Hjælmø End Grain Flooring

Product data

Product: Untreated end grain bricks
Waste source: Discarded product from window production
Application: Floor
Wood species: FSC certified pine
Origin: Northern Europe
Weight: 11 kg. pr. m² at 22 mm thickness
Dimensions: 50-60x100-120mm
Tolerances: +/- 1 mm, in each dimension
Delivery: 6-8 week from order confirmation
Installation: Glued
Collaboration partner:: Norto

Origin of the product

Hjælmø end grain floor is upcycled from offcuts and cut-outs accumulated during the production of pine glulam boards and window frames. Today, the sorting criteria are so rigorous that excessive amounts of good quality wood are wasted. The wood is sorted out due to knots, which does not matter in terms of durability and strength, when used as a brick floor. Furthermore, offcuts from ordinary production can be further cut down and also used as end grain flooring. If this waste source had not been saved, the wood would have been ground up and burned for heating, despite the high value of the wood. In the past, hard-wearing end grain floors have been used for industrious indoor environments, such as workshops. Our end grain floor made from offcuts and cut-outs is a finalist at Danish Design Awards 2022 in the Save Resources category. The jury states: "This is an outstanding example of a solution that reuses and recycles resources from another supply chain. Using the right resources in the right places and transforming wood, this design solution shows how to best use what would otherwise be considered waste. It’s fascinating to witness how the wood materials can be recrafted beautifully and, most importantly, the product contributes to starting relevant conversations about recycling and upcycling materials". Hjælme is a sturdy and incredibly hard-wearing type of grass, often found at Vesterhavet, along Denmark's western coastline. Similarly, Hjælmø is a sturdy, hard-wearing floor also from the danish west coast.

Patterns

The bricks can be laid in a myriad of ways. Here we have showcased three versions. You are more than welcome to contact us with questions and for input on which type of pattern might suit your needs best.

Aesthetics & finishes

As the bricks are made of discarded wood, the floor will appear with many visible knots. Spaces between the bricks will occur over time and the size will vary throughout the year. This is the case for all wooden floors, as this is an organic product. We do NOT recommend that the gaps be filled with putty or glue.

Depending on the surface treatment, annual rings and knots will emerge more or less clearly. Shown are two different surface treatments, that result in starkly different appearances.

White pigmented oil

Linseed oil

Technical specifications

Delivery
6-8 weeks delivery time from confirmed order. We stock 500m2.

Storage
The bricks are delivered on pallets or in pallet boxes.
Please remember: Immediately after delivery or receiving, and always before the “Goods” are used, processed or installed, to review the delivered “Goods” to ensure that these are defect-free, including that color and shade differences are within acceptable limits. The bricks must not be exposed to direct water. If kept in a moisture absorbing packaging material, such as cardboard, do not place this directly on a concrete floor or similar to avoid condensation.

Before mounting, place the bricks in unopened packaging for a minimum of 8 days in a dry and closed room, where the bricks will be installed. This is to acclimatise the material and to avoid cracks, fissures or unintended extensions of the wood.

Upon storage, the temperature must be 18-24 degrees and the relative humidity 40-60% RH.

Before assembly, we recommend making moisture measurements in different places in the room, where the bricks are to be installed. The wooden bricks must remain in the packaging until use, so that the bricks are always stored under the right temperature and humidity conditions. The above temperature and humidity conditions apply both before, during and after the laying of the end grain bricks. It is important that all work that adds moisture to the room – e.g. masonry and painting work – are carried out before the laying of the wooden bricks.

Disposal
At disposal, the wood is handed in at a recycling station or second-hand dealer. If the bricks have been treated with soap after laying, the bricks can be sorted as clean tree. If they are treated with oil or varnish, they should be sorted as painted wood.

Maintenance
The floor must be washed regularly. Always remove dirt with a vacuum cleaner before starting up floor washing. The end grain wood bricks must not come into direct contact with water during cleaning. Use a wrung-out floor cloth or similar to clean the wooden bricks.
Maintenance and cleaning must also be done according to the instructions of the supplier of the product used for surface treatment.
Since end grain wood bricks are of an organic natural material, they will eventually change color, hue and glow. Over time, minor cracks might appear in the bricks as it is a natural part of the wood’s development process.

Installation guide

Before laying
The end wood bricks can be installed on a subfloor of concrete, chipboard or plywood with minimum the same thickness as the bricks. The subfloor must be clean and dry and must not deviate more than 2 mm over a 2 meter straight surface.
The bricks must not be exposed to direct water, and the packaging must not be placed directly on a concrete floor or similar.
place the bricks in unopened packaging for a minimum of 8 days in a dry and closed room where the bricks will be installed. This is to acclimatise the bricks and to avoid cracks, fissures or unintended extensions of the wood.

The following room conditions must be maintained:

Room temperature: 18-24℃
Relative humidity of the room: 40-60% RH

Before installation, we recommend making moisture measurements in different places in the room where the bricks will be installed. The end grain bricks must remain in the packaging until use to ensure bricks are kept at the right temperature and humidity conditions at all times. The above temperature and humidity conditions apply both before, during and after the laying of the end grain bricks. It is important that all work that adds moisture to the room, e.g. masonry and painting work, is carried out before laying the end grain bricks. We refer to following the given adhesive supplier’s instructions in relation to gluing and laying of bricks.

Laying
We recommend that the laying of the end grain bricks is performed by a professional. MS Parquet glue 268 from Dana Lim can be used for gluing the end grain bricks. If another glue is used, the instructions from the adhesive supplier must be complied with. MS Parquet glue 268 carries an indoor climate label according to Emicode EC 1PLUS. It is the responsibility of the individual fitter to ensure that the wooden bricks are mounted correctly according to the instructions in the installation guide. For questions or doubts about gluing and laying of the end grain bricks, we recommend to contact the given adhesive supplier. We refer in addition to complying with applicable building regulations. The subfloor must be insulated so that moisture cannot penetrate into the construction. The subfloor can be with or without underfloor heating.
Depending on the type of subfloor, it can be necessary with a moisture barrier. Follow the adhesive supplier’s instructions in relation to any use of moisture barrier.

The end grain bricks can be installed in both a latitude and longitude direction, or in any other desired pattern. Since wood is a living and organic material, the wood will expand and shrink with changes in humidity. The bricks must be installed with 15 mm distance to edges and fixed installations so that the bricks can expand upon changes in humidity.

After laying
Surface treatment of the end grain wood must be carried out at the earliest 48 hours after laying. The sanding must be done carefully too, to get a good result. We therefore recommend that the work is performed by a professional.

Course of action:

Sand the floor with a floor sander diagonally of the bricks. Use an edge sanding for sanding edges and areas by radiator pipes etc. Start with 40 grit and finish with 80 grit
Finish the sanding of the floor with a rotary sander, 100-120 grit
Vacuum the floor and adjacent surfaces (e.g. window sills) vacuum thoroughly before further surface treatment is started. Vacuum only, no other cleaning methods are required.

After sanding, the surface should appear level and smooth and without discrepancies between the end grain bricks. Surface treatment should be performed immediately after sanding. To saturate the wood, surface treatment may be needed several times as end grain wood has a high absorption ability.

Contact a professional for advice on the best surface treatment of the end grain bricks. We recommend giving the bricks a soap or oil treatment.

After laying, the following room conditions must be maintained:

Temperature: 18-24℃
Relative humidity: 40-60% RH