Floating over acoustic underlayment
Planks lock together with a click system or glued tongue and groove, resting on dense foam or cork underlayment. It is the fastest route and the one that best dampens footstep noise for the neighbor below.
Real wood, stable core
Engineered hardwood flooring in Medellín
Pisos Pro Medellín is a company that does flooring and nothing else, with more than 15 years and over 900 jobs across the Aburrá Valley and Eastern Antioquia. We install engineered hardwood in apartments, houses, medical offices and workplaces.
This floor has a top layer of genuine wood, called the wear layer, bonded to a cross-ply core that holds movement in check. It is what we recommend to anyone who wants real oak, walnut or teak without the swelling risk that solid boards bring in a city with two rainy seasons a year.
Our own crew inspects the subfloor, installs the floor floating or glued down, and hands it over with transition strips, baseboards and a 1-year labor warranty.
- 2 to 6 mm wear layer
- Done in 3 to 5 days
- Safe over radiant heat
- 1-year warranty
Engineered hardwood installation in Medellín: what it is and what's included
Each plank is a sandwich: on top, 2 to 6 mm of hardwood with a factory-applied lacquer or oil; underneath, multi-ply plywood or a three-layer board with the grain crossed at 90 degrees. Those opposing grain directions are what keep the plank still when the air changes.
The service covers the visit, the subfloor moisture reading, the underlayment or adhesive, installation, transition strips, baseboards and final cleanup. There is no sanding or finishing on site, because the finish comes already applied.
That is why a 60 to 80 m² apartment is ready in 3 to 5 days, compared with the 8 to 12 needed for solid hardwood finished in place.
Wear layer, core and thickness: how to choose
In the showroom, two boxes with the same photo can have very different lifespans. Ask for the technical data sheet and check these three specs before comparing prices.
| Spec | Option | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|
| Wear layer | 0.6 to 1.5 mm | Thin veneer: cannot be sanded, only recoated |
| Wear layer | 2 to 3 mm | One full sanding over its life |
| Wear layer | 4 mm | Two or three sandings; a good choice for a family home |
| Wear layer | 6 mm | Up to four or five sandings; performs almost like solid wood |
| Core | Multi-ply plywood | The most stable, and the best match for radiant heating |
| Core | Three-layer (lamella) core | Stable and lighter; common in wide planks |
| Core | HDF | Cheapest, but suffers if water reaches the edges |
| Total thickness | 10 to 15 mm | Easy to float over existing tile |
| Total thickness | 15 to 21 mm | Stiffer; can be nailed over sleepers |
Floating, glue-down or nail-down: what suits your apartment
Glued to the slab
Laid in elastic MS polymer adhesive over a flat, dry slab. It feels firm underfoot, without the slight give of a floating floor, and it is the right technique over radiant heating.
Nailed over sleepers
For houses with a wooden upper floor or country homes in Eastern Antioquia where a frame already exists. It requires planks 15 mm thick or more.
What your building requires
Many condominium bylaws (propiedad horizontal) require acoustic underlayment under hard floors and limit work hours. Check with building management (administración) before choosing; our guide to building rules for floor renovation sums up the usual requirements.
Why engineered wood handles humidity better than solid
Wood expands far more across the grain than along it. In an engineered plank each core layer is turned relative to the one above, so when the wear layer tries to expand, the core holds it back.
In practice that means seams that do not open in January or lift in October. We still leave an 8 to 10 mm expansion gap around the perimeter, because the floor is still wood.
We recommend it for ground floors, apartments near streams (quebradas) and houses in Rionegro, La Ceja or Llanogrande, where cold, damp nights punish solid boards. Our guide to humidity and floors in Medellín explains how to read those conditions.
When we are called to inspect an engineered floor that failed, we almost always find one of these causes:
- A baseboard screwed down onto the planks, blocking expansion so the floor domes in the middle
- No polyethylene over a ground-floor slab, leaving dark stains at the seams within a few months
- Kitchen cabinets or islands set on top of a floating floor, leaving it no room to move
- An HDF-core product in a guest bathroom or next to the laundry patio door
- Aggressive sanding of a 2 mm wear layer that exposes the plywood
Engineered hardwood over radiant heat or existing tile
Over electric heating, the plank is fully glued and the thermostat is set so the surface never exceeds the manufacturer's limit, in most cases 27 °C (about 81 °F). We coordinate that installation with our radiant floor heating service.
Over existing tile, it can go in without demolition if the tile is sound and flat. We tap every piece with a rubber mallet to find hollow spots and confirm there is no more than 3 mm of deviation under a 2 m straightedge.
Loose tiles are re-bonded and deep grout lines are filled before the underlayment goes down. That way the plank never flexes over a void and starts creaking with time.
Engineered hardwood price per m²
In Medellín in 2026, installed engineered hardwood ranges from COP $180,000 to $380,000 per m². That combines material at $140,000 to $320,000 and labor at $40,000 to $65,000; the exact figure comes out of the site visit.
| Factor | Lowers the cost | Raises the cost |
|---|---|---|
| Wear layer | 2 to 3 mm | 4 to 6 mm |
| Species and grade | Rustic-grade oak with knots | Walnut or select oak without knots |
| Factory finish | Standard UV lacquer | Natural oil or hand-scraped |
| Format | Narrow, short planks | Wide planks longer than 1.8 m |
| Installation | Floating over sound tile | Glued after self-leveling |
Our installation process
- 1
Visit and subfloor assessment
We measure the rooms, inspect the tile or slab, take a subfloor moisture reading and decide between floating and glue-down.
- 2
Acclimation in sealed boxes
The unopened boxes sit in the apartment for 48 to 72 hours so they reach room temperature.
- 3
Barrier and underlayment or adhesive
For floating floors, 200-micron polyethylene with taped overlaps plus acoustic underlayment; for glue-down, adhesive spread with a notched trowel.
- 4
Installation with expansion gap
We mix planks from several boxes to blend the color and keep the perimeter gap at walls, columns and pipes.
- 5
Transitions, baseboards and cleanup
We fit transitions to bathrooms and kitchen, install baseboards and haul away offcuts and packaging.
- 6
Handover
We walk the floor with you, sign the completion record (acta) and leave cleaning instructions with products made for finished wood.
Engineered hardwood FAQ
What is the difference between engineered hardwood and laminate?
Engineered flooring has a layer of real wood you can touch, smell and, if it is thick enough, sand. Laminate flooring is a printed photo of wood over HDF, cheaper and more scratch resistant, but it cannot be renewed.
Can engineered hardwood be sanded?
Yes, if the wear layer allows it. A 2 to 3 mm layer takes one sanding, 4 mm takes two or three, and 6 mm up to four or five over its life.
Is a floating floor noisy in an apartment building?
A hollow sound appears when the underlayment is thin or the subfloor is uneven. We use high-density acoustic underlayment and correct the subfloor so the plank is supported across its whole surface.
Get a quote for engineered hardwood
Message us on WhatsApp, call, or fill in the form. We schedule a free visit and send you an itemized written quote.
The installation is backed by a 1-year labor warranty, on top of the manufacturer's warranty on the product itself.
Pisos Pro Medellín
Tv. 6 #45-115, El Poblado, Medellín, Antioquia, Colombia
Monday to Saturday: 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Sunday: 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.