Floorboards - old and new!!

[Coles]

Hi,
.
I am pulling up the ugly laminate flooring and hardboard to reveal the original floor with the aim to get it sanded and then stained a darker colour.

As I have gone into the lean-to (I think that's what it's called) part of the room the floor boards look much newer and different sizes. It's all part of the original early 1900s house. Underneath this part is what I gather was coal storage.

If sanded and stained would it all look similar or should these boards be replaced with reclaimed boards?

I'm not even sure what wood the original floor is. Would it be pine?

 

[Cubist]

Certainly pine I think and - as some technically respected authorities here have previously asserted - it is one of the most difficult woods to stain or dye to a uniform finish due to its inherent qualities. Given your plan to sand the old boards anyway I would suggest you try sanding a small patch immediately next to one of the newer boards to see if you can get it even remotely close in surface colour without removing too much material. If you can that will provide a guide for a choice of stain or dye you might use to darken the new boards to a more reasonable match. BUT, one the pros will baulk at trying to get a good overall finish to even an age matched pine floor.

Take a look in the 'Projects' forum on this site and there you will find a fairly recent contribution from Toby Newell which discusses just this issue.

 

[Coles]

Certainly pine I think and - as some technically respected authorities here have previously asserted - it is one of the most difficult woods to stain or dye to a uniform finish due to its inherent qualities. Given your plan to sand the old boards anyway I would suggest you try sanding a small patch immediately next to one of the newer boards to see if you can get it even remotely close in surface colour without removing too much material. If you can that will provide a guide for a choice of stain or dye you might use to darken the new boards to a more reasonable match. BUT, one the pros will baulk at trying to get a good overall finish to even an age matched pine floor.
3
Take a look in the 'Projects' forum on this site and there you will find a fairly recent contribution from Toby Newell which discusses just this issue.

Thank you. The old boards are more yellowy orange. These newer ones are paler and look a bit cheap and splinter quite easily. It is only a small area of newer boards. I assumed the original boards would have been stained originally but I found newspaper print which had come off the paper onto the boards and the print is from a 1934/35. So if they were once stained it was a very long time ago. But I guess in an early 1900's house it could be linoleum that covered the floor.

I have been reading Toby Newell's website too which is helpful.

 

[Cubist]

Before the advent and fashion of 'fitted carpets' large rugs were the most common floor covering and homeowners would often paint the exposed perimeter. Stains were sometimes used but you should hope not in your home - it can be a real PITA to deal with.

 

[Coles]

Before the advent and fashion of 'fitted carpets' large rugs were the most common floor covering and homeowners would often paint the exposed perimeter. Stains were sometimes used but you should hope not in your home - it can be a real PITA to deal with.

Actually the edges are darker so perhaps they had a large rug with loads of newspapers under them. As the print is all over the place. Had to mirror reverse to read it.

 

[Jonty1234]

We've recently removed old carpets/lino/newspaper to sand the floors in our house and found something similar. Mostly old / original pine floorboards interspersed with a few newer boards here and there, presumably where the originals were damaged at some point over the years. Once the original boards were sanded they became a similar shade to the newer boards but, for the patch we tried, the newer boards didn't absorb the oil we applied in the same way so there is a clear colour difference. In our case I think we'll look to replace the newer boards with 'originals' as the newer boards are also slightly narrower.

 

[Coles]

We've recently removed old carpets/lino/newspaper to sand the floors in our house and found something similar. Mostly old / original pine floorboards interspersed with a few newer boards here and there, presumably where the originals were damaged at some point over the years. Once the original boards were sanded they became a similar shade to the newer boards but, for the patch we tried, the newer boards didn't absorb the oil we applied in the same way so there is a clear colour difference. In our case I think we'll look to replace the newer boards with 'originals' as the newer boards are also slightly narrower.

Thanks, I think we will replace with reclaimed as the new ones are wider, but will take advice. I can see what they have done now. Under that part of the floor is the old coal store, they have lowered the ceiling in the coal storage for pipework on top and accessed it through the top floor. Then replaced the boards with new ones. I have to say now the laminate and hardboard is all gone, the temperature has dropped considerably. But it had go.