Timber floor

[Pford75]

I've finally got to the stage of decorating the dining room and am currently considering flooring options.

I lifted the old carpet yesterday and it is clear that the (now) dining room was once configured very differently....the floorboards are a right old mish-mash. running in different directions, some infills only 12 inches long etc. I'd rather not lift all of the boards...but was hoping to have a timber floor. Is it possible/desirable to have a reclaimed solid timber floor laid on top of these boards?

Any tips/thoughts appreciated.

 

[MdB]

Good luck in finding a reclaimed floor. When we looked in Cornwall we only found a couple of poor quality pine floors that would have required an awful lot of work to be suitable to fit and it was more expensive than new American oak which is what we eventually went for. It does give a modern look though which wasn't a problem for our house but maybe for yours.

 

[Jon Maine]

I've finally got to the stage of decorating the dining room and am currently considering flooring options.

I lifted the old carpet yesterday and it is clear that the (now) dining room was once configured very differently....the floorboards are a right old mish-mash. running in different directions, some infills only 12 inches long etc. I'd rather not lift all of the boards...but was hoping to have a timber floor. Is it possible/desirable to have a reclaimed solid timber floor laid on top of these boards?

Any tips/thoughts appreciated.

Yes its is possible, its not desirable. It is a practice used over the centuries when one floor became weak they laid floorboards the other direction over the top.

I would advise it is not good practice, but understand your limitations. If you do go this route I would inspect the sub floor for any problems before you make it virtually inaccessible .

Agree with MdB reclaimed boards can be a lot of expense and work.

 

[Pford75]

Thanks for the feedback. So if the two alternatives were:

1. Lift existing boards and replace with reclaimed boards

2. Lay boards over the top (perhaps engineered instead of solid wood?)

Which would you recommend?

We've waited a long time to start on the dining room, so would rather wait even longer if required rather than compromise due to budget.

 

[MdB]

Engineered wood just sounds wrong to me for some reason. I guess I think of it being glorified plywood or something and it just doesn't seem to be the right thing for an old house.

This is our oak floor when it was freshly Ozmo'd:

and the same stuff turned into a door with a boiled linseed finish

 

[JoceAndChris]

Are your current boards absolutely out of the question? Because to me (haven't seen them so can't judge, but) higgledy and piggledy sounds quite nice!

Can we have some photos?

Can the floor be lifted and relaid, or bits lifted and relaid, so that the edges are nice, and the middle covered by a delicious rug?

 

[middi]

Whilst I agree with Jon to some extend that renewing the floor with reclaimed would work very well I am not absolutely convinced that it is the best way to deal with your situation. Not only this approach will involve a lot of work it would also destroy a lot of the original floor history, if the existing floor is sound it would be much simpler to overlay another floor of your choise above existing provided you can remove the , usually necessary, 25/30 mm off of the bottom of the ingress doors.

I believe it is a much better conservation and cheaper practice.

 

[Nigel Watts]

I'm with Joce - dont write off your existing floor so quickly.

Damaged boards can be replaced or mended and gaps between boards can be filled without having to lift and relay (which is also not really to be advised).

 

[Jon Maine]

Pictures please


We have floorboards going two directions in the Great Hall Chamber (aka our living room) It is quirky and looks good.

 

[JoceAndChris]

It certainly does!

Our unfinished wood floors here look appalling, but from the two I've done I can see that wax and rugs hide a multitude of sins. There's something very moving about the floorboards that people have lived on for so long, and if they're scruffy I think it adds to the charm. Beautiful furnishings, paint, lift the mood- you can get away with shabby here and there.

 

[Pford75]

The photos above show the kind of sections (which exist in apx 8-9 patches all over the room). What is not easilt spotted from the photos is that the joins appear to be higher than the rest of the room...ie. the floor has sunk or bowed. This means a substantial 'lip' around each patch of floorboards.

I do appreciate the desire to conserve (that is what we have done in several other rooms..some may recall in my gymnasium)...however, these are really poor by comparison and given the style and history of the house, the principal dining room (in my opinion) deserves a 'finer' look.

It is in part, my desire to conserve the floorboards which leans me towards laying over the top. (at least that way, someone else can easily undo the changes if they prefer)

 

[Moo]

Is there any reason why you've decided against laying carpet on top of the boards?

 

[JoceAndChris]

To me, your floor looks beautifully old and authentic. The different sections have a real charm. If you cover it up with new timber, it will of course look new. So it all depends on whether you like something old and a bit knackered looking or new and smooth and level. I find new floors boring personally. And does everything in the house need to be high status? Isn't it nice if there's contrast here and there? The room will be beautiful however the floor is.

The finish on the floor lets it down very badly, but you could see complete transformation on that, and that's where I'd spend the money, if it were mine.http://www.floorsanding-uk.com/GALLERY.html

 

[Nigel Watts]

Could the discontinuity be the result of subsequent knocking together of two rooms?

Personally I dislike the newness of modern hardwood flooring in old buildings, especially in such an elegent room as your appears to be. I have used it only in my basement and new extension.

Another option is to paint the foor. I am sure this is also an authentic treatment.

 

[Pford75]

Nigel - you are right that this is clearly two (or more) rooms knocked into one. We know from old photos that there used to be a glass conservatory off this room (to the right in the main photo). It also appears that where there is an arch in the room, this used to be a sold wall (doesn't appear that there was ever a door). From looking at the various joists and wall constructions, this room was previously 4 separate rooms and the layout has been changed considerably.

It was never our intention to lay a 'new' floor anyway. Hence my original question about reclaimed boards. I am tempted by the idea of having this one refinished by a company such as Joce referenced, but if they were to have to replace significant sections, then it does beg the question of why not put a reclaimed floor on top.

Moo - Most of our 'living' rooms are carpeted and with 3 young children this is the most practical finish and helps with the warmth of the rooms. We also don't have many 'posh' rooms anywhere in the house...all are very lived in. The dining room was perhaps the one room where we could indulge ourselves and create an 'adult' space for entertaining. It is simply a question of preferring the timber floor aesthetics to the carpet.

Incidentally, thoughts on the rug in the photo? We are considering using this as a base for the colour scheme in the room

 

[Moo]

Could the discontinuity be the result of subsequent knocking together of two rooms?

You may well be right, Nigel. We inherited something very similar, with the added bonus of a couple of patches of plywood in prominent places. Luckily for us, so many boards had to be lifted to facilitate wiring and plumbing that we ended up lifting the lot and doing a bit of rearrangement.

 

[JoceAndChris]

Pford- my apologies, I read the whole thread in a hurry. Of course you made it clear you wanted it to look old. I am sure that whatever you decide to do will be a lovely addition to your stunning house.

Your rug and colour schemes - how exciting! Presumably you don't wnat to do the popularist thing and have the red/plum/dark dining room then? Blue and gold would be lovely with that rug.

 

[Nigel Watts]

why not put a reclaimed floor on top.

Other reasons I dont like this are that it makes the floor higher than the hall or adjacent rooms and it changes the relationship to the skirtings and interferes horribly with any hearthstone, which should always be level with the floorboards (whatever modern building regs might say). Your ceilings look immensely high yet the skirtings seen relatively low - the one round the arch mush be a relacement I guess.

Most of our 'living' rooms are carpeted and with 3 young children this is the most practical finish

Not sure I agree with this. Let a child loose with a set of felt tip pens on a cream fitted carpet and you are in for trouble. Do the same on a highly patterned bold coloured rug and you probably wont notice a thing.