the doorway. Just change the plank at the center of the doorway and start installing new planks in the other room.
So the transition point stays just at the center of the doorway. It doesn’t look odd as the transition is obvious. You can use T-strips in case you want a better look. Note that the transition line looks cool when the door is closed!
Is It Ok To Change Hardwood Flooring Direction Between Rooms?
While transitioning hardwood flooring from one room to the other, you have to be careful about the direction of the planks. If you are thinking of changing the hardwood flooring direction, you should definitely avoid doing it.
It looks quite clumsy and messed up when you change the hardwood flooring direction between rooms. It kills the aesthetic value of the rooms as well as makes the transition point messy. The harmony and uniformity of the flooring break immediately as you change the flooring direction.
Also, haphazardly arranged hardwood flooring doesn’t sustain for a long time. So, don’t change the hardwood flooring direction between rooms.
Can You Use Different Hardwood Flooring Between Rooms?
Choices of wood for different rooms can be different. It is not about your choice or preference but sometimes you would need to change it. For instance, the hardwood used in the kitchen would not be the same as the flooring in the dining space. Because the kitchen requires moisture and heat-resistant hardwood while a general hardwood would work for the dining room.
Therefore yes, you can surely change the hardwood flooring between rooms. Just remember that you need not match the two floorings. When the change is obvious, matching them would ruin the beauty of both the hardwood types. So keep the transition natural and don’t really try blending them both. Keep the contrast and bloom the beauty.
Do You Need T-strips Between Rooms?
Transition strip is kind of the lifesaver tool when you are changing the flooring from one room to the other. In fact, if you alter the hardwood flooring inside one room, it will be very useful.
If you are changing the wood type between rooms, you should definitely use transition strips. Transition strips blend the texture and look of the two kinds of the wood beautifully creating a plain and subtle transition point.
In fact, if you want to blend laminate flooring with hardwood flooring, using transition strips is the best idea to camouflage the transition areas. So yes, you should use T-strips between rooms.
How Far Apart Should Hardwood Floor Joints Be?
The hardwood flooring joint is a crucial part of the installation. No matter if you create a transition or not, determining the flooring joint and the gap between each joint is necessary.
Ideally, if you are installing hardwood flooring in a big enough space, the gap between the joints would be three times more than the width of the hardwood planks. This means, if the hardwood width is 4 inches, the gap between each flooring joint should be 12 inches.
Joints after every 12 inches would make the flooring stronger when the plank width is 4 inches. Keep this measurement in mind while installing hardwood flooring. Note that the flooring joint makes the hardwood flooring durable and long-lasting.
Professional Tips For DIY Hardwood Installation (Video)
Final Thoughts:
Starting from the hardwood flooring direction to creating a transition between rooms, all have been covered in the above text. Note the procedures carefully, determine the flooring direction, joint gaps, and other factors, and start working on the transitions between the rooms.
Now that you know the tricks and techniques, just do it and install beautiful hardwood flooring in your space!
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