Flooring Staples Vs Cleat Nails

Pros and cons of using cleats for hardwood floor installation.

Flooring staples vs cleat nails.

As to the staples do not staple any hardwood floor. Staples are made from steel just like cleats. The tongues have been known to crack off and as a result the boards will tilt and squeak. A cleat nail offers a sharp rigid body to grip the sub floor firmly.

When you follow the proper procedure for your fastener of choice you will get the best results possible. The staples hold the hardwood too well and don t allow the wood its normal seasonal changes. Or 18 ga but thinner 20 ga. With staples you get what you pay for.

A flooring nail or cleat is typically offered in either l head or t head variation check and see which variation your nail gun requires. It also features a smooth portion of its body which allows for seasonal expansion and contraction of the flooring. Certain cleat nailer models are specifically designed for use with thin engineered hardwood flooring like the primatech q 550 18 gauge cleat nailer which can be used to install 3 8 to 3 4 tongue and groove flooring. I started using cleats but the last two floors used staples i just get the feeling that the staples hold better not that there has ever been a problem with cleats.

Most cleat nails are 16 ga. Diy enthusiasts want to know which choice is best in the cleats vs staples argument. Nails are available for installing engineered flooring. Finding the optimum fastener can be confusing.

Some hardwood flooring installers insist on using traditional cleats while others only use staples to secure solid hardwood. Browse our selection of primatech cleats staples and nails or powernail flooring tools and flooring accessories. I think both are great as long as install correctly that the biggest issue i see is people not putting enough fasteners into the floor. Use only the flooring nail also called cleats that were designed for this purpose.

A staple will give a stronger less forgiving hold because of its two pronged construction. The big drawback with cleat nails is their cost which at 65 to 85 per 5000 is about twice the price of staples. If you are using a pneumatic nailer or stapler make sure the air pressure is set correctly for the particular wood. You can probably use staples to lay down the backer board under the hardwood floor if you re in a cold weather windy area this will help insulate the house by preventing airflow through the slots in the floorboard.