Where to start laying wooden floor

C

collieb

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Folks,

I am laying solid oak in hallway and living room, and design of the house means that hallway runs from front door and runs into the Living Room at the right hand side, which means there is one complete run of floor from front door to back wall. My question is where to start laying the floor - in the living room, or in the hall, as I am pretty sure that if I start in one I will find that it will not be square when I get to the other room. I was thinking of starting in LR, but I am not sure if it would be best to start along LHS side wall, which is completely clear, or RHS, which has fireplace with two alcoves alongside. If I start on LHS and keep square to that, I could possibly be way off square by the time I reach RHS, and extend down into the hallway, but if I start on RHS and keep square to fireplace, i will probably not be square either by the time I reach LHS wall, or when i extend into hallway.

So after all that confusion, can anyone offer me advice on the best way to start the floor, and also would you advise keeping the floor as one between hallway and Living Room, or breaking them into separate parts and putting doorstop or whatever at joint between the 2 rooms.

Thanks

Hope thsi isn't too confusing???
 
Hi Collie

I didn't lay our floor, my father in law did, but he started in the middle of the living room and worked his way out to both sides from there. Then cut shorter pieces for the hall and put a saddle board between the two rooms.

Dunno if this helps at all?

M
 
Very confusing but think I get it. I did mine recently, here's how:

Started at the clear wall (made sure room was square) in the dining room. Laid the wood up to the doorway and pulled a string line along from the begining of the last row laid through the length of both rooms. This is then the line to work off for the rest of both rooms.

Worked back from stringline to fill first alcove then worked back from line to fill 2nd alcove. The rest was easy, wood ran through lovely.

Alternatively its no harm to leave an expansion gap in the doorway and covering it neatly. Makes life easier but doesn't look quite as good.
 
Thanks for that Dick,

I was hoping to do without the expansion gap because of the aestethics - when you walk in the front door I think it looks a lot better to see one continuous length of wood flooring right through the hallway and into the living room to the back wall, especially because of the way the light will be falling on it.

I know the description of the house was confusing - I think I'm confusing myself even reading it, but thanks for the advice and I think i see what you are getting at with the string line.
 
Yeah, use the common wall as the reference. If you use the right hand wall, you could end up with the flooring in the hall at an angle, which would look awful from the front door.
 
Ok, think i've succeeded in confusing everybody now! There isn't really a common wall! When you walk in the front door, the kitchen is on your left hand side, and the living room is straight ahead at the end of the hall, at the back of the house. Therefore, the door from the hallway into the living room is on the RHS of the living room, while the clear wall is over on the LHS. So my lengths of timber will run straight from the front door right through to the back wall.

Damn, wish I could draw a map on this!!!
 
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