[Homestead] Wood Floors
Gene GeRue
genegerue at ruralize.com
Sun Nov 4 20:55:37 EST 2007
On Nov 4, 2007, at 6:11 PM, Robert Walton wrote:
> I'm thinking about going to a mill near here and getting some plank
> wood for the floor and walls. Has any one done this? I'd like to put
> down a plank floor. Do I need the wood to be tongue and groove? If I
> just use oak planks for instance and finish them in place, my concern
> is the groves that would be left between the planks. How do you handle
> that?
Your concern about grooves would be exacerbated by shrinkage. Best
move in buying from a mill is to stack the planks carefully against a
wall and leave them there for a year before nailing them down.
T&G stuff often has a slight bevel on each edge, creating a short V
groove when joined. A local mill T&G machine may not do that. They
may leave the corners square. No problem as long as there are no
splinters. But make sure the planks are as dry as the house, or you
will live with cracks forever.
I presume you will put plywood or wire on the bottom of the joists
first--plywood if the floor is exposed to the weather or wire if in a
closed crawl space--then either lay fiberglass insulation over the
wire or maybe have cellulose blown in over the plywood. Then lay the
plywood subfloor. Lap building paper on the plywood, then lay the
planks, face nailing the first run and then nailing through the plank
tongues at an angle. Get them tight. Do some research and see the
various ways to get them really tight.
Rent a floor sander and do the field. Very carefully; it will make
grooves quickly. Use a hand sander at the edges. Vacuum thoroughly,
stain and finish.
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