need some direction, plank flooring (Leo G)

Leo G_99

L. G.

Leo G_99

If anyone could

give me some advice or direct me to pertinent info, it would be very appreciated.

Mr. Culley, the architec, just left. The house he is designing, will incorporate 1 1/2" fir planking (over 100 years old) for most of the main floor. It is 6" wide, and some lengths are up to 18'!

I am wondering about the "shrinkage" issue with these planks if we run in floor heat under them. What control stragtegies should I incoporate? Should we be thinking about humidification? Or maybe ceiling heat?

Being in Vancouver, we tend to have mostly cool, damp winters, though every now and again the temp will drop below 20*F and be very dry. Maybe one out of every 6-7 years, we will actually experience sub-zero temps.

Thanx for your time!

Leo G

Mike T., Swampeast MO

Douglas Fir?

Shrinkage characteristics are quite similar to good hard pine. 1 1/2" thick by 6" wide is a touch wider than ideal, but particularly if quarter sawn it should be reasonable.

As with any natural wood floor over radiant, the heat itself shouldn't be an issue as long as temperature is kept within accepted standards.

With Douglas Fir I'd be MUCH more concerned with it's very low hardness than the radiant floor heat. Sure hope nobody in that house wears spike heels and that kids are exceptionally coordinated and well-behaved!

Leo G_99

thanx Mike

the floor was rescued from a warehouse where it has layed for over 100 years, so i think that it will be quite "hard" by now.

Just an update, I talked to our local hardwood flooring company (yes there are many local ones here, but these guys have been at it for a long time and seem to know what they are doing), and they said that if they were installing this wood, though well aged, they would still want a release from the owner as they cannot guarantee that it will not split or shrink, so it looks now more likely that we will be heating these rooms from the ceilings.