Hardwood floors can enhance your Kansas City home in many ways, from appearance to sophistication. You can even get top value if you’re thinking of selling your home in the near future. Or, if you’re just looking to make some much-needed upgrades in your home, you can’t go wrong with hardwood.

Timing is everything when installing hardwood floors in Kansas City, home to 508,000. In general, spring is a great time to tackle this type of project. In summer, by contrast, there are higher humidity levels that can pose a challenge to hardwood installation. That’s because hardwood naturally expands and shrinks throughout the year, which varies with the humidity levels at any given time.

As such, the weather plays a big role in when to install hardwood floors in KC. Here are some considerations to keep in mind.

Humidity Levels and Hardwood Floors

The optimal time for hardwood installation is when you have an average humidity level. This should be at 60 percent on the high side, or 35 percent on the low side. Placing a dehumidifier or air conditioner in your rooms can also help to control the environment. Once you have stabilized your humidity issues, installation can take place without worry.

No matter what time of year your project takes place, your hardwood planks will have to be brought into the home beforehand for several days so they can better acclimate to the internal conditions before installation. Seven to 14 days is a good rule of thumb. Don’t just stack the planks in a garage or entryway. They should be placed in the room in which they will be installed.

Gapping and Hardwood Floors

It’s important to minimize gapping – the tendency for the wood to expand and contract with seasonal changes. One instance of a seasonal gap is when a dime is able to be placed between the boards in low-humidity weather, but then that gap closes back up in higher-humidity weather.

The width of the floorboards will impact gapping too. Smaller floorboards are generally more forgiving. While they will contract and expand at the same rate as wider boards, five-inch boards can look like they’re expanding and contracting twice as much as the two-inch boards.

If you are looking to install hardwood flooring in the summer in Kansas City, keep in mind it will shrink the following winter. If your project takes place in winter, it will expand the following summer and become tighter. Know what the average humidity level is in your home year-round so you can better minimize contraction and gapping.

So, to conclude, while hardwood floor installation can occur any time of the year, your humidity levels should be even to ensure best results. 

Contact Get It Installed

To get free quote on hardwood floor installation in Kansas City, contact us today! KC is one of our main service areas so we know the weather and humidity that’s typical of this area.