laying reclaimed floorboards

[lily]

Has anyone any experience of this? I'm thinking of getting some reclaimed floorboards , husband not too sure about technicalities. They would be laid over concrete, should we need a membrane before laying them? Any advice welcome.

[jazzactivist]

Hi lily, we laid reclaimed floorboards from a reclaimation yard in our upstairs rooms, and found that of the quantity that we bought 1/3 had to be discarded as they were warped and wouldn't lie flat, so we eneded up having to source more from elsewhere. Also, if they still have all the nails in, as ours did, then it is labour intensive and tedious work getting them all out! Other than that, once they were down, repaired and waxed they look great. We have concrete floors downstairs and were told by various joiners that if we wanted to lay floorboards on top then we would need insulation on the concrete and an air space underneath the floorboards to prevent condensation collecting from above, so this would mean framing the floor and this then raises the whole floor a bit so all the doors would have to be cut and raised as a result - even the front and back doors. Needless to say, this sounded quite complicated so we didn't go ahead with it and just laid plain wool carpets and linoleum in colours that fit with the age of the house. Since laminate floors can be laid on concrete floors, on top of the insulation layer and membrane, then maybe there is other advice available to you, and the joiners around here were, understandibly, just touting for extra work. Try Googling "laying floorboards on concrete" and see what comes up. I hope that these pointers help.

[lily]

Thank you for all the info- looks like husband is right in saying there are other considerations. I supose raising the floors would then mean having to shave a bit off the bottom of the door, not to mention the floor then starting part way up the skirting. Think we will probably continue with carpet, oh well- it seemed a nice idea and I thought it would work well when grandson visits for meals!

[jazzactivist]

Hi lily, don't be disheartened. I can heartily recommend nice looking linoleum (if you want the real thing) or vinyls, so long as you just keep it in a colour in keeping with the age of your house. You can get some really nice looking ones these days that are easy to lay, and with a rug or two look just the part in an older house, plus they are warm and easy to keep clean. Worth having a look anyway.

[lily]

Thanks for that, but think we will stick with the carpet. However, we've been so pleased with the shutters in one room that are thinking of stripping the ones in another room. I like to have a project on the go, this one should last most of 2008! We used the shutters closed for the first time this evening and it really made a huge difference to the warmth and cut out a lot of the wind noise. (when I say we, what I really mean is me, altho' husband does dismantle them and put them in the cellar for me).