Laying direction of hardwood flooring: something you should consider

There is no right or wrong for the laying direction of parquet.

However, it is crucial that the overall impression and atmosphere of the room are significantly influenced by this. The following article gives you an overview of how the laying direction of parquet affects a room – and what you should consider when making your decision.

Which factors influence the installation direction of Parquet there is?

Basically, a distinction can be made between three variants in the laying direction of parquet:

• Along
• Across
• or diagonal.

Depending on the size of the room, the structural conditions and the light incidence, a room acquires its own character.

Room size

The size of a room can be visually consciously influenced by the installation direction of parquet.

The laying of hardwood flooring on the long side emphasizes the room shape. So if the parquet is laid in the direction of the longer side of the room, the room looks even longer. By laying the parquet across the floor, however, rooms appear wider.

In itself, even wide spaces achieve more depth effect when transversely laid, while narrow, long corridors are optically shortened and widened – and thus appear more even. If, on the other hand, a installation takes place in the direction of space, the room is additionally “stretched”.

In addition to the laying direction, the dimensions of the parquet elements, or the parquet type also affect the visual size of the room.

The following principle applies: The larger the parquet parts, the smaller the room.

If a room is to be enlarged visually, it should therefore be used in return for small-format parquet.

If a room is not to be emphasized in either direction, cube patterns or cassette shelves are optimal. These appear neutral in any room, regardless of whether they are laid parallel to the walls or at a certain angle.

The classic herringbone parquet is also suitable if neither longitudinal nor transversely laid parquet is desired.

Light

In living rooms with windows, the interplay of natural light incidence and installation direction of the parquet also plays a role in terms of the spatial effect.

If the parquet is laid in the direction of the primary light source, the light is optically directed to the centre of the room and refracts less, so that joints in the parquet are hardly visible.

If, in contrast, the parquet is laid transversely to the light source, these not only appear wider, but also joints, shocks and graining of the wood are more pronounced by the refraction of light.

If the characteristic appearance of the parquet is to be consciously underlined, it is therefore recommended to cross-laying, if it is to remain more discreet, longitudinal laying is the better choice. It should also be noted that when the parquet is laid across, not only the texture of the wood is underlined, but also unevenness or possible signs of wear and tear become more visible.

Building conditions

Walls and ceilings as well as the direction of support beams can also have an effect on the optimal installation direction of parquet.

If differently laid room elements cross, the room appears restless, which in turn can have a negative effect on the living atmosphere. Therefore, different directions of laying should be avoided as a matter of principle.

In addition, in nailed dressing floors, such as they are often used in very large rooms, longitudinal direction is preferred, as this meets the spring and shrinkage behavior of the parquet.

In order to be able to allow for the expansion joints required for floating installation, care should also be taken when choosing the direction of installation to ensure that the parquet does not extend beyond door thresholds, but is laid individually in each room.

Laying direction of parquet – a question of taste

Unless special structural conditions make a particular installation direction necessary, design aspects and personal preferences are in the foreground of the decision.

However, since the laying direction of parquet is of great importance in terms of the character and atmosphere of a room, as mentioned above, the final decision should be taken by the owner.

In addition, it can be quite helpful to test the effect of the laying direction on site using several wooden strips or parquet samples before parquet laying or to simulate this virtually on the computer using special interior design programs.