Wooden Floors - anyone fitted solid oak?
Discussion
In my kitchen/diner/kids play room area we have a real wood floor but a veneer (ie 3.6 mm of OAK and then it slots together like a laminate.
Anyway it needs to come up as there was a leak - the insurance company will pay and have suggested £40 a sq metre. They will also pay for fitting, skirtings, decorating etc.. So probably quite a big bill.
I am worried about the stone fireplace as it was fitted when the flooring went in 5 yrs ago (ie the whole area was gutted and refitted 5 yrs ago). the fireplace sits on the granite hearth than sits slightly proud of the wood floor that extends a little way (not sure how far) under the granite. Want to avoid knackering the fireplace as very expensive one! Albeit ins co will pay if needed.
The room is a little wonky (old ish house) ie the main area is a suspended floor but the kithcen diner is concrete. The areas from the diner to the kitchen slopes off slightly and the main play area suspended floor also slopes away slightly. The laminate style flooring dealt with this well.
Anways - my question relates to solid flooring. I have been offered some solid oak at an excellent price. I am getting a sample so will work out if it is so thick that it creates fitting issues eg under granite hearth. What about fitting over different flooring types and with areas that slope. I think the main play area is fine as that is a gradual slop over a 2 metre distance. The slope between diner and kitchen though is probably an inch drop over 1/2 a metre (two rooms knocked together with slightly different levels). I dont want the ins co builder having to 'renovate' to get this fitted.
Any advice or guidance appreciated!!!
Anyway it needs to come up as there was a leak - the insurance company will pay and have suggested £40 a sq metre. They will also pay for fitting, skirtings, decorating etc.. So probably quite a big bill.
I am worried about the stone fireplace as it was fitted when the flooring went in 5 yrs ago (ie the whole area was gutted and refitted 5 yrs ago). the fireplace sits on the granite hearth than sits slightly proud of the wood floor that extends a little way (not sure how far) under the granite. Want to avoid knackering the fireplace as very expensive one! Albeit ins co will pay if needed.
The room is a little wonky (old ish house) ie the main area is a suspended floor but the kithcen diner is concrete. The areas from the diner to the kitchen slopes off slightly and the main play area suspended floor also slopes away slightly. The laminate style flooring dealt with this well.
Anways - my question relates to solid flooring. I have been offered some solid oak at an excellent price. I am getting a sample so will work out if it is so thick that it creates fitting issues eg under granite hearth. What about fitting over different flooring types and with areas that slope. I think the main play area is fine as that is a gradual slop over a 2 metre distance. The slope between diner and kitchen though is probably an inch drop over 1/2 a metre (two rooms knocked together with slightly different levels). I dont want the ins co builder having to 'renovate' to get this fitted.
Any advice or guidance appreciated!!!
I fitted solid oak T&G flooring when I did my bathroom about a year ago. So long as its been seasoned properly, its good stuff to work with. It will last hundreds of years if looked after.
The price you quoted seems about right, however look around as the quality varies considerably. I got English green oak.
If its T&G then all you need is a chopsaw to cut the boards, if you need to join 2 boards in the middle of the floor you just use the ends of the planks that haven't been cut with the saw - they'll retain the tongue and groove. Try and make these joins happen above the joists, if you can't don't worry too much as its strong stuff.
Don't worry about the fireplace, any decent joiner will be able to get the wood underneath it. While you have the floorboards off, its a very good idea to check the integrity of the chimney breast underneath the boards - check the pointing is all in good condition. Use the correct materials, if its a lime render then don't use cement, in fact just don't use cement on an old house if you can avoid it. My front room fireplace at some point had a backboiler, and I still haven't gotten around to filling the hole under the floorboards properly. I'm not too worried though as the base is solid concrete and no air gets sucked up (or coals drop down!)
Its much easier to fix the chimney when the boards are up!
Also, check that the joists are all nice and secure. Its a good idea to secure them against movement, that way your floor will be less likely to creak/groan when you're walking on it. Check where they're fixed into the walls and strengthen if necessary. Check for rot at the ends, if theres any sign then replace that joist.
Secret nailing is difficult - if you're going to try it, get a powered hammer - don't use the ratchet ones, they're not powerful enough for oak. Personally I just used oval headed nails and whacked them in onto the joists. You can barely see them, and tbh you could just countersink them and fill the tops with coloured sawdust.
Be prepared for a bit of creaking and groaning as the boards adjust to the ambient moisture level in the room. Make sure when they're fitted that they have room to expand (within reason) so they don't warp. If you can, it helps to keep the boards inside your house for a few weeks before you fit them. You'll be able to avoid using the warped ones that way.
Don't use artificial varnish on them as they're not very good at allowing the wood to breath. To protect them, I suggest oiling them, I used Danish Oil on mine. It will probably need re-applying every 12 months, but its an easy job and not particularly messy. Just put it on in weak, thin layers, and allow it to dry completely.
Finally, its a good idea to leave the 'last' board with some method of getting it out easily - in case you have to pull them up again, it makes life much easier. I suggest not nailing it into place, just light glue.
Those were taken before the boards were cleaned up and oiled (and the walls are painted now, and skirting is in!)
>> Edited by Parrot of Doom on Monday 13th February 14:43
The price you quoted seems about right, however look around as the quality varies considerably. I got English green oak.
If its T&G then all you need is a chopsaw to cut the boards, if you need to join 2 boards in the middle of the floor you just use the ends of the planks that haven't been cut with the saw - they'll retain the tongue and groove. Try and make these joins happen above the joists, if you can't don't worry too much as its strong stuff.
Don't worry about the fireplace, any decent joiner will be able to get the wood underneath it. While you have the floorboards off, its a very good idea to check the integrity of the chimney breast underneath the boards - check the pointing is all in good condition. Use the correct materials, if its a lime render then don't use cement, in fact just don't use cement on an old house if you can avoid it. My front room fireplace at some point had a backboiler, and I still haven't gotten around to filling the hole under the floorboards properly. I'm not too worried though as the base is solid concrete and no air gets sucked up (or coals drop down!)
Its much easier to fix the chimney when the boards are up!
Also, check that the joists are all nice and secure. Its a good idea to secure them against movement, that way your floor will be less likely to creak/groan when you're walking on it. Check where they're fixed into the walls and strengthen if necessary. Check for rot at the ends, if theres any sign then replace that joist.
Secret nailing is difficult - if you're going to try it, get a powered hammer - don't use the ratchet ones, they're not powerful enough for oak. Personally I just used oval headed nails and whacked them in onto the joists. You can barely see them, and tbh you could just countersink them and fill the tops with coloured sawdust.
Be prepared for a bit of creaking and groaning as the boards adjust to the ambient moisture level in the room. Make sure when they're fitted that they have room to expand (within reason) so they don't warp. If you can, it helps to keep the boards inside your house for a few weeks before you fit them. You'll be able to avoid using the warped ones that way.
Don't use artificial varnish on them as they're not very good at allowing the wood to breath. To protect them, I suggest oiling them, I used Danish Oil on mine. It will probably need re-applying every 12 months, but its an easy job and not particularly messy. Just put it on in weak, thin layers, and allow it to dry completely.
Finally, its a good idea to leave the 'last' board with some method of getting it out easily - in case you have to pull them up again, it makes life much easier. I suggest not nailing it into place, just light glue.
Those were taken before the boards were cleaned up and oiled (and the walls are painted now, and skirting is in!)
>> Edited by Parrot of Doom on Monday 13th February 14:43
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