Today we are in the process of moving everything out of our downstairs/main living area.Tomorrow,my freind Glen will start to lay our Fir flooring down.We have had a plywood floor for the past 2 years and have gotten used to it.Our plan was to live with it,and look for a good deal on a hardwood floor or slate.I never liked the idea of slate too much with kids,but was open to suggestions.
When we got the planer,we decided that it might be nice to have something we made ourselves,and maybe a good thing to show customers the finished product.Fir is softer than Oak or Maple,but the floors in older homes I've seen,still look good.
We will be moving into the empty bunkhouse(sleeps eight) for a couple of weeks.The kids are all geared up,but I don't like tearing up my house more than I have to.I will help Glen,and learn some things I hope.This is new to me.
The part I'm dreading the most is repainting the walls.Carla had chosen a dark Green colour before,but now has decided on a off white.I told her I'll paint,but please don't make me help choose the colour :-/
Take pictures of the installation, Paul. I'd like to see how you do it ....and how you finish it
Will do Tom.
We asked Glen to do what he thought would be best.He has a good reputation for finishing,and is brutally frank with his comments on what should be done.He was there when we planed up the flooring,and showed us things that needed to be fine tuned.
I sawed some Red Pine for a customer who said he was going to make flooring from it. I said it was too soft for flooring, but he claimed that pouring a urethane coating over it would provide the wear surface and the beauty of the pine would still show. He claimed that in 10 years he might have to pour a new surface. I don't have details of how it was done, but he had done it once before with good results according to him.
Paul
After planing the flooring, what do you do to put the edges on? Joint one edge to straighten, add the tongue (or groove), rip to width, and then add the groove (or tongue)? Or mould the tongue and groove in one operation? Do you relieve the back side as conventional flooring is done?
A friend of mine has a pile of kiln-dried red oak, and he is asking how to make it into flooring. He essentially has no woodworking equipment, and wanted to know what to buy to do the various jobs and end up with standard oak flooring. He wanted woodworking equipment and did not want to load and unload all that oak again, just to have someone else run it into flooring for him.
beenthere,
We have an old 4sided planer that we bought/traded for awhile back.There is a thread "Planer" under milling.I was helped by several of the members here on the forum to get it up and running.
I didn't put relief grooves on this flooring,but have the knives setup to do wider boards.This flooring is 4 1/2" wide,and has been kiln dried to 7.5%,and has been sitting in the house,stickered for 2 months now.
Somebody like DonP should know what your friend can do.It was Don that gave me information on setting the knives and feed rates.
Sounds like a real project, Paul. I too, will be looking for LOTS of pics.
Good luck with the flooring Paul, I've been reading your progress with the moulder, now putting in the finished product should be real satisfing. We had OSB floors in our new house for a long time. Took me forever to make the flooring and get it put down. The thing I hated doing was the sanding, dust everywhere. Having some experienced help will make it go a lot easier. Looking forward to the progress pics.
Now with that new floor and a rather new critter in the house you folks are just about set for the remainder of the Spring Winter we are having here on the West Coast. 8) 8) 8) It sounds like an exciting time for everyone around your home. With that fir floor, Paul you will be able to wear your caulked boots inside without having to change, at lunch time. Alice just hated it when I would come in for lunch and not change my boots. I thought it was good of the linoleum to have a few holes for "air-ieation". ::) ;D
Thanks for the encouragement.
I was told the dust will be everywhere,for a long time.We will start work on it this morning,and try to put plastic sheets around the stairwell,but we have central heat,and it will probably spread the dust around pretty good.
Frank,
I'll pass on the caulk boot thing.I once ruined our new carpet with a dab of gear dope(pinion grease) stuck to my boot. :)I think I would end up with the holes.
Hard to control the dust, but one thing (cheap way) I do is set up two or three window fans (square box type) on low to medium speed with a 20 x 20" furnace air filter on the intake side. Amazing how much dust this setup will take out of the air. Along with your plastic drapes, it may help a bit more.