Understanding and choosing a wooden parquet or panelling

Europlac work on developping environmentally friendly parquet and panelling, both for you and the environment.. Europlac as a french manufacturer ensure a controled production. More details about our green parquet and panelling following this link: Environnement.

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We guarantee all our products 30 years. This guarantee is applicable to the technical function and the appearance of the products. The guarantee is only applicable if the technical information issued with the product or on our website, on how it should be installed, maintenance etc, has been strictly adhered to.

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You can consult us directly, or go to any of our outlets; you will find a list in Contact > Finding our products..

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To comply with the 58dB maximum recommended by the Standards regulations, you should use flooring with impact reducing acoustic criteria between 15dB and 20dB. Our flooring = 19dbB on underlay.

The insulation not only depends on the flooring, but also on the nature of the structure it is covering. For example, some appartment blocks are known to be generally noisy, so this is a factor that your retailer should take into consideration when proposing an optimal acoustic solution.

Generally speaking, fully glued parquet is acoustically superior than a floating parquet for both yourselves and the neighbours! Nevertheless floating parquet laid on a specific underlay meets the acoustic standards

It should also be taken into consideration that wood absorbs noise. There is nothing more noisy than laminate flooring. A wooden floor not only gives a more natural atmosphere but is also kinder to the ears!

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A finished product parquet floor must have a minimum of 2.5mm thickness of wood in its surface layer. This is why it can be restored by sanding.

The wood floor covering known as veneered flooring is composed of a veneer as its top layer. This veneer is less than 2.5mm and cannot be renovated.

Laminate or stratified flooring is an imitation wood finish produced by a paper impression. The top layer is a paper impression representing any variety of wood. As a result it can’t be sanded.

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In a dry room, parquet flooring and veneered flooring such as ours, need neither treatment against insects or fungus. In addition our product are varnished, so they require no upkeeping after installation.

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Fire resistance does not concern our products as they are not supporting structures

Its reaction to fire, or its fire propagation, is weak - M4

Buildings for habitation and ERP accept all parquets whatever their installation system, apart from certain buildings which need M3.

Glued parquets are allowed with no IGH limitation.

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Clean the mark as soon as possible. Try first on a not too visible area to see that product you are using doesn't mark the floor finish.

Dried glue: hot water and white vinegar

Lipstick, markers, biro: rubbing alcohol

Goudron, chocolat, graisse, cirage : essence de Catane

Wine, mustard, blood: moist sponge and washing up liquid.

Source : Les Parquet de Yves-Benoît - Editions EYROLLES Nov 2003 - Page 149

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Europlac work on developping environmentally friendly parquet and panelling, both for you and the environment.. Europlac as a french manufacturer ensure a controled production. More details about our green parquet and panelling following this link: Environnement.

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Formaldehyde is a substance which causes irritation to the eyes, nose and throat and it is commonly found in interior furnishings. In June 2004, formaldehyde was classified as a carcinogenic substance by the Cancer International Research Centre, which is part of the World Health Organisation (WHO). In Europe we are obliged to respect the E1 class (-0,12mg/m³) on the B1 annex basis of the NF EN 14342:2005. Compared to imported products, which are randomly checked, Europlac's products are entirely manufactured in France and the factory ensures that they are completely environmentally friendly and sane for our children.

FCBA tests on 14mm parquet and the FunFloor range attest that:

Absolu 14 parquet emits 0.01 mg/m³ formaldehyde rate – 12 times less than standard

Veneered flooring FunFloor emits 0.02mg/m³ formaldehyde rate – 6 times less than standard

These results show that our parquet and panelling are completely safe for mankind and the environment.

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These two terms are often confused or thought to be the same but they are not!

Firstly, a laminated parquet is a contradiction in terms. True parquet must have a minimum 2.5 mm surface layer of pure wood; but the top layer of a laminate parquet is not wood at all but a print of the true wood grain, so it shouldn't be called parquet. However, a true wood floating parquet does exist.

So the question is: "What is the difference between floating parquet and laminate flooring?

Floating parquet is a parquet assembled with a clic system or by glued tongue and groove. As a result it is not necessary to fully glue the flooring to the support flooring. 'DIY Man' really appreciates this floating system as he can easily lay the parquet by himself. As the flooring is not fully glued to the support it is known as a 'floating' system. Nevertheless it is parquet as it has a pure wood top layer of a minimum 2.5mm.

Laminate flooring is systematically laid with a clic system, so it is floating floor but not a 'parquet' floating floor. It is a laminate floor with a stamped parquet design. Be careful to be precise with these terms.

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LE SOLID PARQUET:
Solid parquet is the old traditional parquet made of a single piece of wood.
Laying system: it used to be nailed but nowadays it is more frequently glued.

Advantages:
It can be renovated / Its laying method provides better insulation

Drawbacks
If not perfectly laid it can warp / There is no solid parquet available with the Uniclic system / When using certain species of wood it is neither economic nor ecological / It can squeak with time.It is more sensitive to moisture variations.

 

LAYERED PARQUET:
CThis constitutes 2 or 3 layers of which the top layer is the desired wood species. Created in 1983, this type of parquet is the most widely used in France (70%) and Europe today. This layered parquet meets most requirements and offers a wide choice.
Laying system: floating with clic or glued tongue and groove.

Advantages:
Renovation is possible / Less expensive than solid parquet in some wood species / Reduce marks left by violent impacts

Drawbacks
The support (larger layer) has to be of good quality. A support such as the HDF ensure better thermal and hydrometric property than a cheaper support such as composite/chipboard.

 

VENEERED FLOORING:
Made as layered parquet with a pure wood top layer of 0.6mm Laying system: floating using either the clic system or glued tongue and groove.

Advantages:
A natural wooden flooring which is half the price of a layered parquet / Ecological given that you can have decorative flooring for an optimal wood consumption 5 times thinner than layered parquet / Veneer is the thinnest wooden slice you can find / You won’t be able to spare more wood for a decorative floor.

Drawbacks
Renovation is not possible, but as the price is so competitive the floor can be changed more frequently / Not widely known

 

LAMINATE FLOORING:
This flooring is imitation wood design
Laying system: floating with clic

Advantages:
Price competitiveness / Every design available (wood, concrete…)

Drawbacks
Imitation rather than real wood / There is more noise when walking on this surface / This is very obviously not a real wood product and provides none of the advantages as listed in: Europlac's products > Things to know > Real wood

 

 

People also judge parquets by their different laying methods: : glued laying or floating laying

 

FLOATING PARQUET:
Type of flooring: layered parquet, veneered flooring and laminate - frequently misused terms.

Advantages:
Less expensive if you lay it yourself / Quickly laid thanks to the clic / Workings are easier and cleaner during layings as well as disassembly

Drawbacks
Acoustic insulation adapted to standard but thermal conductivity is not optimal

 

FULLY GLUED PARQUET
Flooring type: applies to every type of flooring if necessary

Advantages:
Optimal acoustic isolation

Drawbacks
Time and price for laying cost about 20€ excl.VAT /m² against 12€ HT/m² for a floating laying.

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Recently laid parquet, either floating or fully glued, should not squeak or only squeak for a short period of time; you have to give it time to 'set'. If your parquet continues to be noisy, then it probably hasn't been laid according to the instructions (cf. DTU).

Our layered parquets using the Clic system have been given a thin paraffin coating where they join in order to irradicate any noise at this point.

Nevertheless after about fifteen years solid parquet can squeak from place to place. Some planks may have been damaged. An asset of a drawback, it depends of each and everyone.

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The Unified Technical Document (DTU) from now on named NF DTU are documents for professionals - a kind of French Bible of construction. It gathers the technical clause notebook (CCT), the General Criteria in the Choice of Materials (CGM) and the Special Clause Book (CCS).

Following the laying system, refer to the DTU:

DTU 51.2 Fully glued parquets

DTU 51.11 Floating parquets and layered floor covering with wooden surface.

There is no DTU for wall panelling laying.

For more details, or to buy a specific one, have a look at the online CSTB shop (Scientific and Technical Centre in Construction) section DTU.

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The different types of wood used for our parquets and veneered floor covering are hard enough to answer all individual house flooring requirements: strength, life expectation…

The softer woods, such as pine, alder or even oak in certain cases, will be less resistant to heavy impact. Nevertheless, as the "vieilli / aged " finish of our flooring is aimed to give a vintage aspect, these marks add to the general character of your flooring. However, if you do not wish your floor to be marked at all, you must choose one of the very hard wood varieties.

The advantage of layered parquet is that it limits heavy impact damage. An HDF (high density fiber) support also gives very high shock resistance and avoids the impact penetrating deeply into the wood. In the case of extremely heavy impact.

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