Fixing down overlaid floorboards

[Daniel2]

So, I'm in the process of machining up tongue and groove floorboards to go in a bedroom.
There is already chipboard layed over the concrete floor and my plan is to lay the new boards over
the top of this.
The boards are selected hedgerow European oak.
I'm planing them down to about 16mm thick and am creating more work for myself by having varying widths.
My big question, for the collective, is what would be the best way of fixing this all down ?
I do find filled nail and screw holes unsightly, so would prefer to avoid this if possible.

 

[Adam W.]

Nail through the groove man.

 

[Cabinetman]

No I don’t Nail they will squeak .
This is exactly what I did in my house, oak floorboards of varying widths and random lengths, I used tongue tight plus tongue and groove screws just drive into the top of the tongue at 45° and if you choose the right length you don’t need to worry about pipes and things underneath the chipboard. Just occasionally I needed to put one straight downwards but the heads are so small the wood almost closes up on top of it. Ian

 

[Adam W.]

What, squeak on chipboard ?

 

[Droogs]

no the solid oak boards sliding on the nail

 

[Daniel2]

Does the squeaking not come from the interface between tongue and groove ?
Edit : Droogs just answered the question, before I asked it

 

[Daniel2]

@Cabinetman ,
Ian, as a matter of interest, what were your varying lengths, more or less ?

 

[Cabinetman]

@Cabinetman ,
Ian, as a matter of interest, what were your varying lengths, more or less ?

It was from my local Timberyard I use all the time, I was happy with what they sent and the amount more than I actually paid for! But it was all various lengths ranging from 4 feet, to 4+ metres, most of it was in the 3 m range.
They do all widths ranging from 3 inch up to 8 inch, I ordered 4, 5, and 6 inch widths. Prices vary depending on width, obviously if you wanted all 8 inch boards it’s going to cost you more than 4 inch boards. Ian

 

[Daniel2]

Ah ok.
I'm limited to 2.5 mtr lengths, as that was where the trunks were cut at.
Widths are ranging between 100 mm and 200 mm after cutting off the sap
and obtaining a straight length..
I'm using what I've got already, I obtained them (17 cubic metres),
about 10 years ago.

 

[Cabinetman]

Ah ok.
I'm limited to 2.5 mtr lengths, as that was where the trunks were cut at.
Widths are ranging between 100 mm and 200 mm after cutting off the sap
and obtaining a straight length..
I'm using what I've got already, I obtained them (17 cubic metres),
about 10 years ago.

Dear God, but that’s a lot of timber! And it should be wonderfully dry by now if you’ve looked after it, and of course it would’ve been a lot cheaper then.
Probably end up with about 8 feet after getting rid of the cracks at the ends, well that’s a good length and it really doesn’t matter about butting the boards together at the ends in the middle of the floor, and just in case you didn’t know you don’t need to do anything about trying to join them together just but them up, it helps of course that you’re on an underlying chipboard floor. Ian

 

[Daniel2]

Thanks for that. You've cleared up one of my next questions, before
I even asked it No need to put a tongue and groove on the ends then.
I'm not using the whole 17 metres for the one floor. That would, indeed, be
one heck of a bedroom !!
That was just the size of the job lot that I bought. It has been sticked and
stacked in a dry barn the whole time. There are some beautiful boards to be
had from it.
I paid €300 (approx £250), per cubic metre for it, which I thought was a reasonable
deal.

 

[Daniel2]

Another question...
Should I put some form of underlay between the boards and the chipboard ?

 

[Adam W.]

no the solid oak boards sliding on the nail

I realise it's the nail not the chipboard which makes the squeaks.

My comment was about nailing the board down to a solid and continuous flat surface on concrete. Joist flex and shrinkage makes the boards squeak on the nail, but chipboard on concrete won't shrink or flex.

 

[Cabinetman]

Another question...
Should I put some form of underlay between the boards and the chipboard ?

Just to say I haven’t ever, you’re putting wood on wood-ish, The only reason I can think of doing it would be if the chipboard wasn’t completely level and of course the oak flooring isn’t always perfectly straight and flat so there will be fractional voids, I suppose something thin and squeezable might help fill these but as I say I haven’t and I’ve never had a problem. Ian
Edit, another way to think about it is that floorboards are designed to span voids anyway – the gaps between the joists.