Lifting very old floorboards

James Peach · 17 Aug 2021 at 12:29

Anyone have any experience with this? They appear to be nailed in. I've pulled out the wood filler from between one of them (it was falling apart anyway).

They appear to be nailed down in many many places. Youtube videos make it look very easy but I can't see how I'm going to do this without breaking/ruining the ones adjacent to it.

Are there specialised tools?

James Peach · 17 Aug 2021 at 14:06

Chiselling around the nail would surely damage them, no?
I want to sand them, treat them and put them back in with the gaps equidistant.

Here's what I'm dealing with:

James Peach · 19 Aug 2021 at 11:42

Update;
these are seriously old.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/i64fnjxn1svsu83/IMG_5015.MOV?dl=0

Not going to be able to remove them so now I need to

- remove filler
- suck out all the awful things below the filler
- sand boards
- refill
- treat.

James Peach · 19 Aug 2021 at 14:28

Semple said:
Will be more costly, but would certainly be a lot quicker, and save the faff of having to try and pry out the nails.

Well there's no way I can lift them; they're about six inches in depth (see the video I just posted).

There are a lot and I rather like them; they're around a hundred years old.

James Peach · 19 Aug 2021 at 14:34

dLockers said:
Definitely sand refill and treat. Looks like a lovely original floor.

Can you squeeze a wire down one of the gaps? Could get you the couple of plugs you want under the sofa?

Good shout.
I can

I'll need to use some conduit but I can send wires down there and have them pop up under the sofa which will be fantastic.

- Do you think I need to plane the edges of the boards too where the filler has taken away a bit of the wood?

- Any ideas how to get out all of the dust and dirt that's packed between the boards? Hoover only does so much .

- How does one sand into the corners? I checked the sander lender place and they have a separate sander "for edges." Which is a bit frustrating as means I'll have to rent two machines and I'm concerned results from one machine will differ to another.

James Peach · 19 Aug 2021 at 14:40

dLockers said:
On the edges I'd use some very coarse sandpaper just to quickly nip off the very lose bits. Don't go too hectic as you'll end up taking chunks out.

Dust and dirt - just push it down the hole. Don't worry about getting it out too much.

Corner sanding is only possible by either a corner sander or renting the separate machine. It'll blend in but worst case finish by hand.

I know you have a lot of depth to play with but don't sand more than the top half a mill off or whatever.

Good shout. How do I prevent sanding more than the top half mill? A setting on the machine I presume.

Would a corner sander be able to do the whole lot then? Not just corners?

I CAN'T PUSH THE DIRT INTO THE HOLE. I can't know it's down there. It's awful. There's so much. God knows what it is.

James Peach · 19 Aug 2021 at 14:48

dLockers said:
Follow the instructions carefully and watch lots of YouTube videos.

Corner sander will only be sensible for corners.

Trust me, push the dirt and forget about it. You don't want to knacker yourself out on stuff that doesn't need to be done. I get the OCD angle but it's a waste of time!

Ok

Sorry; you said "Corner sanding is only possible by either a corner sander or renting the separate machine." I thought the separate machine *was* the corner sander. Unless you meant rent a person do sand the corners but, tbh, that's not a great way to put it. "Hire" sounds much better and you pretty much accomplish the same thing.

So, either way, I need two machines.

And getting the old filler out? Is that just a case of using a knife on hands and knees (which is what I've been doing thus far).

Do I need to buy a specific filler that allows for shrinking and expanding in hot and cold and also that allows for treatment? Ideally it'll be fairly close colour to the boards themselves.

James Peach · 28 Aug 2021 at 14:03

Thanks all.
I've basically discover that they are at least 7" deep. that's right. My floorboards are 7" deep. Each one. So there's no chance of lifting them.
So I'm just going to sand them and then treat them.
Unsure whether to rent a massive sander or just use an orbital one myself. Probs the former.

Also need to look into treating price.

Question; what's the best way to cut a hold in a piece of wood when you can't get all the way through. A Dremel, right?
I want to fit a USB-C power hub in there but can't work out a way of doing it neatly.

James Peach · 28 Aug 2021 at 19:16

dLockers said:
Router

And how do I saw the bit at the bottom? The bit underneath? I'm not going to go all the way through the floorboards

James Peach · 29 Aug 2021 at 14:01

LuckyBenski said:
I don't know exactly what you mean by saw the bottom... But if you want a hole that doesn't go through (a blind hole), use a Forstner bit. Or just a spade bit if you want cheap and fast.

I sort of didn't understand how a plunge router worked; I assumed you cut four lines and then I wondered how you managed to slice the underside of it.
Basically I was imagining trying to spoon it out in some way : )

I bought a plunge router and a straight bit and I'm basically proposing I go to town on my floorboards and make the entire thing just made of power sockets.

James Peach · 30 Aug 2021 at 10:54

Nutty_Death said:
Long term putting filler between boards isn't a good option as it'll eventually fall through.

what's the alternative? Leaving the gaps? The problem is that it's 7 inches or so depth and there's a LOT of dust and nasty stuff inside there that I simply can't get out.

James Peach · 30 Aug 2021 at 12:19

Nutty_Death said:
I suggested an alternative in my post before the one you quoted.
Old floorboard slivers. It'll give you a much better finish and because they are wedge shaped they are less likely to fall through.

My bad. I did read your post but had yet too look up the slivers. I got thinking about that Sharon Stone movie; Sliver which was not good. Let us hope they bolster my floorboards more than they did Sharon Stone's career.

Side note; I think I didn't recognise the post bc of the profile picture sitch on this site which is (actually not unlike Sharon Stone's oeuvre) fun but ultimately frustrating.

James Peach · 30 Aug 2021 at 13:10

Nutty_Death said:
I suggested an alternative in my post before the one you quoted.
Old floorboard slivers. It'll give you a much better finish and because they are wedge shaped they are less likely to fall through.

Is it a problem that they're all different sizes and change widths?

A video explaining the sitch and referencing SS.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/fexqx9ca4ckvhwn/IMG_5251.MOV?dl=0

Also I've rented a sander for next Monday. Is it best to have them all filled and ready for then? if so I may need to reschedule the sander. I got a bit ahead of myself.
Perhaps you have to fill and then so they're all the same height?

James Peach · 31 Aug 2021 at 10:57

dLockers said:
Try and build yourself a jig to stop it being all jaggedy. Doesn't need to be complex - outline on the floor in masking paper and an old bit of wood to keep the router straight and true.

thanks!

James Peach · 31 Aug 2021 at 11:26

dLockers said:
Try and build yourself a jig to stop it being all jaggedy. Doesn't need to be complex - outline on the floor in masking paper and an old bit of wood to keep the router straight and true.

I need you to know that because of your message I have the song "yo diggity" in my head but with the lyrics replaced with "all jaggedy." I'm telling you this because it's torture and I want you to experience it too.
"I like the way you work it ... all jaggedy."

James Peach · 31 Aug 2021 at 11:30

dLockers said:
I really want some of what you are taking.

don't pretend you're not humming it

James Peach · 31 Aug 2021 at 13:54

Nutty_Death said:
An example. Scroll the pictures and you'll see what I mean by width. Obviously you want to match the wood to your floorboards. Who knows what would yours are as 7inches sounds like you've got rows of joists as floorboards
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FLOORBOA...2349624.m46890.l49286&mkrid=710-127635-2958-0

Here's a picture of a stair from the staircase leading up to my apartment. Presume it's the same wood. Probs ~6" I think.
Is it pine?
How would I match it with the slivers?

James Peach · 31 Aug 2021 at 19:53

Does anyone know of a tool that would allow me to cut a section of the floorboard out (not going all the way through) leaving the section intact?
Bearing in mind that I don't have much access to the sides of the wood.
I'd like to be able to do this:

But, obviously, I can't cut all the way through the wood and I can't figure out a way to cut horizontally without having access to the sides (apart from maybe a cm)

James Peach · 6 Oct 2021 at 12:35

Ok. I have the slivers. I have the gaps. I do not have the skillset.

Here is a video. Please advise.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/39mzy73oogc10dw/IMG_5801.MOV?dl=0

James Peach · 6 Oct 2021 at 13:45

alexakasloth said:
Fill in the small differences with a paste of sawdust and wood glue once you have the slivers in and level.

Oh. I was just coming back here to ask whether I should level them out with a circular saw and a jig or something?

I also need to cut out the filler from between a lot of the other floorboards. I've been using a multitool to do it but obviously I'm fairly clumsy and not very patient so I've made some mistakes. I thought perhaps it would be easier to just do it ALL with a circular tool and a jig. Good idea? Bad idea?