What to do with old parquet flooring…?

And before you say “keep it”..Too late!

It had been under carpet for all it’s life it seems – was manky around the edges/cork coming up, and I don’t like it (neither dose the wife) so we’ve pulled it up…

I’ve got at least 18m2 of the stuff in IKEA bags…
There is the black tar backing still, but only a thin layer.

People do sell on eBay, but reclaimed only fetches about £30 for the amount we have – seems a lot of faff for not much money. I’d have more fun/value having a big tar fuelled bonfire…!

We’ve given some away to needy neighbors with similar in need of repair…

Anyone here want any??

Here’s the original pattern!

DrP

(I’ll reiterate – we didn’t like it, yes, it’s “criminal to pull that lovely floor up” etc etc! If you want it, you come collect it!)

world’s tallest jenga?

I did that one on Facebook weeks ago!! And ‘parquet floor puzzle box sets’ probably doesn’t have consumer appeal..

DrP

(I thought of you on Saturday – i saw a car with the number plate W55 WAS!)

OP, We’ve got that exact same flooring in our Hall and lounge, and we quite like it, but it is a bit knackered around the edges where the previous owners tacked gripper rods to it….

How much for a random bag of spare blocks?

Postage costs…
Or if you’re down South (as in, right by the wet stuff below the South Downs) you can come cherry pick the most pleasing tiles….

DrP

Hmm, we might have some for our hall…

I shall consult with High Command and report back

ours kept us in kindling for 3 years

I’m putting in a log burner, as it happens. Would the tar damage the burner/liner?

DrP

I wouldnt burn it due to the tar / creosote .. unless you arent putting in a liner

That’s what I though – will be lined.

I’ll just have a big smokey garden fire…

DrP

Right, we’ll have some to do our hall. I’ll have to measure up, but it’s only about 2m square. How much do you reckon it would be to post?

Freecycle

Dip them in your eggs?

Right, we’ll have some to do our hall. I’ll have to measure up, but it’s only about 2m square. How much do you reckon it would be to post?

Not sure – a bike cost £13, so less than that…
I’ll let you knw..

DrP

I’ve burned worse things in the log burner, as long as the flue gets a sweep once a year wouldn’t hesitate to bung it in.

Poo Poo Poo Poo Poo.

If that had come up in more or less squares, even the small ones, I’d have had it off you!

I have the same pattern, but it’s proving considerably more expensive to extend it to the whole ground floor than to rip it up and use engineered oak throughout.

Before you ask, there is no f******* way I’m gluing all that back together 😀

For anyone else I might have some very similar squares going cheap soon then. We’ll see if I can lift them intact or not, not tried seriously yet.

I’m Daarnnn Sarf in Reading…

Although I’d love to find out what Royal mail make of a bag full of Parquet…

Where you at roughly Dr P?

Watch out for asbestos in the bitumen.

I love parquet flooring and our hall is currently carpeted with offcuts so this would be ideal. A quick google suggests though that stripping the bitumen off of the back would be a reet pain in the arris, can anyone reassure me otherwise? If so I’ll take a load (am near Reading).

Why did you pull it up? Are you putting down another wooden floor?

We’ve got it in one of our rooms and just carpeted over it as it makes a decent insulator.

Worthing..West sussex…

I’ve currently 4 ikea bags full, and a wheely bin…

DrP

Why did you pull it up? Are you putting down another wooden floor?

Putting laminate oak floor in the hallway through to the kitchen, and carpeting the lounge.
Pulled it up as I didn’t really like it, having a wall or two taken down so that would leave areas of parquet deficit, and it was going a bit manky at the edges so gripper rods wouldn’t hold.
Plus it was fun.

DrP

I love parquet flooring and our hall is currently carpeted with offcuts so this would be ideal. A quick google suggests though that stripping the bitumen off of the back would be a reet pain in the arris, can anyone reassure me otherwise? If so I’ll take a load (am near Reading).

No reassurance here I’m afraid.

I’d also be worried about asbestos. I hope the OP wore a mask when he was pulling it up. As lovely an idea as it is, reclaimed parquet is a bit of a false economy. I’m currently being dragged kicking and screaming into a project involving 70 or 80 sqm of it. I have this sense of foreboding that I’m going to end up doing it. There will be tears. There will be big invoices, but nowhere near enough to make up for the pain I will go through with it. 🙂

EDIT: IHN, as I recall it, khani laid some and did a really nice job. Might be worth checking with him for advice.

I’ve intermittently worn some PPE equipment that was left over from the swine flu/ebola panic…not all the time though…

I’ll be alright…

Cough.

DrP

I’d like some for repairs on ours… can you do me an A4 jiffy bags worth please ? Obviously send you the cash, although only in Dorking and do come to Worthing at least once a month (if you don’t mind stashing it) ?

Mike – happy to stash it!!
The house is currently empty…send me an email when you’re heading down to Worthing and I’ll make sure I’m around!

DrP

deadlydarcy – Member

EDIT: IHN, as I recall it, khani laid some and did a really nice job. Might be worth checking with him for advice.

Ta, I will.

On a related note, do you get out of Brizzle for work? We will at some point probably have a reasonable size kitchen/utility room/dining room job to do, we’re in Cirencester.

Thanks that’s appreciated, I’ve just dropped you an email

Yep, Cirencester is fine IHN.

You can get me on the email in my profile, even if it’s just for advice.

You’re a star, cheers

I did our lounge with reclaimed stuff that still had the bitumin on the back, it took a week sat on a tarp in the back garden scraping it off with a cold chisel and various scrapers, it easier when it’s cold as the bitumin stays brittle rather than warm weather which softens it up and makes it a sticky nightmare..
We had to ply line the floor (floorboards) and screw it down with a screw every 10cm to make sure there was absolutely no movement which is a LOT of screws and an electric driver is your friend,
We laid about a meter at a time until the room was done and then went over it with a floor sander and edge sander til it was level, start with a rough grit and work your way down to a fine one, a top tip is to get some epoxy resin and mix some of the sawdust from the sander and point all the small gaps in the floor with it and then run the sander back over it til it’s smooth and level
Varnish it using a roller, I put four coats down a day at a time,
Take your time is my advice, it took a week to do the room and It’s been down a few years now and we’ve got four dogs and a woodburner in there and it’s still perfect,
Never again….
After sanding

After varnish

Ooh ooh, before you varnish mop it down with a weak bleach solution to bring out the grain on the tiles and wipe it down between coats with white spirit.

I’d also be worried about asbestos. I hope the OP wore a mask when he was pulling it up. As lovely an idea as it is, reclaimed parquet is a bit of a false economy. I’m currently being dragged kicking and screaming into a project involving 70 or 80 sqm of it. I have this sense of foreboding that I’m going to end up doing it. There will be tears. There will be big invoices, but nowhere near enough to make up for the pain I will go through with it

.
You have my pity…
I wouldn’t bother with reclaimed again, (not that it’ll EVER happen again) cleaning it up was a total PITA and you can buy new for not too much as most of the cost is in the laying and 90% of the finish is in the quality of the laying
Also the adhesive you need for reclaimed stuff is bloody expensive as you need stuff that won’t react to the bitumin residue on the tiles, non of that with new
Plus new tiles are all pretty uniform in thickness where as reclaimed are all over the place and need a lot more sanding to finish.

Have you got any of the flooring left? If so any chance there’s enough for a room? Thanks either way.

Chris

Tonnes left..you local then?
Come with a van and it’s yours….

(bar a box for Mike..)

DrP