Very old wood floor


  #1  
Old 09-13-01, 04:53 AM
Guest
Visiting Guest
Posts: n/a
Question

I have recently moved into a home that is 80-90 years old. The flooring in the dining room appears to be the original wood flooring. The boards are quite wide (I'm not sure what kind wood they are) and are separating in some spots. We are renting and can not replace the floor at this time. Is there anything that I can use to fill the gaps (up to 1/8 of an inch) for the time being? I can see through to the basement in some spots.
 
  #2  
Old 09-13-01, 08:58 AM
Elite Flooring/Ken Fisher
Visiting Guest
Posts: n/a
Lightbulb

Ross:

Being a renter I'd leave it alone. Any kind of temporary solutions ordinarilly fail in this scenerio, due the seasonal expansion/contraction in wood flooring itself.
 
  #3  
Old 09-13-01, 11:43 AM
T
Member
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: USA
Posts: 15,047
Upvotes: 0
Received 2 Upvotes on 2 Posts
Filling cracks between floor boards

Ken's right as usual. Filling in cracks is not a good idea. I've seen some real messes where folks have filled in cracks. With expansion/contraction (due to changes in temperature and humidity levels) the filler tends to work loose. Sommeone did this to the porch floor in the old house which is currently my home. If have my work cut out for me when I get around to painting. Take the cracks in your floors in stride as part of the character of the old house. Add some inexpensive area rugs to get your mind off them. If you can see through to the basement and it's an unheated, damp basement, I'd think about adding some insulation between the floor joists under the floor before winter. If basement is damp, you might consider getting a dehumidifier and running a fan to improve ventilation and humdity.
 
  #4  
Old 09-25-01, 02:27 PM
Guest
Visiting Guest
Posts: n/a
cracks in floors

I agree that filling the cracks with wood filler is a bad idea, but I heard a suggestion on a home improvement show that really works. I too have cracks in my wood floors, and they are rather large. In the ones so big I could see light I plugged them with steel wool, which I then daubed with stain that matched my wood. If you push it down deep, it won't come out. It blends well, and still allows for contraction and expansion. Don't bother with small cracks, however.
 
  #5  
Old 09-26-01, 08:55 AM
Elite Flooring/Ken Fisher
Visiting Guest
Posts: n/a
Thumbs up

Thanks Dru:

Good suggestion. It wasn't long ago Jeff Hosking(This Old House contributor) mentioned the use of jute rope? and some type of glueing method, which he learned from his father.

You can probably find the thread at wwww.floorboards.com in the floorboards forum using the search function.

 
 

Thread Tools
Search this Thread
 
Ask a Question
Question Title:
Description:
Your question will be posted in: