Replies

1. 
   DanH | Aug 23, 2013 06:09pm | #1

   They don't need to be anything terribly special.  Whatever screw works for you and seems drive flush with the fewest problems.  Maybe avoid drywalll screws, but beyond that any sort of "deck screw" should work (though they don't need to be exterior).

1. 
   jimmiem | Aug 23, 2013 06:56pm | #2

   Screws for Plywood sub-floor

   Thank You.  SPAX screws go in very easily with an impact driver.   I had run out of SPAX and tried deck screws but had touble getting them started without predrilling.....went out and bought more SPAX.  From what I've read drywall screws are a no no due to lack of shear strength.

1. 
   DanH | Aug 23, 2013 10:28pm | #3

   You don't need a lot of strength for this duty, so drywall screws would probably be fine.  The problem is simply that the quality is pretty unreliable, and you might get a bad batch where the heads pop off.

2. 
   calvin | Aug 23, 2013 11:38pm | #4

   Jim

   Never drywall screws, they snap off too easily.

   I have a stand up screwgun, strip collated screws.  Made for subfloor,nothing beats it!

1. 
   jimmiem | Aug 24, 2013 07:18am | #5

   Calvin

   I've seen those stand-up screw guns.  I'd like to have one. This is a one-time one-and-done project so I really can't justify buying one.  It's knee pads and an impact driver for me.  4 rooms are done 3 rooms left to do. 

1. 
   calvin | Aug 24, 2013 10:40pm | #6

   Jim

   when I had an 1800sf 3/4 underlay job I went out and bought one and a boatload of the screws to use in it.

   that was b/4 I got old.

   My recommendation-go and think about renting and buying the screws from them, save the knees and become a stand up guy.                                     

2. 
   jimmiem | Aug 25, 2013 07:11am | #7

   Stand-Up Guy

   OK. You talked me into it.  I'll check out renting a stand-up screw gun.  Any ideas on how to stay off the knees when putting down the hardwood floor boards......I've been using pieces of the carpeting to kneel on while fitting the boards.  I do my cutting in the basement so I have to walk the stairs to the basement (one or two flights) to cut the last board in every row in every room.....the bigger rooms have 66 rows and the smaller rooms have 60 rows......great exercise.  And Calvin I'm older than you are....keep on moving....age is a state of mind.  

3. 
   DanH | Aug 25, 2013 08:09am | #8

   Buy some knee pads like the big kids use.

4. 
   jimmiem | Aug 25, 2013 09:30am | #9

   Knee Pads

   I bought a pair before I started the project....that's why I don't mind putting down the screws with just an impact driver.  They get kind of dirty from the subfloor so I use a piece of foam or carpeting when kneeling on the new flooring.  But modern tools and conviences do make things easier.....I can't even imagine what folks went through when they had to hand nail hardwood flooring. 

5. 
   calvin | Aug 25, 2013 11:11am | #10

   jim

   if you are tall or you belly is big, you are probably doomed to floor on your knees.......

   I know an OLD flooring guy, at least he looks old.   He does everything on his knees, but no tool is further away than his reach.

   The small table saw is at the end of a run, on cardboard (for raw wood-might put in on upside down carpet for finished flooring-don't know).  He cuts everything with it.   (another one I know-uses only a bosch jigsaw.  One tool.

   An air assist staple or cleat gun poses a bit of a problem......tho the hand driven moreso.   They are hard to operate from the knees......but not impossible.

   But cutting in the basement>you gotta have your head examined.  A jig saw don't raise much dust-the particles fall to the floor.

   If you are on your knees, good knee pads are a must.  I still use the old style leather concrete finishers pads, with the one strap w/buckle.  However, a couple layers of good carpet pad is added for effect.

   Older heh?  Cool.

   Just remember, construction trade years are alot like dog years.........in the bodily scheme of things.....

   No offense intended.   Those hours on your knees will come back to haunt you.

   oh yeah, that old flooring guy.............he even eats his lunch on his knees, though he leans back on his heels.

   I swear, the guy is only 3 ft tall.   At least at work.  He comes in standing up and leaves the same way.  Everything else is down.

   Best of luck.

6. 
   jimmiem | Aug 25, 2013 11:45am | #11

   Calvin

   I'm not too tall and my belly isn't big (you think going up and down stairs all day has anything to do with that?).   The only things I cut in the rooms are the drywall for the expansion gap and the door jamb undercuts.....both with an oscillating multi tool.  I have a Bosch jig saw (great tool) and a good miter saw (you had steered me to Tim for the brushes that I needed so it's still going strong) but my wife is very sensitive to dust so they only get used in the basement.  When I do the drywall and door jamb undercuts I set up a box fan and also use a shopvac ( multi tool in one hand and shopvac hose in the other).  Going for a head exam is easier than listening to my wife complain about dust in the house  (which she usually brings up when it's time to go to sleep).  I guess that not being in the construction trades all my life has left me in good enough shape that I can do these floors without any aches and pains.   My great grandfather and uncle were builders but would never let me work for them so I had to wait until I got my own house to do any work on.  I do remember seeing some old-timers that years in the building trades had taken its toll on.   But now they say that sitting at a desk all day is not healthy either.   It's a no-win situation either way.

   Older?  Yes, remember last summer at the fest in Rhode Island when I was supposed to bring you some Boston beer?  Well I was heading to Rhode Island and totally forgot where I was supposed to be going.  I mistakenly stopped to ask a police officer for directions and when he saw the beer......well you know what happened next.        

7. 
   calvin | Aug 25, 2013 01:38pm | #12

   Jim

   Forgot?

   that explains the not going to this years Fest in Newtown,  Conn.

   So, when do I get a taste of this fictions brew?  

8. 
   jimmiem | Aug 25, 2013 02:12pm | #13

   Calvin

   A. I was installing flooring and couldn't get away

   B. They won't let me drive that far alone

   C.  I have an outstanding warrant in Conn.

   D. All of the above

   Give me your address and I'll ship you some....not sure how it will taste when it arrives.   How 'bout some Boston Baked Beans or Lobster?   Or you can take a trip to Boston, with your wife of course, and my wife and I will wine and dine you when you get here.   I really do owe you for all the good advice that you have given to me the past few years.