Solid Oak Floor Laying advice Help, advice, information, answers and tips on all types of flooring from laminate and carpet to timber and vinyl

[cgwalsh]

I intend to lay 90mm wide solid oak flooring planks by either nailing to an existing wooden floor. I am told i need to leave a 15mm expansion gap around the perimeter of the room and to cover this gap with beading, i do not intend to remove the skirting. But, if the new flooring is fixed to the old, then would it still expand & is there a need for such a large the expansion gap.
Could i get away with less than 10mm?

I intend to fit some beading to the skirting to cover the gap & i think 18mm beading wouldn't look right.

Thanks in advance.

Colin

[iwigster]

I have just laid some 82.5mm wide solid oak in my lounge/diner and was advised to use this calculation for expansion:
1.5mm x metre width = [u]minimum[/u] expansion.
Hope this helps.