Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

t_t_vu OP t1_ixu4n4e wrote

Reply to comment by SpiderMcLurk in Should we add yellow tongue to existing timber floorboards? by t_t_vu

The information ia great, thanks a ton. We will consider the option.

1

SpiderMcLurk t1_ixu7bg8 wrote

Engineered boards (solid timber with an engineered base) are awesome - the are dimensionally stable and also more sustainable. Make sure the hardwood section is full depth to the tongue - this will allow them to be refinished in the future ie sanded and polished. You would get three sand and recoats with which will be longer than you are alive. They are at least as good as solid hardwood and in some ways better. If they are end-matched there is also minimal wastage as they don’t need to finish over a joist.

Options are 18mm over joists or 13mm over a structafloor (yellow tongue particle board floor). The latter option would be my preference as it is more solid under foot and more stable. However there can be some slight cupping which only those in the trade generally notice.

The prefinshed boards are glued and secret nailed so you also save the cost of punching nails, filling, sanding and polyurethane coats.

2

t_t_vu OP t1_ixu7vta wrote

Thanks, That solution is nearly perfect and that what we thought before. However the engineered hardwood is too expensive which is 4 x more expensive than vynl/hybrid planks which is being considered now.

1

t_t_vu OP t1_ixuaktg wrote

Is that fine to use engineered hardwood (4mm hardwood) over the current floor without the yellow tongue?

1

SpiderMcLurk t1_ixwfaze wrote

It depends. But likely yes you could overlay the existing 19mm solid timber boards with 13mm engineered timber once you prepare them.

you can definitely do it with solid timber boards and nail them through the face in the traditional manner. The floor will be as flat (or not) as the original floor.

With the engineered boards, it depends on the fixing method. If you are doing a floating floor the it’s possible if the current floor is within the specified flatness. If the floor is not flat you will have issues with boards or tongues cracking. You would put an acoustic underlay down first. The floors do creak a bit either as the room heats up/cools down or when people walk on them.

Alternatively you could glue and nail them if the floor under is sound which will give you a far better feel underfoot. The floor board manufacturers literature should be consulted.

To prepare the existing floor boards and improve flatness replace any rotten boards, punch any nails down, flattened with a drum sander and then some levelling compound used in isolated areas prior to overlaying with the engineered flooring.

I would get a flooring contractor in to review and provide advice.

Remember regardless of what you overlay with you may have the same issues with stairs and either all your skirting boards need to come off and be replaced with new (and walls patched and repainted) or a timber bead gets put around the perimeter tacked onto the skirting boards, which is a bit of a giveaway.

Also all doors will need to be remove and trimmed. If they are hollow core doors they may need to have the internal bottom rails removed and new timber rails glued in and likely require the entire door to be repainted. Solid doors can just be trimmed but make sure the bottom edge is repainted.

1

t_t_vu OP t1_ixwi9jh wrote

Thanks for the detail information, should I add cement board ontop of the existing floor to make it level with levelling compound?

1

t_t_vu OP t1_ixwsm43 wrote

Sorry but do you have a link to what the engineered boards you referred to as from what I read it said we can sand the engineered boards

1

SpiderMcLurk t1_ixx0spi wrote

Yes you can sand engineered boards in the future. Make sure the ones you get are hardwood above the tongue.

Laminates you can’t.

2

SpiderMcLurk t1_ixu7jrq wrote

Are you in Australia?

2

t_t_vu OP t1_ixua6a2 wrote

Yes I am, from Brisbane

2

SpiderMcLurk t1_ixwfwa3 wrote

Ok - as am I. Just screen any advice you get from this sub as a lot of commentators are US based and the yellow tongue system may not be familiar to them.

2