Hardwood Floor Medallions On Existing Floors

Often many find our website when their hardwood flooring project is getting near. Installing Template Before Medallion "Look honey, that would go great with the new floor." Often they think it's too late, the hardwood guy is coming next week.

The fears can be put to bed. If you happen to be one that just had a hardwood floor installed and discovered options with hardwood medallions, it's never too late! Our story shows how the same happened. New construction, one customer found us (when we sold medallions) and wanted to know if he could get a medallion, specifically the Golfer 2 medallion in one week. Unfortunately most of the medallions we offered were made as they are ordered. The decision was made to install the floor and wait for the medallion to arrive.

Using The Template

In most cases medallions are positioned in the entry way. Our progress shows the installer centering the template. It is then tacked on each corner with small finish Preparing clean subfloor for gluing hardwood medallion nails to prevent movement when the cutting takes place. Don't be alarmed, finish nails will be removed and you cannot see the small holes once everything is complete. Other options include two sided tape.

This job was actually handled with the use of a Rotozip. As noted in our story about installing hardwood medallions on concrete, the procedure calls for taking it slow. Never try to complete the template cut out in one pass. Not only is it too much work for the tool being used, but the cutter blade itself cannot remove 3/4 of one inch in this case (the thickness of the floor).

Prep Work For Installing

The next step calls for removing the boards that are being replaced by the medallion. Personally I would have cut some starter areas inside the perimeter with a circular saw making it easier for removal. Leave the template in place when doing this work. You may find a few areas where the cutter didn't break all the way through the hardwood. When prying back the hardwood template serves as a protective element.

The black stuff is common #15 asphalt felt paper many installers use as a moisture retarder when installing solid hardwood floors on a wood sub floor. This has to be removed along with the fasteners that were used to install the hardwood that sometimes remain in the subfloor on board removal. For many homes built prior to the mid nineties you will find cleat nails opposed to the crown staples that are more common today. Another reason for taking the cutting in several passes is locating staples or nails used in the actual installation. Small magnets can also help locate nails.

Don't Hit Those Nails!

Solid 3/4" fastened hardwood floors have one thing in common. Most are tongue

and groove with the machining very alike. In other words, the tongue and groove are milled in approximately the same location on the side and end joints. What I am getting at is; once a nail or staple is fastened during the installation process it generally goes no deeper than 5/16" of one inch into the tongue side of the board. 5/16" represents the depth from the surface of the board. For older floors that have been refinished a few times the depth will be different.

After making that first pass you should be able to locate the fasteners. At this time we want to use a nail punch set or similar and set them into the sub floor so the cutter blade does not hit on remaining passes.

Type Of Adhesive

It is vital all debris be cleaned up prior to installing. Once the area is clean it's time to apply the adhesive. Our preference is Bostiks Urethane adhesive but any premium urethane adhesive will do. Templates are precise, providing it did not shift during the cut out. Ordinarily there is no need to check for fit, but you could apply some very thin tape to a few perimeter areas to lift the medallion out. I don't recommend the idea because the medallion may become too tightly wedged, with removal possibly causing damage.


Applying glue before installation	Parade of Homes winner!

• Hardwood Flooring Designs & Ideas
• Hardwood Floor Medallions
• Custom Hardwood Medallions
• Mixed Media. Hardwood & Tile or Stone
• Hardwood Floor Borders - One strip type. How they're installed
• Parquet Wood Flooring
• How Medallions Are Made
• Installing Medallions On Existing Hardwood Floors
• Installing Medallions On Concrete
• Stone Medallions