Hi everyone!!


I am not sure what kind of wood floor I have. Its the floor of a house built in Denver in 1891. I am unsure if the wood is original, I believe it is.

Can anyone tell me what type of flooring this is?

Can anyone tell me if it is completely impossible to find matching wood flooring? I have places under carpet that have missing bits that I wanted to replace. It may be impossible but if I can I would love to do it!

 

White oak. Commonly available.

 

Can't tell from the pics but sometimes the older flooring has a width that is different from modern day standards ..... but as Joe stated, white oak flooring is available [maybe not a a big box store]

 

I have one more question for everyone, Is it possible to tell from these pictures if the floor is too damaged to refinish? Will it withstand sanding?

How should I go about refinishing these floors?

 

The odds are they can be refinished. You really need to figure out the thickness of the wood to tell for sure. Do you intend to diy or hire it out?

 

I would like to do it my self.

I have done some research and I think i can do it. I learned about how to sand and stain quarter sawn oak.

I am just unsure about how to remove a few of the face nailed wood planks and replace a few damaged ones without tearing up the floor.

 

My guess is that its relatively thick old growth wood. Its flooring in what was previously a governors mansion in 1904 (turned 3 unit HOA in the 90s). I have some old paperwork on who has lived here over the years and who the house was built for. based on some of the remaining detail in the house, i presume the original builder was quite wealthy. I dont know if that is informative or not.

 

As stated in earlier posts, it is definitely a DIY job. I would use a vibrating floor sander as opposed to a rotating one to keep gouges to a minimum. It does not look to be quarter sawn oak, but common white oak 2 1/4" or 3" flooring. Maybe you could post pictures of the bad pieces you wish to remove. It would help us to see what you see.

 

While a drum sander is very efficient and the best way to go for a pro, a buffer or vibrating sander is a LOT more diy friendly! they can be rented at most tool rental places. The problem with drum sanders is if you don't keep it moving at a steady rate you can sand dips into the floor Many diyers will hire out the sanding and diy the stain and finishing.

 

This is all so helpful. I really cant thank everyone enough.

I have an orbital sander, and i was planning to rent a larger vibrating/orbital sander for the floor as they say that a drum sander can leave marks in quarter sawn wood.

That said, I am pretty sure this is quarter sawn and rift sawn pieces.
I have attached pics of the damaged pieces that I wanted to replace as well as one picture of striations in the wood that you would see if it were quarter sawn.

As well when the house was converted into multi-units, the location where the staircase used to be to the basement was boarded over with ply-wood and then has been carpeted since. I wanted to remove the plywood and lay new pieces down.


For the current finish, do I use a stripper of some kind or do i just sand it off? it seems somewhat waxy and thick.

Also, all (or almost all) of the planks are face nailed in. what is the best way to remove a single plank without damaging the other planks for face nailed pieces?

Thanks!!!!!!

 

Wax should be removed prior to sanding but varnish when it's well past it's prime will have a soft gummy feel to it. You don't want to use a chemical stripper on the floor, the fumes would be extreme! Sanding down to raw wood is the proper method, start with a coarse grit and finish sanding with a finer grit to get rid of the sanding scratches left from the coarse.

To remove a piece of flooring you'd saw it down the middle and then use a chisel and/or pry bar to remove it.

 

I believe I'd do a dutchman repair on the hole rather than removing the entire piece. Hopefully the scratches will buff out to acceptance.

 

A multi-tool is a must on a project like this. It can cut wood and nails as need be. Do you know if these are tongue and groove or just planks?

 

How do I tell what the floor is finished with?

What is a Dutchman repair?

What does a multi tool look like?

I do t m ow if they are tongue and goove or not. How do I find this out?