Where to buy proper floorboards?

[LFS19]

Some of you chipped in on an earlier thread of mine regarding sanding/planing floorboards.

I concluded after everyone's input that I had some thinking to do on whether to start fresh and just get new boards, or choose one of the methods discussed to get the current boards up to standard.

Even if I did choose to restore the original boards, a fair few would still need to be replaced; the previous owner of the house put hardboard down in two places in the room because of some wood rot with some of the boards.


I was wondering where might be best to look to buy them here in the U.K.?
Engineered flooring is still an option and readily available, but I can't seem to find any company or merchant actually selling real floorboards, at least in my area of East Yorkshire.
Even online the results I pulled up seem very limited..

Any ideas?

Thanks again.


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[davem62]

Hi
they are easy to get in pontefract, the local wood dealer/ diy shop sells it by the metre and I think should be available from Howarth Timber or similar timber merchant
Hth David

 

[LFS19]

Hi
they are easy to get in pontefract, the local wood dealer/ diy shop sells it by the metre and I think should be available from Howarth Timber or similar timber merchant
Hth David

I'll have to have another look, perhaps further afield.

I don't suppose you know roughly how much a meter they sell it where you are?
Price is another thing I'm unsure of; just wanting to get a general idea.

Thanks!


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[skipdiver]

I can confirm that Howarth timber sell it in 2 sizes. My local branch does anyway.

 

[LFS19]

I can confirm that Howarth timber sell it in 2 sizes. My local branch does anyway.

Closest one to me is York, so I'll have to go check that out.
Cheers.


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[Eric The Viking]

I had a lot to replace recently, but not a whole floor. Modern boards, as supplied to smaller yards and builders' merchants are still roughly 6.5" wide, but thinner. The stuff I got was a nominal 22mm, compared to a nominal 1" for old boards.

The strength isn't the issue, but the thickness is a nuisance when you're mixing them together. I used thin MDF sheet (available in 2mm upwards thicknesses) as packing - just cut strips the width of the joists from 8x4 sheet (I love my 3m rail for this sort of thing!). The thin stuff just snaps off to length, and for ease of use I usually just tack it onto the joists with panel pins, so it stays put while you fix the boards down (Tip: don't use screws with double-start threads). I found that 2mm was fine, and that the inevitable cupping of the boards (mainly the old ones) was more of a nuisance than tiny thickness differences.

Be prepared for a lot of wastage though, as most floorboards come from "unsorted" softwood (the term seems to have a different meaning between hardwoods and construction- grade softwood!). I apply knotting both sides before fitting, which makes some of the worst stuff usable, and even locks in "dead" knots reasonably well.

Knots are still a pain though, as a stiletto heel on a large person would probably punch through the 6mm ply on top, if the heel caught the exact middle of a large, weak knot. I needed 5m boards in some places (a full run along the length of the room), and had to compromise, as I only found one local supplier who kept 5.2-5.5m boards.

 

[Lons]

What Eric said!

Any of the builders / timber merchants will sell it or get it for you, I've had loads in the past from Jewsons. If you need a reasonable quantity you should press hard for trade discount and you will get it, I'd also advise selecting your own if that's possible.

As an aside, I'd check the cost of solid oak T&G boards as an option as some is reasonably priced. Loads of suppliers and including on line - 19mm thick is common, you could easily and cheaply beef up joist supports and noggins if necessary and could fix using nails through the tongus so invisible.

Bob

And... should consider insulation before boarding, well worth the cost and effort.

 

[lurker]

As Eric says it's not that simple
If you have an old house matching thickness and width can be a problem

I ended up making my own to patch a really mangled floor in my sons house.

a month or two later we spotted a skip in the same street full of boards :roll:
We took away quite a lot and the tidied up bits are stashed away for future projects

 

[Phil Pascoe]

The floors I had that weren't new birch, bamboo and tile I ripped out and replaced with chipboard. Easier, cleaner, draught proof, more sound proof and kinder to carpets. Do as the Kiwis do - varnish with water based polyurethane and throw rugs down. I can't really imagine why anyone would want to lay a floor that will mark within hours of being laid - which is what new timber is likely to.
(He covers his head and runs for the hills ... )

 

[Eric The Viking]

The floors I had that weren't new birch, bamboo and tile I ripped out and replaced with chipboard. Easier, cleaner, draught proof, more sound proof and kinder to carpets. Do as the Kiwis do - varnish with water based polyurethane and throw rugs down. I can't really imagine why anyone would want to lay a floor that will mark within hours of being laid - which is what new timber is likely to.
(He covers his head and runs for the hills ... )

I think you're right, bar a few issues:

You can't easily lift T+G chipboard, although it's a delight to lay. I have one of those Trend concentric-circle jigs for making access ports (never use it although the cutter is handy sometimes). And I won't take thin strips (too weak), so you have to plan the floor carefully. And the big boards are now too heavy for me to use.

Otherwise, in this context, old isn't best

 

[LFS19]

Thanks for all the comments, what you've all told me makes sense. I'll look into what each of the options suggested. I don't even know what wood these old boards are made from to be honest. The room I'm doing is an extension to the house that was built on in the 80's (the house was built in the 30s).
As I said, a good half of the floor are just hardboard sheets that run the length of the room, and other areas seem to have been badly patched up by the previous owner. (I'll try get some pictures up)

There's a good amount of floorboards that are perfect, (aside from the hideous dark brown stain that will probably be a bugger to get off) so it's a difficult decision whether to start fresh or rework what's there into a decent floor.
What was said regarding the widths and thicknesses is certainly something that's been on my mind, so it's good to know that supporting the newer boards as suggested is an option.
I'll also look into the chipboard option as a possibility..

As far as trade pricing, is there a general rule for how much of a discount you get or does it differ a lot from shop to shop?
A family member in the trade that's helping me fit this would be able to get trade discount, it's just where's best to go.

Thanks again!



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[Phil Pascoe]

Eric - the thin strips aren't a problem if using T&G, just glue them well. You shouldn't be left with anything small unsupported. LFS - it's worth considering chipboard in an old house for draught proofing and insulation alone (especially if you have suspended floors over voids with air bricks), besides any other consideration.

 

[LFS19]

Eric - the thin strips aren't a problem if using T&G, just glue them well. You shouldn't be left with anything small unsupported. LFS - it's worth considering chipboard in an old house for draught proofing and insulation alone (especially if you have suspended floors over voids with air bricks), besides any other consideration.

I see, I'll have to look into it then. Thanks


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[Jacob]

Got ours here http://www.snowstimber.com/product-rang ... -flooring/
Excellent stuff.
To avoid shrinkage laid the floor without nails (except just the odd oval to avoid trap ends) covered with Protec (also excellent stuff - very tough and re-usable) whilst other processes going on, then as late as possible went over cramping and nailing.
Gaps average about 0.5mm perhaps.
Would be a lot more if fixed too soon in a heated building.

Finished with light sanding and Osmo Oil (also excellent stuff!)

Also had to match some old plain butted ex 6" x 1" boards finished about 22mm - did it with new sawn 6x1" run through the thicknesser both sides so that there was at least one fair face. Comes out bendy but nails down flat. No prob - except edges had to be hand planed with a no7 and a 22" long woody - you can't pass a 5.1metre board over the top of a planer!

Any change of thickness between new and old easiest dealt with by just fairing off a bit of a bevel - more if critical, less if unobtrusive. Or put tilting fillets/firrings under last board/boards.

 

[LFS19]

Got ours here http://www.snowstimber.com/product-rang ... -flooring/
Excellent stuff.
To avoid shrinkage laid the floor without nails (except just the odd oval to avoid trap ends) covered with Protec (also excellent stuff - very tough and re-usable) whilst other processes going on, then as late as possible went over cramping and nailing.
Gaps average about 0.5mm perhaps.
Would be a lot more if fixed too soon in a heated building.

Finished with light sanding and Osmo Oil (also excellent stuff!)

Also had to match some old plain butted ex 6" x 1" boards finished about 22mm - did it with new sawn 6x1" run through the thicknesser both sides so that there was at least one fair face. Comes out bendy but nails down flat. No prob - except edges had to be hand planed with a no7 and a 22" long woody - you can't pass a 5.1metre board over the top of a planer!

Any change of thickness between new and old easiest dealt with by just fairing off a bit of a bevel - more if critical, less if unobtrusive. Or put tilting fillets/firrings under last board/boards.

Thanks for the information.
Hopefully it won't be too daunting a job, then, now that I know my options.
A thicknesser would really come in handy, I wish I had one.

Someone mentioned using the osmo oil in a thread of mine a few months back; it looks like good stuff.
This room I'm doing is for a younger sibling, and B&Q have a great range of furniture gloss stains.
They say they're suitable for everything but flooring, but I wonder if using the osmo oil on top would alright.
They have some beautiful unusual colours that would fit right in with then rest of the room.


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[Jacob]

..... B&Q have a great range of furniture gloss stains.
They say they're suitable for everything but flooring, but I wonder if using the osmo oil on top would alright.....

A gloss stain sounds like a varnish. If they say unsuitable for flooring then don't use it for flooring.
Osmo is for bare wood but it would go on a water or a spirit stain I imagine.
Easiest way to colour floors is floor paint.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

You could dye the wood under Osmo, but it wouldn't go on top of a gloss finish.

 

[LFS19]

You could dye the wood under Osmo, but it wouldn't go on top of a gloss finish.

Right I see, thank you.


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[LFS19]

..... B&Q have a great range of furniture gloss stains.
They say they're suitable for everything but flooring, but I wonder if using the osmo oil on top would alright.....

A gloss stain sounds like a varnish. If they say unsuitable for flooring then don't use it for flooring.
Osmo is for bare wood but it would go on a water or a spirit stain I imagine.
Easiest way to colour floors is floor paint.

Right I see.
I'll look into those stains, then.

And yeah, to be honest I might end up just painting them.

Thanks!


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[LFS19]

So I took the rest of the carpet up today and the condition of the floor is somewhat worse than I thought..
As I said, there's a lot of hardboard patching, but also some mismatched planks.

Approximately, it's half original boards and half hardboard and whatever other patching.

As you can see on the second picture, the boards there are in bad condition and would definitely need replacing.