Laying real oak floorboards on concrete...

[dr strange]

One or two may have asked this before, but I still need to throw this out there.

I am about to lay 18mm thick real wood oak boards on a floor that was screed finished, then had liquid latex put over the top (as a section of the screed didn't set), but need to know a few things.

a) This is a new build room, which I have given the floor 6 weeks to dry so far, is this long enough?
b) What would be the best way to test the floor for dampness?
c) I will use a 3mm DP membrane and 5mm soundproof fibre boards bought from your average DIY shop. Is this the right stuff to use?
d) The boards will be glued down, any suggestions as what is the right, or wrong, way to go about this?
e) And I'm also just looking for anyone's tips on laying this stuff as I've got a load to do. And it was expensive (for me) so I can't really afford to see the whole lot bend and warp due to dampness.

Thanks for any help.

[Clanad]

This is not a job for the fainthearted...

It sounds like, though, you've educated yourself on the major points.

Here's a dependable site for testing concrete dryness:

http://www.hardwoodinfo.com/pdf/articles/01060 9112306Moisture_Testing_-_Concrete.pdf

I live in the U.S. and rely on the National Wood Flooring Association for good advice on the several I've installed.

Here's another for all the advice you could need:

http://www.hardwoodinfo.com/display_article.as p?ID=300

I've always installed plywood or the sleeper system to nail the hardwood to. I don't think you'd be happy with trying to glue real hardwood though...See what you think after reading some of the links...

Best of luck!

[buildersmate]

For this one I'm going to refer you to another website.
http://woodyoulike.co.uk/knowledge.html
These people do know what they are talking about and I can recommend them, having used them myself. You could ask them about adhesives, even if you've bought the oak boards already
I doubt that 6 weeks is long enough and agree with Clanad's analysis on the situation.
I don't understand why you'd want to put a soundproof board down, unless this flooring is not on the groundfloor, which seems unlikely given the concrete subfloor.

[dr strange]

Thanks guys, these posts are helping me already. As a precaution, I think I'm going to postpone the laying for at least another 3-4 weeks as you both say, and indicates in the links. I also think I'm going to invest in a damp/humidity indicator for the floor and boards. Might be worth the few quid in the long run!!

The reason behind the fibre boards is not for soundproofing, as you rightly pointed out b'mate, but for the fact that it can also be used to hide slight bobbles in the floor when underfoot. Again though, I'm only going on what looks and feels like the right thing to do!