Does Construction Adhesive Work on Wood Flooring?

Construction Adhesive

• Standard construction adhesive comes in thick cardboard tubes that fit into metal caulking guns, which allow you to apply a continuous bead of adhesive along a board or joist. Construction adhesive also comes in cans, and you will spread this type with a notched trowel during the installation of some types of specialty wood flooring.

Securing the Subfloor

• The subfloor consists of large pressed sheets of wood fiber, and it attaches directly to the floor trusses or joists. Before placing the sheets, you’ll run a continuous bead of construction adhesive down the center of every truss or joist. The adhesive is thick and pliable, and it keeps the subfloor from rubbing against the wood joists, which can result in floor squeaks.

Flooring Finishes

• Traditional hardwood flooring comes in tongue-and-groove planks installed over a layer of felt or resin paper. No adhesive is usually required to install the planks, which are nailed through the tongue strip. Since the groove of the next plank covers the tongue, the result is a flawless wood floor. Parquet flooring consists of small geometric pieces of wood, which require adhesive to secure them to underlayment. If you’re installing any other type of thin wood strips for an inlayed border or a design, you’ll need adhesive.

  Wood flooring tiles often require adhesive. These tiles mimic the look of real parquet, but they come pre-glued to a pressed wood base. You'll spread adhesive with a notched trowel over the subfloor or underlayment before setting the wood tiles.

Considerations

• Construction adhesive requires the additional use of nails or screws when attaching the subfloor to the joists or floor trusses. The adhesive alone does not supply enough holding power to secure the floor structure. In finish floor applications, such as installing parquet, it’s better to err on the side of using too little adhesive. Excess glue that squeezes out onto the surface of the wood is difficult to remove and resists wood stain.