Builders know different ways to construct a base for the final floor covering. In order for the decorative material to fit perfectly and look aesthetically pleasing, an absolutely flat rough surface is required. If the house is made of boards, then perhaps the most effective way would be to level the wooden floor with plywood.

Plywood sheets are thin laminated wood. It is made from different types of wood, mainly pine. Sometimes birch is used. They are the most cost-effective options for creating recycled products.

When using plywood as a leveling base for laminate, preference should be given to birch products. They are lighter, softer, more pliable to process.

Plywood differs in several parameters:

• brand;
• class;
• variety;
• humidity;
• number of layers;
• dimensions.

For laminate and linoleum, pressed sheets of a certain category are chosen:

1. FOF – products with low moisture resistance;
2. FC is a material with average resistance to humidity;
3. FSF is a moisture-resistant plywood, the production of which uses a special adhesive composition that reliably fixes the layers without forming voids.

Pressed wood products come in 4 grades, determined by the number of defects. The best are considered to be first-class sheets that do not have any flaws (knots, chips, cracks, etc.). But for rough flooring, plywood of 3-4 grades with a significant number of defects is suitable.

Attention! To level the baseunder laminatechoose FC 3 grade birch plywood. Its advantages are high strength and low cost.

When choosing plywood by thickness, you should choose 12-16 mm sheets. They will not sag, will lie flat and will adhere tightly to the joists due to their weight. Such products have special strength, resistance to stress, and durability. The thickness of plywood is determined by the number of layers. Their total number is always odd. 12 mm plywood has 9 layers. When pressing, the veneers are placed perpendicular to each other to increase strength.

Sheets of plywood have certain dimensions. The length and width parameters only affect transportation and ease of installation of products. Actually, they do not affect the technical characteristics of the base.

Attention! Plywood is afraid of high humidity. Before installationunder laminateit is stored in dry, ventilated areas. This will prevent the sheets from bending and they will not warp.

When purchasing pressed wood for leveling floors, pay attention to the manufacturers. Preference should be given to domestic or European factories. They produce materials of proper quality.

If you carry out work on installing a plywood base yourself, you need to acquire a set of tools. They will help you get the job done correctly and as conveniently as possible. The list of tools includes:

• construction level;
• bench hammer (mallet);
• electric screwdriver;
• jigsaw;
• drill;
• self-tapping screws;

measuring devices:

• ruler,
• roulette.

It is important to master the skills of working with these devices and devices.

Plywood can have several options. It is laid on joists or old but in good condition floorboards. The first method involves installing noise or thermal insulation.

Preparing the base according to the first option

In any log house, the floors are laid on logs: wooden beams laid at the stage of erecting the first crown of walls.

1. Subsequently, a rough floor is placed on these supports. Substandard boards are used for it.
2. When installing thermal insulation, slats are placed on the first layer of the base in increments of 40-50 cm (based on the dimensions of the insulation).
3. This structure is covered with a waterproofing sheet without tension.
4. In the spaces between the slats, mats (rolls) of mineral or basalt wool are placed loosely. In some cases, bulk materials are used, for example, expanded clay. It serves as excellent sound insulation.
5. A vapor barrier material is placed on top of the constructed structure and lightly pinned to the slats.

After this, plywood is laid down to finally level the floors. This base for laminate flooring is durable and reliable, and has additional comfort conditions.

Preparing the base: option 2

If the floorboards in the house are generally well preserved, some defects that could interfere with the proper installation and operation of the laminate flooring can be easily eliminated. It is enough to do a few activities.

1. All protruding nail heads are sunk deep into the wood using a hammer
2. The baseboard around the entire perimeter of the room is removed.
3. Cracks and joints between boards are not sealed with anything. The plywood leveling the floor will hide them.

If it is necessary to make thermal insulation, proceed according to the first option for preparing the base. However, in this case, it can turn into a waste of money. After the entire structure is erected, a multilayer coating is obtained that does not blow through or cool due to the arrangement of materials perpendicular to each other. The plywood base retains heat well and it itself is comfortable for human feet, since it is made of natural wood.

Laying plywood under laminate

Plywood– flat material with an ideal surface. The dimensions of the sheets allow you to cover the subfloor in the shortest possible time. For beginners, this is the most convenient way to build the perfect base for laminate flooring. How to level a base made of pressed materials correctly?

1. Using a level, height differences are checked. If they don't exist, great. If a recession is detected, it is eliminated using bars. They are cut out according to the thickness of the resulting slope and placed under sheets of plywood.
2. Pressed wooden panels are brought into the room in advance so that they adapt to the microclimate, absorb the required amount of moisture, and warm up in the room conditions. How much time the material needs for aging is determined by the place, method, position, temperature and humidity of the room in which it was stored before delivery to the site:

• from 1 day to 3-5 days it is necessary to keep the products relatively dry and smooth;
• a longer period is needed for those canvases that were in storage at 5-8 degrees C and 10% humidity;
• above 7 days adapt plywood with minor deformation. It is placed in a stack so that under the weight it takes on the desired shape. When fastening such canvases, a larger number of screws are used.

1. Square-shaped plywood sheets are laid so that their edges fall in the middle of the bottom crossbar or floorboard. The ribs cannot be combined with the edges of the boards. There will be nothing to attach the screws to. The canvases will sag.
2. A deformation gap of 0.5 - 1 cm is left around the perimeter of the walls. Since plywood is made from natural veneer, it needs space and the ability to “breathe”. This gap is also used to guide the laying of laminate flooring, which cannot be placed flush against the wall.
3. To ensure that the joints between the individual elements of the rough flooring do not coincide, the second row of plywood begins with half a sheet. Using a jigsaw, according to pre-designated markings, the solid blade is cut into 2 parts. The first is used at the beginning of the row, the second at the end.
4. When laying out the leveling pressed sheets, they try to place them not close to each other, leaving a minimum gap, similar in functionality to the deformation gap.
5. The laid out canvases are secured with self-tapping screws or hardware. They are screwed in with a screwdriver until the cap is completely sunk into the wood. Let a small dent form, which will then damage the laminate. It is easy to fill the hole with putty or fill it with sealant.
6. Sometimes you have to align the sheets of plywood themselves if their edges, for example, do not coincide with each other. This is done using an electric planer or grinder. It is necessary to achieve an ideal surface so that the topcoat lays evenly.

A backing is usually laid on a plywood base under the laminate. It plays the role of a shock absorber and an intermediate layer between the pressed sheets and the finishing coating.

Important points

Plywood and laminate are similar in that they are equally susceptible to moisture. Responsible manufacturers specially impregnate veneer with compounds that protect them from water. If this is not done in the factory, you can protect the plywood with your own hands. This work can be carried out at any stage: during adaptation or after installation.

Laying of multilayer sheets under laminate is carried out at a temperature of 20-30 degrees C and relative humidity. Then the sheets are in optimal conditions and behave well when working with them.

In rooms with high levels of humidity, for example, in bathrooms and kitchens, it is better to use other floor leveling methods and alternative finishing materials. If the microclimate is like in the tropics, the plywood will bend, the laminate will deform, and the floor will become unusable.

Plywood sheets– an excellent option for leveling a wooden floor under a laminate. It is convenient and simple. Any beginner in the construction business can use this leveling technology.

Video on how to level a wooden floor with plywood

Views: 1,163

Do-it-yourself wooden floor under laminate We insulate a wooden floor on joists
How to lay laminate flooring on a wooden floor - video and installation features
Warm water floors on wooden floors
Wooden floor

Using plywood to level the floor surface is a relatively inexpensive and simple way to obtain a level base for laying flooring (linoleum, tiles, carpet, laminate). It is equally important that the installation process does not require technological interruptions and can be performed independently. Leveling a wooden floor with plywood must be carried out with knowledge of all the nuances and subtleties of this work. There are several ways to lay plywood. To make it easier for you to understand the technology, we have prepared video instructions.

Selecting an alignment method

There are several methods for leveling the floor with this material. The choice of one or another method should be made taking into account the condition of the floors and the degree of their unevenness:

1. If the differences in the base are no more than 2 mm per 1 m² of floor, then leveling the surface is not required. Even when laying linoleum, which is especially sensitive to any unevenness, such surface errors are negligible and cannot lead to problems with the floor covering.
2. If unevenness on a wooden floor reaches 5 mm, then the material can be laid directly on the plank subfloor. The main condition is uniform deformation of correctly laid floorboards.
3. To level the floor with unevenness from 1 to 8 cm, you will need to lay the sheets on strip or point supports. To do this, you can make a sheathing from timber or use separate supports.

Plywood selection

As a rule, leveling a wooden floor with plywood should be done using grade 1-3 material. In this case, it is better to buy construction plywood. The quality of industrial sheets is lower, so the floor will not be very durable.

If you are going to level the floor in a room with high humidity, then give preference to moisture-resistant material marked FSF. Moisture-resistant gypsum fiber boards, chipboard, MDF or OSB are also suitable for these purposes. Do not use fiberboard boards. Although their price is low, they are not suitable for laying on a wooden floor, since over time they will bend according to the shape of all the irregularities.

In addition, plywood can be unsanded, sanded on one or both sides. For installation, unsanded sheets can be used as a base for the topcoat. They will provide better grip on the flooring. The sanded material is used as a leveling and face layer at the same time. It can be painted or varnished.

Determination of height difference

To choose the right method for correcting the surface, you need to find out how uneven it is. Even if you are leveling a concrete floor with plywood, it is worth determining the height difference. This can be done using a laser level or a two-meter water level.

Video: determining the floor level in a new building

To level the floor, we determine the degree of its unevenness in this way:

1. First you need to find the middle of the walls of the room and make marks on the floor, as well as mark the center of the room.
2. Now we break the floor into separate squares with chalk and examine the room with a building level at least 2 meters long. We record the results.

• If you are going to not only level the floor with plywood, but also use it as a facing layer, then lay the sheets from the center of the room.
• The fasteners are screwed into the sheet, departing at least 2 cm from each edge.
• When using flooring, such as linoleum, installation can be carried out from the corner of the room farthest from the doors.
• When laying sheets in two layers, the joints of the sheets should be made with a shift relative to the bottom layer by 20-25 cm.
• It is worth retreating 2-3 cm between the sheets and from the walls of the room. This technological gap is needed in case the material expands due to changes in temperature and humidity. If you lay the sheets without a gap, the front layer (linoleum, laminate, carpet) may swell. For the same purpose, large sheets are cut into 4 parts.
• Floor construction technology requires that fastening elements do not protrude above the surface. Therefore, before fastening the sheets, a recess is drilled into them for the head of the fastening element.

Leveling without lag

Before laying in any room, the material must rest for a couple of days. Leveling the floor with plywood without joists is the easiest way that you can do it yourself. The cost of this leveling method is minimal.

Tools and materials for fastening plywood without joists

To lay plywood you will need the following tools and materials:

• Wood hacksaw or circular saw for cutting material,
• Wood screws,
• Drill and wood drill bits for making holes for screws,
• Screwdriver,
• Tape measure and pencil.

The work is carried out in the following order:

1. The sheets and wooden base are treated with an antiseptic. Then bars are installed along the perimeter of the room along the walls to obtain a two-centimeter technological gap.
2. We lay the sheets in rows. In this case, the seams of the row must be aligned so that they are offset by at least a quarter of the slab relative to the seam of the other row.
3. We fasten the material using self-tapping screws so that they are evenly distributed along the most accessible points of the base.
4. If a floor covering, for example, linoleum, will be laid on plywood, then the holes from the fasteners and seams must be covered with acrylic sealant, and the surface must be puttied.

Video - leveling a wooden floor with plywood without joists

Laying on strip supports

To level a floor with significant unevenness, you can lay the material on logs - transverse and longitudinal beams of the sheathing. The elements must be laid at a distance of 3 cm from the walls of the room. Leveling the floor with plywood along the joists is done on wooden and concrete bases. This floor can be used as a base for linoleum, tiles or laminate.

Tools and materials for laying on strip supports

To install plywood on strip supports you will need:

• Plywood cutting tool,
• Strips of plywood or 60x40 timber as supports (depending on the height of the floor),
• Level,
• Drill and wood bits,
• Screwdriver,
• Tape measure and pencil.

Sequencing:

1. First, the sheets are laid on the floor with the seams moving in adjacent rows. Laying sheets is marked on the floor with chalk. All sheets are numbered.
2. Next, we remove the material from the floor, and attach the logs according to the markings. First, we install the bars against the walls. It is better to use 40x60 cm timber. In order not to raise the floor too much, you can use strips of cut plywood or boards.
3. After laying the longitudinal beams, we install the transverse elements. We attach them to the joists using metal corners and self-tapping screws. The pitch of laying the beams depends on the dimensions of the sheet. A distance of 35-50 cm is considered optimal.
4. All elements of the sheathing are leveled in one plane. To do this, place pieces of plywood, roofing felt, roofing felt or boards under the joists.
5. When all the logs are at the same level, they are attached to the base using galvanized steel angles, dowels and self-tapping screws.
6. Now sheets are laid on the sheathing for leveling.
7. Any material (linoleum, tile, carpet or laminate) is used as the front layer.

Tip: if you place heat or sound insulation material in the gaps between the joists, you can improve the performance characteristics of the floor.

Video - leveling the floor along the joists

Laying on point supports

If the price of a continuous sheathing using the method described above seems too high to you, you can use separate supports to level the sheets. This leveling of the floor with plywood is easy to do with your own hands, the main thing is to accurately determine the height of each support. This method is suitable for laying as the front layer of linoleum or carpet.

We carry out floor leveling work in the following order:

1. First you need to lay out the material on the floor of the room, mark it and number it.
2. Then we remove the sheets and mark the finished floor on the walls of the room.
3. After laying out the level of flooring on the walls of the room, you need to stretch the cords across the entire room. They should not sag so that you can accurately determine the finished floor mark at each point. The cords can be fixed to the walls of the room using screws and dowels.
4. Next, following the chalk markings on the floor, we install point supports so that after laying the plywood and floor covering on them, we reach the desired level of the finished floor. Supports can be made from timber, plywood, OSB, boards, depending on their size. As a result, you should have a whole grid of supports. The support spacing is 30-45 cm, depending on the thickness and strength of the plywood.
5. After leveling the supports, we attach them to the base.
6. Now you can fix sheets on them and lay flooring (linoleum, tiles, carpet, etc.).

Video - laying material on point supports

Attention: when laying sheets on supports or joists, it is necessary to ensure ventilation of the underground. To do this, after installing the baseboards, ventilation holes are made in them, which are then closed with special grilles.

Finishing plywood floor

The finishing treatment of plywood and its necessity is dictated by the material that will be used as a finishing coating and the quality of laying the plywood itself.

If the surface is covered with ceramic floor tiles, then for finishing it is enough to coat the plywood with a primer, which will reduce the absorption of moisture from the tile adhesive and enhance the quality of adhesion. The remaining minor irregularities will be hidden by a layer of glue.

If laminate, parquet, carpet or linoleum will be laid on plywood, then additional sanding of the surface is necessary. For semi-commercial carpet or other material that requires a backing, a height difference between plywood boards of up to 2 mm is allowed. Differences of more than 2 mm must be eliminated by scraping the plywood with a special machine or sandpaper.

After sanding or sanding the plywood base, you must thoroughly vacuum the floor and remove all dust. Then coat the surface with the necessary primer and begin laying the facing material.

Checking the quality of plywood laying

If hired workers were hired to level the floor with plywood, then at the end you need to check the quality of the covering. You can do this as follows:

• Sheets of plywood should not be laid entirely. They need to be cut into smaller modules. This is done to prevent the floor from deforming in the event of exposure to moisture or thermal expansion.
• Check the horizontal position using the bubble level rule. Apply the rule to the surface in different directions throughout the room, the error in differences should not exceed 0.2 mm.
• There should be expansion gaps between plywood sheets to prevent squeaking. Also, the sheets should not be tightly adjacent to the walls.

If the above three rules are met, then leveling the floor with plywood can be considered high-quality.

How to improve the performance of plywood sheets

Among the building materials used for leveling the floor surface, plywood sheets are in stable and confident demand. The characteristic features of this material distinguish it from cement screed or floorboards. Compliance with technology when laying plywood sheets on the floor will allow you to obtain a durable, reliable and even base.

The positive aspects of using plywood to level the base are:

• Saving money. The material is not expensive because it is produced from non-commercial wood at domestic enterprises. In addition, cheap samples of the 3rd or 4th grade are suitable for leveling.
• Availability of 9 different sheet formats: from relatively small 1525x1525mm to 3050x1525mm. Choosing the appropriate size will make it possible to correctly distribute the sheets, making the necessary interruptions in the seams and minimizing the number of technological joints.
• Simple installation work (except for floor installation on studs). The process of laying, trimming and fastening does not take much time and does not require the use of special tools or equipment. After leveling with plywood, you can almost immediately begin the next stage of floor installation.
• Possibility of choosing a suitable option based on environmental characteristics. In living rooms, a material with low emissions (release of harmful substances) is usually used, glued with natural albumin-casein glue. However, this option has low moisture resistance, so in public spaces it can be replaced with wear-resistant and moisture-resistant plywood glued with formaldehyde resins.
• Installation of an additional soundproofing and heat-insulating layer.
• Several installation methods. The choice of a specific method depends on the characteristics of the surface to be leveled.

How to choose the right plywood for leveling the floor?

Before choosing the right type of plywood sheets, you should determine their size and clarify the loads that the coating must withstand. The main selection criteria are environmental friendliness, strength and moisture resistance.

In rooms with high humidity and high traffic, for example, in corridors, halls, industrial buildings, where there is no permanent presence of people, you can use material with the FSF brand. This plywood is resistant to moisture, however, its environmental characteristics (in particular, the release of formaldehyde) allow its use only in well-ventilated non-residential premises.

Material marked FKM has an average level of moisture resistance and a low level of release of harmful substances. It is allowed to be used in areas where there are no strict requirements for toxicity and humidity.

Plywood sheets marked with the FK and FBA indices have a low level of moisture resistance, but are environmentally safe. These types of material are approved for use in residential areas where there is no high humidity.

Since plywood in most cases is not a finishing material, but is used to level the surface, not the highest quality grades are used, which is explained by an increase in price depending on the quality. The 3rd or 4th is quite suitable for the screed. To install sheets on leveling pins, you can take grades 2 and 3.

Among other things, plywood differs in the type of wood from which it is made. In the process of leveling the floor, more expensive birch is not often used. Coniferous sheets are widely used. Recently, poplar samples have appeared on the construction market. These products from Chinese manufacturers do not differ in quality compared to the domestic product, but are lower in price.

Leveling the floor with a screed does not require the material to have high deformation resistance. The same cannot be said about installing sheets on joists or studs. In these cases, you should use multi-layer plywood or lay it in two layers with a mandatory shift of the upper and lower joints (at least 40 cm).

Another indicator taken into account when choosing a suitable material is the grinding of its surface. You can choose from three available options:

• not polished;
• polished on one side;
• polished on both sides.

It is logical to use the type in which the invisible side is not processed, and the outer (visible) side is sanded. However, leveling with plywood is not a finishing touch, so you can take the material from the first option. In addition, sometimes for perfect alignment and elimination of differences at the joints, plywood is sanded after installation and final fixation.

An important parameter to choose is the thickness of the sheet. As this value increases, the price indicator rises sharply, so you should accurately calculate the weight load (especially when installing on joists or studs) so that the money saved does not result in deformation of the prepared surface.

Ways to level a floor using plywood

You can make a flat floor surface using sheets of plywood in one of several available ways:

• installation with self-tapping screws if the base is a floorboard;
• fixation with adhesive solutions, if the base is screed or concrete;
• installation on joists;
• using adjustable anchor pins.

Each of the listed installation methods has its own characteristics and degree of complexity. The simplest ones are laying them on the surface of a floorboard or gluing them to a hard surface. Leveling with the help of logs, and even more so, adjustable studs, requires the performer to accurately calculate the necessary support points and professional actions during the work process.

Preparing plywood sheets for installation

You cannot use plywood without first curing it in the room where it will be installed. After transportation, it should be laid out on a flat surface and allowed to acclimatize to the environment for at least three days.

If additional sanding of the joints is not planned after installation, then you should check the ends for the same thickness. To do this, several sheets are laid out on a flat surface (for example, in the middle of a plywood sheet), then a metal ruler is placed edgewise at the joint. If a backlash appears when you lightly press one side of the ruler, it means the thickness is different. Consequently, it will not be possible to do without finishing sanding the joints.

Sometimes floor leveling occurs on the first floor of a building, under which there is a basement. In this case, there is a possibility of increased humidity and the appearance of fungus and mold. In such a situation, the inside of the plywood must be treated with an antiseptic to stop the spread of such phenomena.

Preparing the base before leveling

The set of measures associated with preparing the surface before laying plywood depends on the base material. If it is concrete or cement screed, and the sheets are laid without lags or leveling pins (using the gluing method), then the following steps must be performed:

• Using a 200cm long strip, you need to measure the entire floor plane. Detected recesses with an area of ​​more than 30 cm and a depth of 0.3 cm should be leveled with an adhesive solution.
• The same rod will help you find bumps and sagging. They should be leveled using a hammer drill or grinder.
• After the poured solution has completely dried, the surface is dust-free and primed.

Small cracks can be ignored if their location does not coincide with the seam between the plywood sheets. Otherwise, the cracks should be expanded, primed and sealed with putty or mortar.

The sequence of leveling the floor, the device of which is made of floorboards:

• Eliminating squeaks. This phenomenon occurs for two reasons: first, a nail driven tightly into a joist rubs against the board when it bends under load; the second is that the edges of adjacent boards that are unreliably fixed or have lost their tongue and groove rub. To eliminate these phenomena, the boards are screwed to the joists with self-tapping screws, and the protruding nails are removed. The edges of the boards are milled and glued with wood glue.
• Warped floorboards have protrusions at the joints. They must be removed using a plane.
• The sheets should be laid out so that the seams between them do not overlap the seams between the boards.

When installing plywood sheets on joists or adjustable anchor studs, special attention must be paid to the strength of the base. Its evenness does not matter for these methods of constructing plywood.

Laying plywood directly onto the base

The first stage of working with plywood sheets is a preliminary layout on paper, taking into account all the requirements:

• Along the edges, near the walls, there should be no fragments less than 15 cm in width and length.
• The joints of the sheets should not coincide with the joints of the boards, seams in the screed or fall on the seams between concrete slabs.
• The layout of whole sheets begins from the center of the room, trimming occurs in the wall areas.
• Transverse joints should be staggered.

The plywood is screwed to the prepared wooden board floor using wood screws, the length of which is three times the thickness of the plywood sheet. Before tightening the self-tapping screw, a countersunk hole is milled under its head with a drill. As a result, the cap should be slightly below the plane of the sheet. If necessary, it can be puttied and the surface made completely flat.

On a board floor, plywood sheets are rolled diagonally: starting from the center, then along the perimeter. The distance between the attachment points is at least 40cm. Self-tapping screws located at the same joint should be installed opposite each other, two centimeters from the edge of the sheet.

It is desirable that the length of the plywood sheets be fastened perpendicular to the direction of laying the boards. For square sheets, the continuous seam should also be perpendicular to the length of the boards.

Fixing plywood onto cement screed and concrete is mainly carried out by gluing it with special adhesives. The procedure for working with a specific composition, subtleties of application, drying time, etc. are indicated in the attached instructions. Depending on the selected option, the thickness of the applied layer changes. It is also necessary to take into account which of the surfaces to be glued (plywood or floor) it is applied to. In all cases, it is important that the surface is dust-free and primed.

All methods of leveling the floor with plywood are characterized by laying the first sheet in the center of the room, fixing it, and only after that, continuing further work. Also, in all cases, a mandatory condition is the absence of contact of the sheets with the walls of the room. There should be a distance of at least 1.5-2 cm between the edge of the sheets and the wall.

If the room is large, approximately every 6 m (the distance depends on the size of the plywood) a technological gap should be left between the sheets to compensate for the expansion of the material due to temperature and humidity.

Leveling the floor laid on joists

When installing a floor using joists, it means raising the surface by several centimeters (by the thickness of the joists and the plywood sheet). Unlike continuous gluing, this method allows you to obtain a more even plane. However, since the support points are only on the joists, the thickness of the sheet used must be calculated taking into account possible weight loads.

Initially, the timber is installed around the perimeter of the room, along the walls. Then, according to the layout, the logs are installed in those places where the sheet joints will be located. After this, the remaining distance is evenly distributed depending on the thickness of the plywood and additional timber is added. It is attached to the main one using metal corners. As a result, the entire room should be divided into squares with sides of 40x40cm or 40x60cm. All logs, both longitudinal and transverse, are aligned in one plane, without differences, protrusions and depressions.

The supporting shoulder of the plywood sheet must be at least 3cm. This distance is necessary to ensure that the screws do not fall on the edge of the beam or sheet. The spacing between transverse seams should be maximized.

To reduce the transmission of sound from the plywood to the base, a soundproofing pad is placed under the timber. In addition to the main function, it also compensates for minor irregularities. Installed and aligned logs are fixed to the base using metal corners or anchor bolts.

The last stage - attaching plywood sheets to the timber - occurs after quality control of the installed sheathing. To be completely sure of the accuracy of the layout, you can lay out the plywood, securing it with a pair of screws. This option will help to identify and leave sheets with broken geometry for trimming.

Leveling the floor with plywood on adjustable anchor studs

The most time-consuming but at the same time the most effective way to level the base with plywood sheets is to install supports in the form of adjustable anchor pins. This method makes it possible to lift plywood to the distance required for laying insulation, installing pipes or technological lines.

Technology for installing plywood on studs:

• Each sheet is marked in the form of squares 40x40cm.
• At the intersection points of the lines and along the edges, holes are drilled with a depth of half a sheet and a diameter equal to the diameter of the nut.
• In the resulting holes, a through hole is drilled exactly in the center, equal to the diameter of the pin.
• Marked and drilled sheets are laid out on the floor, taking into account the interruption of the seams. Each hole is marked on the base with a marker.
• The sheets are numbered and removed. In place of the marks left, holes are drilled for installing studs.
• The studs are securely fixed. Adjusting nuts and bearing washers are screwed onto their upper part.
• All washers are aligned to the same level using a laser or plank level. The protruding part of the pin is cut off with a grinder.
• The numbered sheets are placed in the required order on the studs, supported by washers.
• The fixing nuts are screwed into the recesses of the sheets.

All methods of leveling the base using plywood sheets will give the desired result if the mandatory requirements are met:

• No process disruptions.
• Compliance with acceptable temperature conditions (about 20-30 0 C) and humidity of about 70% during work.
• Use of material with geometry within the stated tolerance.

Leveling the floor with plywood - video

In a wooden house, bathhouse, multi-storey residential areas, a flat surface is required for laying floor coverings. If the base is a wooden floor, then plywood is laid on them. Leveling a wooden covering with plywood is the topic of our conversation about finishing materials. In it we will share our experience of installing it on wooden floors.

Leveling a wooden floor under plywood

First you need to determine the condition of the wooden floors, whether there are large differences in height between the boards.

If the floors squeak, you need to pour graphite powder with talc into the cracks or drive wooden wedges into them.

If this does not help, then secure the defective boards with self-tapping screws or dowels with screws.

If you cannot level out significant differences in height with your own hands, then you need to dismantle the rotten structure, replacing the destroyed boards with freshly planed ones.

Do-it-yourself leveling of a wooden floor with plywood

First of all, we lay out plywood sheets on a wooden base in a checkerboard pattern for fitting and determining the guide joists. Let's draw these lines.

We already have an outline of the location of the horizontal bars.

Number the plywood sheets and the floor so as not to be confused during installation.

The logs are square bars with a long side of 40-60 cm. Instead of bars, you can use boards or plywood sheets cut into strips.

Transverse strips are attached to the logs in approximately 40-50 cm increments. Metal corners make the connection of the longitudinal and transverse strips strong and reliable.

Using a level gauge, we level the lattice base. To ensure that the logs are at the same level, we place wooden spacers under them. And then, using metal corners and self-tapping screws, we attach the logs to the plank floor. You can also use dowels as lag fasteners, which are 3 times the thickness of the lag.

Between the lags we fill the free surface with sand or a homemade mixture consisting of sawdust and PVA glue.

We spread it in two layers and leave it for the leveling compound to harden.

If the logs are low or in the form of slats, then we use roofing felt or roofing felt. Only after this we begin to attach the plywood.

Installation of plywood on mini joists

Another method of leveling the floor with plywood in a wooden house is to use mini-lags.

This method is very accurate. It is carried out only by masters of their craft and engineers. The slightest inaccuracy in the calculations will make the design unreliable. Each element of the building is calculated separately using special instruments.

Mini-logs (slats) are laid lengthwise and crosswise in the form of a lattice. This method is used when there is a large slope of floors and significant differences in height - up to 8 cm. First, sheets of plywood are laid out for fitting to make markings. The thickness of the supports and the angle of inclination are calculated using formulas and programs.

Installation of plywood on the sheathing of point supports

The fourth way to lay plywood sheets is by lathing point supports. The blocks are cut from boards or plywood and laid in the form of a grid. The step between them is much smaller than with strip supports. This method is less accurate than using a lag.

Leveling a wooden covering with plywood under linoleum

Linoleum is a capricious coating; all roughness, unevenness and debris will be visible on it. Over time, due to its elasticity, it will take the shape of the base, enveloping the protrusions and recesses. Therefore, a perfectly flat surface is required for linoleum flooring.

Preparing the wooden covering. Best to spend wood floor scraping.

To protect yourself from dust, you need to wear a respirator and headphones to protect yourself from noise.

You need to work with a looping machine, starting from the corner of the room, moving like a snake to the other end of the room. The corners are processed manually.

Putty is needed to treat cracks and cracks in wooden floors.. When the mixture dries, you should repeat the scraping.

Collect dust after the process with a vacuum cleaner.

The wooden covering is treated with antiseptic agents. The top is varnished.

You can also scrape floors using a planer. But this is a more complex process. Floor scraping is carried out if the height differences are insignificant. In this case, plywood is not needed. It is also not needed when leveling a wooden floor with dry mixtures, which are applied to a sanded floor.

If the floors are located on a slope, plywood panels are required.

We take self-tapping screws and screw them into the wooden floor at a distance of 20-30 cm from each other. These are our beacons on which logs and plywood sheets will be placed. The screw heads must be at the same level.

We cut the plywood sheets into squares with a side of 60 cm. It is very important to check the sheets so that there are no cracks or chips.

We lay out plywood beams 3-4 cm wide. These are logs. They serve as support for plywood panels. If there is a gap between the joists and the floor, you can place a thin piece of plywood. Attach the joists to the floor using wood glue or self-tapping screws. Expanded clay can be poured between the joists. It will be a kind of insulation for the floors.

We begin the installation of plywood sheets. We lay out the plywood in a checkerboard pattern with an offset. We strengthen it with screws inserted into dowels. To ensure a neat finish, it would be a good idea to drill holes for the dowels before laying the plywood panels.

When laying plywood, the screws are simply screwed into the dowels. Plywood sheets are fixed to the joists. It is very important to step back 2 cm from the wall and leave a gap between the plywood panels. Then seal the seams with putty or mastic. When laying plywood, you need to remember that only three edges of plywood sheets can converge at one point, no more. After leveling the floor with plywood, you need to sand the floor and varnish it. You can lay a backing and linoleum on top.

Leveling wood flooring with plywood under laminate

Leveling a wooden floor with plywood under laminate is almost the same as under linoleum.

First you need to remove the wooden baseboards with a nail puller. Tidy up the room, sweep, wash the floors. We make 2-3 holes in the floor in different places of the room to determine the height of the base of the screw. We make beacons in the form of self-tapping screws. The thicker the plywood, the greater the distance between them. The height of the log is 30-50 mm. We screw the plywood to the joists with self-tapping screws.

Experts often advise leveling a wooden floor with two sheets of plywood. The main thing is that the seams do not coincide, but are laid offset.

We told you how to level a wooden surface with plywood. Whether you call specialists or make the flooring yourself is up to you. The main thing is that you do it correctly and carefully.

One of the repair operations quite often is leveling the floor, for which various materials are used, including: self-leveling and cement-sand screeds, concrete, plywood and other materials that make the covering even and smooth, providing not only beauty, but also convenience and strength. , durability.

One of the options for leveling the floor was the use of well-known plywood for this operation. Each material has its own advantages and disadvantages, therefore, if you decide to level the floor with its help, you should familiarize yourself with the main characteristics of the product and its use.

Before leveling the floor with plywood, familiarize yourself with its features

The main advantages of this operation are considered to be:

• little time spent on installation;
• a fairly clean method that leaves a minimal amount of dust and debris;
• Particularly effective when installed on a wooden floor, since plywood is relatively light in weight and does not place a large load on the base;
• ease of installation, which does not require special skills or professional training.

As for the disadvantages of this material as a leveler, the following are noted among them:

• impossibility of using a “warm floor” system when installing;
• a negative reaction to high humidity, which leads to a decrease in the quality of the material itself and the work performed;
• the work requires material with a thickness of at least twenty-two centimeters, which leads to a significant increase in its cost;
• For wet rooms you will need a moisture-resistant product, which is not cheap.

The quality of waterproofing work will be of great importance, especially in rooms with high humidity.

Plywood is a relatively inexpensive and simple way to level a floor.

How to buy the right plywood for leveling the floor

Today, the building materials market is replete with various offers, and their wide selection is not always a good thing, as it puts the home craftsman, especially if he has no experience or little practical skills, at a dead end: which plywood to choose, which material and manufacturer to give preference to?

• per variety;
• compound;
• sheet thickness;
• water resistance.

The choice of material must be approached carefully

Moreover, the last position may be decisive for many.

There is a large selection of plywood on sale, and you need to choose it correctly, and for this you need to familiarize yourself with the basic characteristics and properties of the material.

	Advantages	Flaws
	Ecologically pure Convenient for decorating residential premises	Susceptible to excess moisture
	Preferable when carrying out repair and construction work in homes	Direct contact with water is not recommended
	High level of moisture resistance
	High level of resistance to chemically aggressive environments	It is not advisable to use it in a heated floor system: when heated, harmful substances are released
	Used in the construction of light sea and river vessels due to special waterproof treatment	Not suitable for leveling floors
	Identical to BS	Water resistance is reduced compared to BS

Advice. When choosing plywood, you should pay attention to the direction of the fibers: length or width. This moment is taken into account when leveling the floor so that they lie against the main movement.

When laying, pay attention to the grain directions.

How to level a floor with plywood along joists with your own hands

You can level the floor with or without joists. To carry it out, you will need material with a thickness of at least ten millimeters, and the number of layers in it does not matter. In total, the thickness of the laid sheets should be from fifteen to eighteen millimeters.

Experts believe that laying the leveler over the joists is not difficult, so you can do it yourself.

For logs, wood and a metal profile are used, and it is clear that metal is much stronger, but it is necessary to take into account at what temperature it will be used: temperature indicators are of direct importance.

In order for the installation to be carried out efficiently and effectively, it is necessary that they be identical on the joists and the leveler. Therefore, when using plywood, the best lag material is wood, better if it is coniferous. The highest quality is larch, but it is very expensive.

You can level the floor with or without joists

Before installation begins, it is necessary to carry out preparatory work.

1. Prepare the necessary material for the lag. These can be dry boards or timber at least two meters long. You need to buy them in advance and let them “rest” in the room where the logs will be installed.
2. Treat the wood with an antiseptic to avoid damage by insects and rodents, and with fire and bioprotection preparations.

The next step is to lay the black flooring along the joists. At the same time, they are installed not using screeds, but by fastening them on “backings” made from scraps of timber and boards, under which linoleum or roofing felt is laid. After this, a frame is formed into which the insulation and vapor barrier are laid, after which the plywood sheets, previously measured and cut to the required sizes, are directly laid.

Plywood is an excellent option for leveling the floor

How to level a floor with plywood without joists

The advantages of leveling the floor with plywood along the joists are: there is no need to install a concrete screed, which saves money and time, as well as the simplicity and environmental friendliness of the method. It is possible to level the floor with plywood without joists, and experts say that this operation is not at all difficult. Sheets are secured in one of the following ways:

• gluing;
• regulation.

In the first case, you will need a special adhesive composition, which can be used if the floor has slight differences in height and there is a concrete screed, which must be completely dry by the time of leveling. This method is simple and does not require much time.

Regulation is considered a more complex method and is therefore used much less frequently. The plywood sheets, which are laid in two layers, are attached to wooden blocks, which requires time and care. But its use allows the structure to withstand significant loads, and the craftsman can later dismantle and replace the old floor covering without much hassle.

You can level the floor without lags either with glue or by adjustment

Do-it-yourself leveling of a wooden floor with plywood

If the room has a wooden floor, then the best way to level it is to use plywood. The technology for installing such a coating is not very difficult, so you can do it yourself. The procedure for carrying it out is as follows:

• padding;
• production of screeds;
• priming;
• insulation;
• leveling a wooden floor with plywood.

Priming is a necessary procedure that allows you to get rid of cracks, chips, and level out the formed potholes. Otherwise, the coating will not last long and will begin to creak.

The screed, which is designed as a base for plywood, is made of concrete. After it has completely dried, priming is carried out, i.e. base primer. With this procedure:

• the surface of the base is cleaned, including from dust;
• the base is impregnated with a primer made from the same material with which the plywood will be attached to the screed.

Then the insulation is laid, and on it - sheets of plywood marked for installation.

Plywood is perfect for leveling wooden floors

About the preliminary preparation of plywood

In order for the leveled floor to last a long time, you need to properly prepare the leveler.

When purchasing, you need to make sure that the plywood is dry and not warped: it will be difficult to work with deformed sheets. It should be stored not in the open air, but indoors at a temperature typical for the given place.

Before laying, the sheets must be marked and cut (sawed) accordingly, taking into account not only the size of the room, but also the laying features: corners, columns, pipes, etc.

Then they are laid out on the floor so that the master can make sure that all measurements and cuts were made correctly. At the same time, we must not forget about the necessary gaps between the sheets, and especially near the walls: the sheet should not be butted against the wall.

After cutting and fitting, they are numbered, which greatly facilitates installation and does not lead to confusion, and are removed. Installation is carried out in small sections, slowly and efficiently.

Before starting work, sheets need to be measured and cut

Plywood fastening methods

During leveling, plywood can be secured in various ways, depending on the requirements for the operation:

• sticking to concrete floor;
• stiletto heel adjustment;
• installation on a frame;
• wood floor covering;
• screwing sheets;
• gender regulation.

Plywood can be laid in different ways

Fastening plywood with adjustable studs

This method using anchor pins allows you to get rid of significant unevenness in the floor by adjusting the position of its surface. This happens as follows:

• using a drill, grooves are prepared, the depth of which is half the thickness of the sheet;
• a hole is drilled inside for a pin of smaller diameter;
• washers are inserted into the recesses;
• Marks are made for drilling holes in the floors, after which the sheet must be removed.

Anchor studs are fixed to the floor surface, with a screwed-in nut and washer, on which a prepared plywood sheet is laid and attached to the studs using nuts. The excess length of the anchors is removed with a grinder.

In this way you can get rid of significant unevenness in the floor.

Leveling a wooden floor with plywood over the sheathing

One of the methods for leveling a wooden floor with plywood is to install it over lathing. It is advisable to use it when preparing flooring for laminate; for this purpose the following is carried out:

• dismantling the old wooden covering on the joists;
• their inspection, replacement of those unsuitable for use;
• strengthening longitudinal beams with piping around the perimeter and control of horizontal laying;
• installation of insulation and vapor barrier;
• plywood flooring with joints on the support.

Laying on the sheathing is done in strips. They are fastened in increments of twenty centimeters, taking into account the architectural features of the room, after which all irregularities are treated with putty.

Installing plywood on laths is a popular method of leveling the floor.

Leveling concrete screed with plywood

This type of alignment is not complicated, but it requires careful attention to the nuances of the operation, which can significantly affect the final result of the work.

To avoid problems with the flooring after completion of work, it is necessary to take into account that before laying plywood on a concrete base, you must make sure that the base is completely dry or meets the humidity standards at which work can be carried out.

Experts have found a simple and effective way to determine the level of humidity on a concrete surface: part of it is covered with plastic film and after some time, usually after two to three days, if the humidity of the base is high, drops of moisture will appear on the film coating. This means that the temperature in the room will have to be raised, while avoiding increasing humidity.

Before leveling a concrete floor with plywood, make sure that the humidity in the room is low.

To protect plywood from moisture and low temperatures, it is usually treated with an antiseptic before installation.

Attention! To secure the nuts after adjustment, they must be treated with a thread locker, which will increase the strength of the floor fastening.

Video: Do-it-yourself floor leveling using plywood

Video: Leveling a crooked floor with plywood