How acclimatisation works in practice
- Flooring delivered to the property ahead of the fitting date
- Packs stacked in the room they'll be fitted in, not a garage or hallway
- Room kept at a normal living temperature and humidity
- Packs left unopened or loosely opened per the manufacturer's guidance
- Fitting begins once the recommended time has passed
What happens if this stage is skipped
Wood fitted straight from a cold van into a warm house can subsequently shrink slightly as it dries out and adjusts, opening gaps between boards weeks after fitting. Conversely, flooring fitted into a damp, unheated new-build can swell and cause boards to lift or peak at the joints once the heating is finally turned on properly.
What we need from you during this period
The main thing is simply having heating running at a normal level in the days before delivery, particularly in winter, rather than an empty cold house. If the property is unoccupied or between tenants, let us know so we can plan around getting heating on ahead of delivery.
New-build screed and acclimatisation together
In new-build homes around Duloch and Halbeath, the floating screed itself also needs time to dry before flooring goes down, so acclimatisation of the timber often runs alongside final screed drying checks — we coordinate both so neither stage gets rushed against the other.
Products that need it versus those that don't
- Solid wood — always needs acclimatisation
- Engineered wood — generally needs it, though less sensitive than solid
- Click LVT and SPC — largely unaffected by this issue
- Carpet — no acclimatisation period required