Best Hardwood Species Over Radiant Heat Nwfa

Wood flooring can be installed over radiant heat as long as you understand radiant heat and how it can impact wood flooring what precautions to take and what type of wood flooring to use.

Best hardwood species over radiant heat nwfa.

The inherent dimensional stability of engineered hardwood floors makes it a great choice for radiant heat systems. Plainsawn wood will move more than quartersawn especially when it is over 4 inches wide. Engineered wood flooring is more dimensionally stable than solid wood flooring. One of the best options over radiant heat is to use an engineered hardwood floor.

Types of wood flooring that are best suited for radiant heat subfloor are products that possess improved dimensional stability such as. Quartersawn or rift sawn flooring is preferable to plainsawn in the search for stability. The national wood flooring association nwfa put together a radiant heat taskforce made up of many experts from the radiant heating industry including members from the radiant professionals alliance rpa. Certain solid hardwood floors are appropriate as well.

Quartersawn wood flooring is always more stable under conditions of extreme moisture or heat and is always a good choice over radiant heat especially when going with flooring wider than 4 inches. Water and wood as well as in its installation guidelines. Guide the homeowner in selecting a hardwood floor that is appropriate for their scenario. Types of wood flooring that are best suited for radiant heat subfloor are products that possess improved dimensional stability such as these.

Species both in solid and engineered flooring options certain species are known for their inherent dimensional stability such as mesquite black cherry black walnut and others. The nwfa offers information on radiant heat in its technical manual a100. It s best to follow the manufacturer s recommendation for a species suitability over radiant heat. Most newer radiant heat systems have exterior thermostats which will gradually bring up the temperature within the floor during the start of the colder season so that the heat will not shock the wood flooring causing the.

The types of wood flooring best suited for under floor radiant heat systems should be accounted for to ensure long term performance. With strip flooring the wider the board the greater the potential for gaps between the boards when they contract with seasonal changes in temperature and humidity. How to install hardwood floors over radiant heat parquet floors are readily used in radiant heat applications. When possible choose a species that is known for its stability.