sanding? or completely new floor?

[skye]

My upstairs wood floors appear to be about the same age as the house (a couple of centuries) and  although generally flat and apparently solid suffer from worm holes inplaces and general wear and tear, i.e. pretty shabby. Question: is sanding likely to be adequate or could new wooden tongue and groove be layed over top? (An architect who looked at the house when I was buying it originally suggested this but  I'm not sure how to go about it -  i.e. something between the old and the new like a liner or just straight over? Has anyone else done this? Any advice much appreciated...

Skye

[Ssc]

I am in exactly the same situation and am debating which is best. Old floor is structurally sound  but having got down on hands and knees to examine all over and tried a test sanding on an average bit I know that won't work.

My supporting beams about 8 inches by 5 are sound, so there should be no problem with the extra weight. I was thinking of laying the spongy roll stuff in between (like that used under laminate floors) just to even out. Then nail new boards into the beams over the old ones. Haven't made a final decision yet as it a month or two away yet. I too, would be interested to hear from anyone who has tried this.

Tony 

[Dick Smith]

It depends on the 'look' you want - our place is quite rustic, and so we have simply sanded and varnished the floors, warts (and in one case a small piece of zinc and in another a cork~) and all. The stains and defects add a lot of character, which new floors lack. But if you are going for smart and up-to-date, then look at a new floor.

[Weedon]

I imagine like a lot of people would say, it is difficult to know without seeing it.  But as Dick says, if you take the time to sand it down and take some advice on the best finishing material you will have a fine (Oak ?) floor with 200 years of character that a lot of people would give their eye teeth for.  On the other hand, you could lay a new T&G floor do the same preparation wait 200 years for the character or lay some laminate flooring which can never have the character.

I have both the laminate and the old T&G (not quite 200yrs) and if I could have afforded it I wouldn't have laid the laminate.  But for the price,  pseudo Oak laminate is quite nice, easy to lay and serves a purpose.

weedon 

[Deimos]

My own opinion is that an old floor sanded can look really

good.  It does not have to be perfect

(in fact quite a long way from perfect can still be excellent).  As Dick says, depends on the look you are

after.  If it is an old property then a “warts

and all” can (can NOT will) look exactly right whereas something new and

perfect can (NOT will) look out of place.

Even colour differences across the floor can add character

and look really good.  Alternatively you

could sand then stain which would maybe “tone down” some of the “warts”

(excellent word Dick used to describe it).

Of course, it depends on the type of house, how good the

floor is, etc.  Worm is not a problem

provided the wood is still structurally sound (i.e. worm holes can add

character).

Ian

[Dick Smith]

Ours is oak, several unidentified woods, 2 corks and a bit of zinc under the bed. There is evidence of woodworm, brief dances in golf shoes and remarkably careless smoking. There was a tin-can lid nailed over a hole, but we took that up. The corks are modern (where old pipe runs used to be - works a treat) and there are a couple of replacement planks. As I said, rustic!

For a finish (as we are not here all year) we used good 'ol Ronseal - what a fine man he was - and it looks good. On new woods it tends to be a bit insipid.

[Deimos]

One thought if you do decide to go new is to lift the old

boards before laying new.  If they are

old you should be able to sell them for quite a bit (even if tatty).  Old floor boards can command a pretty decent

price and are certainly expensive to buy.

 

Ian

[Ssc]

Thanks for the replies. Unfortunately in my case the boards are pine and no more than 40 years old. Room was used as storage, not treated etc and so worms had fun especially on the edges of some boards. New owner subsequently treated floor and stopped further worms but although the boards are still quite strong, not pretty..

Still unsure of the best way round it as I agree an old floor looks better than a new one. Might sand, stain and polish a decent strip (where it won't show) and seem how it comes up.

Tony 

[Lizzie15]

Hi .We have a couple of hundred years old farmhouse.Downstairs we just cleaned one old floor really well,then lightly waxed it-it looks beautiful.Another floor was just too awful,so we laid tiles,another was in the kitchen so we decided to go for a laminate floor on top of the old one because we were concerned with being able to clean up grease etc.Upstairs we laid a new wooden floor on top of the old one,with battens and insulation in between.This has worked really well and it's much better downstairs now if someone upstairs drops something- it's muffled the sound.