Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, hybrid, laminate and timber flooring can be floated directly over ceramic tiles. It’s crucial that the tiles are clean, smooth and level, however, there should be no greater than 3mm deviation over 3m of floor. A levelling agent may be required to ready the surface for install.

Hybrid floors have a built-in acoustic underlay, meaning
they stay relatively quiet underfoot. This will again be true for laminate flooring when appropriate underlay in used. In terms of timber flooring, a glue
down floor will have superior acoustics to a floated timber floor, a floated timber floor may sound hollower underfoot.

Yes. A floating floor is known as a raft, which will expand and contract with the rooms temperature and humidity. This why its important to ensure appropriate expansion gaps are present around each room’s perimeter. An expansion of 8-10mm is recommended for floated floors.  

Yes. A floating floor will move shift and move slightly throughout its lifetime. This why its important to ensure appropriate expansion gaps are present around each room’s perimeter. An expansion of 8-10mm is recommended for floated floors.  

Yes. A floating floor requires underlay be laid underneath the floorboards. Hybrid flooring has underlay pre-attached to the boards and requires no additional materials for installation.

Floating timber flooring is by far the cheaper alternative to glue down flooring. Money will be saved on purchasing underlay as opposed to timber glue. Additionally, if done as a DIY job, floating your floor will be significantly cheaper. See our complete blog on floating vs. glue down here.

Flooring Online strongly recommends glueing down all T&G profile engineered timber products, including our entire herringbone timber range. Additionally, glue down application is only recommended for professional installation. Find a professional installer here.

Yes. Our professional installer network covers most major Australian cities, and for some regional areas we can refer you to our retail partners to assist.

Find your local professional flooring installer using our handy map.

Floating floors are commonly laid in homes with either a concrete slab or a timber sheet and joist construction with ground beneath. However, the build of your home will determine what preparation needs to occur prior to installation of the floor. With joist construction, protection from ground moisture may be necessary. Note that floors should never be laid over wet sub-floor conditions.

Yes, all floating floors require a minimum expansion gap of
8-10mm.

Floating floors are significantly easier to install as opposed to glue down floors. There is little room for error with a glue down floor and professional installation is recommended for glue down timber install. Floating floors however can be installed by savvy DIY enthusiasts.

Yes, one of the big advantages of floating floors is that boards can be pulled up and replaced or even re-used elsewhere if required. Read our step-by-step guide on removing floated floorboards here.

As with our other flooring materials, a light brush to remove surface dust will keep the floor looking clean.  Once a week, or when dirt or other marks are apparent, clean the floor using a PH neutral floor cleaner. Read our Cleaning & Maintenance Guidelines for more information.

A simple brush or a light vacuum keeps floors looking great.  To ensure the floor looks Its best, or If household pets or children have dragged mud through the house, a micro fibre mop and a light mist of a Laminate & Timber Flooring cleaning solution will remove the grime with ease. This not only cleans but also helps protect the surface. 

Many nonspecific timber floor cleaners, normal household chemicals and cleaners will damage floors and must not be used. There are many aspects that affect how often the floor requires cleaning and these include the amount of grit present, type of exterior and interior matting, the level of foot traffic, type of footwear and general conditions of the area outside the house, such as dirt, gravel or sand. Spills should be mopped up when they occur and any leaks attended to immediately. Steam mops should never be used on your floor, they are not suitable for Timber, Laminate, Bamboo and Hybrid materials. Read our Cleaning & Maintenance Guidelines for more information.

Hardness and scratch resistance will vary in each material.  Hardness indicates a resistance to indentation. Scratch resistance indicates the likelihood of marking the surface. Damage to floors may occur due to continual movement of furniture, heavy foot traffic, dropping items and in particular “stiletto-heel” type pressure. Our flooring ensures improved resistance to indentation and abrasion. Surface scratching may occur in the coating under normal wear and tear, where minor this can be repaired with Gilly Stephenson oil on a regular basis.  To prevent scratching, the use of surface protection under chairs, table legs, bed heads etc. is advised. Read our Cleaning & Maintenance Guidelines for more information.

Yes, you can have pets and timber floors, however there are some simple measures you need to take to ensure that the impact is minimised. The most effective way to ensure your floors stay in the best condition possible is by keeping your pets outside, in reality, this is not an option for a majority of homeowners, as pets are part of the family. To make sure your flooring is not adversely affected, you can implement the following solutions:

1. Keep your pet’s nails trimmed or regular walks on concrete to blunt the nails.
2. Use mats at doorways where pets enter. This will reduce the amount of dirt being brought in from outside of the home, this will minimise marks and scratches to your floors.
3. Regularly sweep, vacuum and dry mop your floors.
4. Use mats to catch any spills or place pet water & food away from timber flooring.
5. Accidental toilet mishaps, clean all pet urine asap! Pet urine may leave dark stains on timber floors and a permanent smell if not removed as soon as possible.

When your Timber, Bamboo, Laminate or Hybrid floor Is installed as a floated system (stairs & nosings only must be adhered), it should be noted that rooms within the home need to be able to move as one. This is the reason that many floating floors have expansion gaps between rooms to reduce any pressure issues. It should also be noted that very heavy objects, such as billiard tables, bookcases, large fridges or kitchen units can cause issues for floating floors. Where this Is likely to occur, the installation method will need some consideration and in some cases, such as directly sticking the floor, a change of material may be required, as not all flooring materials can be installed using an alternate method.  All floated floors need to be able to move freely and must not be fixed down in any capacity, be it via caulking, nailing etc.

All our products come with our 25 year residential warranty that guarantees the products against premature wear and structural failure.

Our warranties are backed by our parent company  GP Embelton & Co. Pty Ltd who has been in business since 1925 so you can be confident in our products and rest assured that we will be here if you need us.

To see our full warranty terms and conditions visit our warranty policy.