Lay Hardwood Flooring in Tight Spaces or Along a Wall

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Laying a hardwood floor is not difficult. But one area that may seem intimidating is laying the last few rows. You slowly loose working space as the floor gets closer and closer to the wall.

Securing Hardwood Floor without a Toe-Nailer

Eventually, the toe-nailer won’t fit or you won’t be able to cleanly strike the hammer face. So how do you nail down your floor? First, there are a few necessary tools.

Required Tools and Materials

Compressor and finish nail gun – These are a must-have. A regular hammer requires too much space to swing. That link will take you to a Bostitch compressor and nailer kit that is about $150 off retail.
Pry Bar – This is the exact pry bar I use and it always gets the job done. You’ll need a pry bar to squeeze the floor boards snug.
Scrap material – Every floor install has some scrap so this shouldn’t be hard to find. You’ll place the scrap against the wall and use the pry bar to push against it.
Table Saw – You need a good table saw to rip boards length-wise. The very last row of each area almost never fits perfectly.

I’d estimate that they last 3 or 4 rows of floorboards can’t be nailed with the toe nailer. So here is an alternate way to make sure they are secured.

1. Continue selecting floorboards as before. Use the heavy, rubber mallet to push the new board snug against its neighbor.

Use the pry bar in lieu of the mallet when space is limited. Setup several scrap pieces against the nearby wall. Stack enough pieces to create a small gap (1.5″ or so) between the scrap and new floor board. Leverage the pry bar against the scrap pieces pushing the new board into place. Make sure not to damage the face of the new floor board.
You may need to hold the new board in place while someone else nails it.

floorboards meet hearth

2. Use the finish nail gun to secure the board. Place the nail gun at a 45° angle from the floor and shoot the nail through the tongue much like the toe-nailer. When you fire a nail, push the nailer firmly in place. Too much recoil can cause the nail to go only part way through and will often damage the floor board.

3. Eventually, even the finish nail gun won’t fit. At this point you need to top-nail the boards. Make sure your compressor is set high enough to sink the nail just below the surface of the board. Place nails at least 1/4″ away from any edge. You don’t want to split the wood. Remember to push firmly when firing the nailer. This helps create a nice, smooth entry. These holes are easily repaired with Blend-Fil pencils or covered by molding later on.

4. The very last row almost never fits perfectly. 99% of the time you need to rip the boards length-wise to make them thinner. This is why you need a table saw. A table saw will cut the boards quickly, and precisely. Check out this review of a Refurbished, DeWalt table saw. Cut the boards thin enough to leave a small gap for expansion. That gap it will be covered when you install your baseboard. Also, make sure you measure from the correct side (usually the groove side).

What do you think? Any tips for installing the last few rows?