Leveling Plywood Subfloor For Hardwood

A subfloor is meant to be flat and level.

Leveling plywood subfloor for hardwood.

Whether you re going on to install hardwood ceramic tile or laminate one of the most important steps of any flooring project is making sure the subfloor foundation is level. Plywood allows for a much better build up with lower undulations in the subfloor. Before you install your plywood subfloor first calculate the room s square footage to find out how much flooring you ll need to buy. The plywood becomes the new subfloor with the hardwood floor laying on top.

If not your floor covering which is the solid hardwood laminate tile or other exposed flooring that goes on top of the subfloor will never be flat and level this problem can be fixed but it all depends on exactly what kind of uneven subfloor you have. Laminate planks snap together and float above a subfloor which means tiny subfloor imperfections are okay although again a level subfloor will help prevent damage. How to level a subfloor for a hardwood floor install. To level a subfloor for installing laminate follow the directions above to remove high and low spots.

After vacuuming or sweeping the subfloor to clean it add a plywood. Build up from the lowest elevation using the products that allow for enough incremental elevation gain to get to within flatness tolerance. Plywood is available in many thicknesses 1 8 1 4 11 32 15 32 19 32 23 32 and 1 1 8. Do this by multiplying the room s length by its width.

Plywood can usually span slight imperfections and waves in the concrete but check to see each 4x8 sheet is level and the same height across the floor. You ll need to drill through the wood and into the concrete to fasten it down. Hardwood floor installers often use the term level when referring to subfloors when actually they are meaning the term flat.