original floorboards HELP!

5 years ago

Please help! I pulled up my yucky carpet and I would like to restore the original floorboards.
I hope to hire a sander tomorrow to get started and then I will varnish.
Does anyone have any tips I should keep in mind for when I do this? And also, what should I do about the little gaps in the floor so that we don’t freeze in the cold weather?
Thank you in advance!

Featured Answer

E D

5 years ago

Although I do like the look of old but revamped floorboards, we decided against having our Victorian boards being the flooring, so to speak.

Apart from the fact a lot of boards were damaged, which would mean even more work, the gaps between them were plenty and quite wide. We didn't like the prospect of having a draughty floor.

I may be wrong but I do think the pine floorboards were always meant to be covered by other flooring or at least by rugs or carpets.

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Comments (31)

Carolina
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
Great find! Love those old floorboards. Perhaps this B&Q instruction video helps: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMPgJnfcC8I
Tani H-S
5 years ago
Tips - a lot of patience, cautious with the edger as it’s easy to gouge out the floor as it’s v powerful. Expect LOTS of dust. Everywhere. Wear goggles and a dust sheet
Sander is heavy and requires strong arms

That’s the downside part of sanding. Done it twice and the OH vowed never to do it again he hates it.

If you have hardwood floors then definately worth it. If softwood then it will mark very easily - especially in a hall so be wary.

Definately watch lots of ‘how to’ videos and there are some we watched from companies who can sand for you but who also show you how to do it professionally

Hope it goes well!

Oh and if you can hire a professional sander rather than a big drum sander, that would make a huge difference!!
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Rob
Original Author
5 years ago
Thank you for your comments! Carolina- that video was very helpful, thanks!
Tani- thank you for your tips, I’ve been watching loads of how to vids. I am hiring the below sander combination, do you think they will do the job?
Tani H-S
5 years ago
They are the ones I had and they are blinking hard work

It’s worth just double checking to see if you can hire professional ones near to you first - rather than those, as I think they are the old style that kick up dust like a sandstorm. If you can’t then that’s your only option.

Just check on a floor sanding company website first to see what they use. Hiring is a bit more expensive but they do a much better and cleaner job apparently
Sonia
5 years ago
We sanded our sitting room floorboards several years ago and even though some had paint and vinyl pieces welded to the floor, the sander did bring them up very nicely. As Tani says, oh the dust! We also swore never to do it again! We used diamond hard varnish to finish them, which we had to do late in the day as it needs to dry overnight, and of course we couldn’t walk on it. We did three coats. Despite the name, it isn’t diamond hard and after a few years it started to deteriorate and began to look scruffy. Also my dogs claws gouged it. We found it draughty too and after a very cold winter we’d had enough and laid laminate over the top. I know it seems sacrilege, but we’d had enough. Much cosier now!
Alex Wickson
5 years ago
We used osmo polyx oil instead of varnish. Brilliant and so quick to apply. Much deeper, natural colour than varnish. Also shows all the natural grain. You Can finish it with a satin or shiny top coat. Good luck with the dust! A real labour of love but worth it!
A B
5 years ago
Tani what do you mean by a professional sander? We are doing ours soon I’m dreading it!
Tani H-S
5 years ago
Eek @Jen

Well it’s set up differently to the big drum sanders I believe.

Try this company for example, who hire out their equipment http://professionalfloorsanding.com/mobile/floor-sanding-bristol/

I know it may be not in your area but it’s worth just asking them what the sander is like compared to the drum ones and how much they are. Or find a local pro who hire them out.
alisonmb7
5 years ago
I've sanded the majority of our four bed semi with a hand held sander. Just finished our bedroom which only took about four hours (4m x 5m). Like you we had dark stained boards and I just wanted to remove the paint without taking off so much you can't see the history of the boards. with osmo oil -glossy, they look fantastic, very dark.

Upstairs obviously easier as there isn't a draft, but downstairs we completely insulated under them, otherwise it would be unliveable.

If the boards are relatively soft and aren't covered in that Victorian tar stain then you could try a patch with a hand held sander.
nmlondon
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago

E D, totally agree. recently bought the 30s house that has got the exposed pine board flooring throughout, which was sanded and filled. However it is too soft, ugly orange, of the inferior quality as it was never intended as the actual floor. The gaps have reappeared everywhere. I use the osmo polish oil and the floors look good, for the first two hours. Goes without saying, we will be covering the boards.
liz gear
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
If you can afford to, I'd suggest get a man with a sander in. If property is Victorian you can put insulation in the void underneath. Again might be a good to get a man in as might involve removing skirting to do this. Just realised this is a non PC post, should add women can do this too.

Had sanded boards in a previous Victorian home and have some sanded floors in more recent 1970s house. Have found Osmo products to be very good.
Rob
Original Author
5 years ago
Thank you all for your comments! they’re all so helpful.
Since it’s such a small space (about 1.5x3m), i think I’ll just go for it. Hopefully happening next weekend so I’ll update you with how it’s gone (and whether I’ve survived the process) ! :D
Resh
5 years ago
google "old pine slivers". you wedge and glue these between the gaps, chisel roughly flat, and then sand. I topped with Oslo PolyX oil. be aware that as the floorboards move (and they will), some gaps will re-appear. you can wedge little plastic trims into the gaps to stop draughts - you'll see the gap but get no draught! This is our kitchen before and after. the colour is natural - no stain: this is Victorian pitch pine. the upstairs boards were a more golden colour than the kitchen when done, for some reason.
Resh
5 years ago
some more before and afters to hopefully encourage you! living room.
PRO
i-architect
5 years ago
If you're planning to have bare floorboards on the ground floor over a suspended timber ground floor with a vented floor void beneath then you would be wise to consider carefully the option of insulating underneath them. It can cause some damage to the boards to lift them, but this can be dealt with by a good professional floor finisher or joiner. Then use breather membrane to fix over the joists and carry the insulation - check with the manufacturer of the breather membrane you'd like to use to check the detail on this to make sure it's going to be OK and you can ask them to do some condensation calcs for you. The breather membrane will help with airtightness. Use insulation that will fill the full depth of the joists - I prefer to use insulation that has recycled content like plastic bottles / newspaper / recycled glass. Make sure that when you get the condensation calcs done that you tell them what thickness of insulation you'll use. Then refit the floorboards and have them finished. Most damage can be repaired with wood filler and stained to match the floor boards. Then you can get little V shaped strips that you push down the gaps between the boards and you can add a silicon or mastic sealant as well if you really want a belt and braces approach to blocking drafts! It's also possible to retrofit underfloor heating at the same time if you'd like to. Hope this helps.
Resh
5 years ago
great post above: should have mentioned breathable insulation! we did this and it makes a difference. also can help with noise on intermediate floors.
Tani H-S
5 years ago
Now when we were looking into our for our old house I did find a company that made this special tape specifically for this draft issue.

It was a v shaped plastic on a reel and you cut it to length then squeezed it together to fit into the gap and it opened back out to secure itself between the boards. They did different colours ie grey or black I think.
Worth looking into if you don’t fancy lifting all the floors?

Also the old way of filling in the gaps was to use the sawdust from sanding, mixed with some pva glue and brushed into the gaps. It will overtime fall through though as previously mentioned above.
PRO
i-architect
5 years ago
Yes Tani - I think the v shaped plastic you're describing is the same kind that I meant. A client of mine used these for a DIY project and they were extremely pleased with the results.
PRO
Verity & Beverley Ltd
5 years ago
Hi, great little how to on floor sanding here https://www.littlehouseonthecorner.com/how-to-sand-floorboards/ not our blog but just one I have read and thought might be helpful. The V shaped plastic strip is great stuff and very easy to install its called StopGap. you can get rolls of it on amazon, brown is best as it doesn't show in the shadow of the floor gaps.
minnie101
5 years ago
We're considering exposing our floor boards upstairs next year as I'm not a huge fan of carpets and the current carpet needs replacing. I came across this article which may be of interest although it seems very labour intensive!

http://www.buildingconservation.com/articles/timberfloor/timberfloor.htm
Rob
Original Author
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
Once again everyone, thank you for taking the time to comment your advice. In the end we went for hand held sanders to get the job done since the large sanders sounded so hard to use and it saved us money! Took just over a day but I’m so pleased with the result.
Now, what varnish would you recommend for this colour of wood? I’d like a matte finish as I’m not a huge fan of shiny floors.
A B
5 years ago
Is it pine? We are putting a whitener down first then clear varnish. We were going to have oil but too worried about spills. Ronseal do a matt clear varnish, but couldn’t find a stockist so have gone for satin. Applying it today so fingers crossed! Yours look great btw :)
A B
5 years ago
The white is to stop it yellowing over time rather than to stain it btw
alisonmb7
5 years ago
Hand held sanders! Osmo polyx oil, Matt or satin, will make the floor darker, although i think they have a natural one which contains whitener. But always polyx oil, harder than varnish, easier to apply and brilliant to touch up if you scratch the floor.
A B
5 years ago
Alison we were going to go for this, but we were told it wasn't very water resistant and could stain unless a spill mopped up quickly- hope we haven't made a huge mistake...
alisonmb7
5 years ago
Well, we've not had a problem. But we don't have it in very wet areas. We've put an absorbent mat at the front door.
Rob
Original Author
5 years ago
Thanks guys. I’m now glossing the skirting before varnishing and once I have varnished (hopefully end of this week), I will share a picture :-)
Rob
Original Author
5 years ago
Thanks guys. I’m now glossing the skirting before varnishing and once I have varnished (hopefully end of this week), I will share a picture :-)
liz gear
5 years ago
This is how our Karndean floor looks.
PRO
Italian Design Ltd
5 years ago
as mentioned before, the exposed pine floorboards are the structural element of your floor. They were fitted to support a membrane and carpet on top. Pine floorboards were not designed to be walked on directly. Pine is a type softwood, easy to mark and stain. Planks are not tongue and grooved and therefore there will always be a bit of draft. They do look rustic and "original" but especially on ground floors you may find that have technical limitations. Also they were fitted sideway, whereas longways fitted boards enhance the room length