This is the basic information provided for the contract for the subfloor, finish floor and hanging doors. At end are questions/answers and additional comments.
Specifications Regarding
Floors and Doors to Addition
3302 St. Mary’s Road
Hillsborough, NC 27279
This contract is for the following:
1: install sleepers and sub floor on concrete at First Floor
2. Install pine floor on First Floor, Second Floor, Attic and at four landings on stair.
3. Install five pre hung antique doors.
GENERAL NOTES:
- I anticipate having only one contractor perform the work. However, please submit a price for each portion of the work and a total.
- As soon as prices are received and the contract is awarded the work can begin. Please discuss with me your anticipated schedule before beginning the work.
- Different contractors have different ways to do the same work. Because of this, these specifications and drawings are general guidelines that are open to discussion and change if quality can be maintained and price less. However, before you decide to go off and do something different from what shown, please let me know.
- Owner will supply materials except nails and fasteners. Owner will submit a material list to contractor at beginning of work for his review. Generally it takes 24 hours for delivery of material. Needing to get more material on an emergency basis is very disruptive and expensive. Contractor is expected to coordinate the ordering of materials in a timely fashion.
SUBFLOOR
On the First Floor, provide a subfloor on concrete ready for finish pine floor.
Install 2×4 wood sleepers at 12” on center on window mastic anchored with 3/8” x 3 inch Red Head screws (or approved equal).
Because First Floor Family Room is 16’ 2” wide use 2×6 as sleepers at exterior walls as necessary.
Install rigid board insulation at exterior perimeter of room 4 feet from exterior wall. This will require cutting 1” and ½” (total depth of 1 ½”) rigid board insulation to fit between sleepers. Owner will seal around the insulation with foam before installing underlayment.
½” underlayment is to be glued and screwed to sleepers. Review layout of underlayment with Architect before installing. See drawing. Provide sleeper at all joints in underlayment.
Closet under stair will have subfloor, but no finished pine floor.
FINISH FLOOR
Finished floor is to be 5” pine by 16’ lengths. Flooring is being supplied by the Hardwood Store.
After the subfloor is finished, the pine will be delivered and stored on subfloor for 3 to 4 days before installing.
Install 30 pound felt paper between pine and subfloor.
The floor is to be laid out as per the drawings provided. Floor is to be glued and nailed to subfloor.
Install 2 nosings at landings on stair.
The floor is to run continuous between Landing/Master Bed and between Master Bed and Closet with no threshold.
A threshold will be installed by others at baths.
At closet under stair run the pine flooring 6” behind/under door opening.
At trap doors in Master Bedroom, the line of the floor boards should match. However it is option to run the floor boards continuously or to run a frame at the trap doors. Trap doors are access panels to area below floor and will be seldom accessed. The goal is to make trap doors as invisible as possible. The final design for the pulls at the trap doors has not been determined. The design may be as simple as a hole in floor to lift panel or a piece of standard hardware recessed into wood. This will be determined and completed by owner.
Edge trim will be ¼ round 11/16” pine finished clear and installed by others.
Floors need to be ready for sanding. Sanding and final finish by others.
The closet on second floor will be finished with remainder wood should there be a shortage of material. Coordinate with architect.
DOORS
Five pre hung antique doors are waiting to be delivered from Fitch Lumber. They are for the three baths, master bedroom and closet. This contract is to install the pre hung doors only. See attached information regarding information provided to Fitch for specifics about doors. Fitch lumber has drilled holes for antique rim sets. Rim locks are to be set at time of hanging by owner to verify the frames are true and level and doors will work as intended. Frames will be painted.
Stops are supplied and are to be installed at time of hanging.
Contract does not include the trim around doors. Doors will either be finished with trim or be left trimless using drywall. Doors must be shimmed and secured regardless of final trim detail used.
There is a detailed file of rough openings and door sizes available but at over 30 meg in size I think it is best to give you a paper copy if needed.
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS AND CHANGES
CONTRACTOR QUESTION NUMBER 1
I’ve always anchored but I’ve heard of “floating” sleepers. The Red Head’s will be really time-consuming. Would you be opposed to use shooting the sleepers down with our concrete nailer?
REPLY
My original thought was to shoot the sleepers.
According to Chandler the only difference between shooting and screwing is that shooting could be messy sometime in future if floor is ever removed where the screws are a far neater approach. Nails would need to penetrate the concrete 2”
TO ANSWER THE QUESTION: SHOOTING IS FINE.
According the building department all that needs to be put down between concrete and sleepers is a 6 mil plastic. If that is faster to do than laying mastic under each sleeper as I believe it is, then that is an acceptable alternative. However at the exterior wall, I want to use 2x6s on the mastic. I would also suggest that at interior walls it might be easiest to use the mastic like a tape to hold the plastic down. At exterior walls the mastic will give a better thermal seal. At the exterior edge, there is 2” if rigid insulation laid vertically against the foundation that ends at top fo slab that technically floats 2” in from the foundation wall.
ADDITIONAL COMMENT
The goal is to anchor the sleepers to the concrete; If that can be done with a shorter nail that is acceptable. Chandler Concrete suggested that a nail would penetrate into the concrete by 1 ½”
CONTRACTOR QUESTION NUMBER 2
We usually use 2 ½” nails with a washer attached – so would only go 1” into concrete. Depending on how hard the concrete is, I think a 3” nail would not set and would stick proud. I would recommend subfloor adhesive under the 2×4; this in combination with the nails should hold everything together.
REPLY
Would be easy to do what you suggest if you chose to use pressure treated wood. However, pressure treated wood should be avoided inside a house. Even the PT industry recommends agains using their products inside a residence wherever possible. I know that some PT got used against book closet but had I been faster to catch it I would have asked them not to do so (my error).
Untreated sleepers are fine but you must have a vapor barrier between the concrete and the wood. I was originally calling for the window mastic but now would accept simply using 6 mil plastic with the boards at the exterior wall using the window mastic.
The problem I have is that the plastic makes it impossible to use the glue if the plastic is to be the vapor barrier.
If the 1” nail can hold the floor in place that is fine. What might be an alternative is to use the screws at the doors and major stress points, along the exterior wall and then use the nails everywhere else. The goal as I see it is that the floor never move.
CONTRACTOR QUESTION NO 3
Are you supplying the red head? What are the spacing OC for the install?
REPLY
Please read questions/reply above. There seems to be a debate as to whether the Red Heads are necessary or not. If contractor coordinated the number of Red Head Screws needed then I will add that cost to my material purchases.
The sleepers are to be 12″ on center perpendicular to the finish floor.
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