Ive (probably) just purchased a parquet floor...

[julianf]

I think this is going to be one of those "cheap as in money, not as in time" things.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/142612846604?

Seller says theyre 9" x 3" x just under an inch - which is larger than i expected, but who knows really!


My possible plan is to touch the top side of them onto a belt sander, to make sure there are no bumps, and then, if i can work out the right temperature, run them through the thicknesser.

Tar is brittle like glass when too cold, or liquid when hot - im thinking there must be some area in the middle of that where it could be mechanically removed?

 

[Richiew]

I think this is going to be one of those "cheap as in money, not as in time" things.

Ha ha. Fantastic!

 

[Parm]

I've done one of these at my old house in London. I found that a propane blow lamp was the easiest way to remove the tar.

Make yourself a jig to hold the piece, heat and use an old shave hook to remove tar.

If you set yourself up properly you'll be amazed at how quickly you can go through them

 

[julianf]

Thank you - ill consider that too.

Would anyone like to advise on laying them? I currently have a concrete surface - hand troweled, so reasonably flat. Not sealed in any way - just raw concrete.

 

[angellonewolf]

never layed them but i would start with a floor level compound its a lot easer when it level

 

[Ton-up]

I used to work for a company that re-manufactured old parquet floors and blocks like that. We used a massive early 1950,s Wadkin moulder that slogged through them without trouble. They bought a new moulder and it lasted under a year before the tar completely wore out the beds!!

 

[julianf]

never layed them but i would start with a floor level compound its a lot easer when it level

Im really not far off at present - like i say, i hand troweled it. Im hoping that whatever adhesive i use will take up the slack.

Im also not so much a fan of self leveling compounds - self smoothing is more akin to my experience, but ive not found them to flow as much as i would like, so im loath to spend on them again - plus, from what i remember, theyre nowhere close to cheap either - and this is supposed to be a cheap job.

If im honest, i would probably have rather had slate, but id be looking at £400 plus, vs, £33 and whatever adhesive / finish (and no end of sanding belts, i guess)

 

[pedrobedro]

You only need to fetch the loose bitumen off the back, just make sure you have enough adhesive depth to take up the irregularities and make sure the floor is dry and there's a half inch expansion gap around the edges. A friend of mine didn't bother with the gap and they were all in a heap when he got a bit of water on them.

 

[julianf]

The expansion gap is going to irritate me - i know i need it (my friend has an oak floor - he did not leave one, and its like walking across a trampoline now!) but im not fitting skirtings in this room.

What i dont really get is, if its stuck down, what's with the movement anyhow? I dont understand - its either stuck or it isnt?

 

[brightspark]

a reasonably level floor so

The expansion gap is going to irritate me - i know i need it (my friend has an oak floor - he did not leave one, and its like walking across a trampoline now!) but im not fitting skirtings in this room.

What i dont really get is, if its stuck down, what's with the movement anyhow? I dont understand - its either stuck or it isnt?

use flexible adhesive https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lecol-Flooring-Adhesive-Reclaimed-Parquet/dp/B00CL58G3Uand round your edges use cork and leave the blocks in the room a few weeks before fitting get them acclimatised heres the cork https://www.screwfix.com/p/vitrex-cork-expansion-strips-18-pack/6257h

 

[awemawson]

I did this exercise about 15 years ago and re-laid a whole load in my workshop.

Rather then clean them up I found that it was far easier to have a hot tar pot (large pan on a portable electric ring) with some tar melted in it. Then dip each piece in the tar (they float) - pluck it out and lay it (*). No extra tar needed. When all was done and cooled I ran over them with a floor sander.



(* Gloves recommended !)

 

[doubleboost]

My log burner likes them

 

[brightspark]

My log burner likes them

bet your flue doesn't

 

[doubleboost]

bet your flue doesn't

They had no tar on them burnt very well

 

[Migmac]

I laid a parquet floor years ago. I was told that because the blocks are small you don’t have to use flexible glue, as long as the surface you are laying them on is solid. I did leave an expansion gap but only a very small one. We had no problem with movement. It makes a lovely floor when it’s done

 

[Muppet]

its critical to have a level floor for parquet floor ,
if it's not the blocks wander all over, if the concrete level use bitumin primer, ask a hot flat roofer to flood the floor with a skim of bitumen,
Clean the backs of the blocks of high spots and use a flat roofing torch to blast the floor and block as you put them down , the tounge and grove have got to be spotless,
Bitumen and pitch are flexible allowing for any movement in the wood, 5mm gap on all perimeter, use cork strips , under cut door casings and architrave,
Some times cheaper to buy new as I've found out
Wear welding gloves or your hands will wilt

 

[julianf]

So i picked up these today....

The sellers paid £200 for them, and £100 delivery, but admitted that they could not concieve sorting them all out by hand, and went and purchased a new floor.
I too would not be able to do them by hand, but ive done a couple tonight using electrickery and they come up fine, with not a whole load of effort.


But....

Im confused by the tongue and groove situation. 1 side has a tongue, but the other three sides are grooved. I was expecting 50/50 like modern clip together laminate flooring?


The top side of these are pretty rough on a lot of them. Scuffs and grooves - kind of what you would expect, i guess.

The few that ive just tested were done in the following way -

Top on the belt sander, to take back to the surface, and flatten.
Run through thicknesser to clean back (so referencing off the top)
Flip, and run though the thicknesser to lightly skim the top.

The three that i tested this one were probably scrap anyhow, but will be now (unless i measure them up) as i did not record the values.
If i use this method, which i think i will, i will do all the backs in one go, so they will all be uniform thickness in relation to the original top surface.
Ill then fit new blades (so theyre sharp) and skim all the tops to the same depth.

That way they will all be normalised, and the tongue and groove will still be in the same position, relative to one another.


Im still confused by the lack of the tongue on the ends though.

 

[Shox Dr]

The expansion gap is going to irritate me - i know i need it (my friend has an oak floor - he did not leave one, and its like walking across a trampoline now!) but im not fitting skirtings in this room.

What i dont really get is, if its stuck down, what's with the movement anyhow? I dont understand - its either stuck or it isnt?

My father laid a parquet floor in our new house [mid 70’s] it had been stored in the room for weeks beforehand yet still was like a wave at sea over the next few days.

 

[8ob]

So i picked up these today....



Im still confused by the lack of the tongue on the ends though.

Is it because they are sometimes laid in a herringbone type grid pattern ?

Bob

 

[angellonewolf]

as long as you got about ish the same amount of adhesive on the under side do you need to remove the glue just lay and sand smooth and varish