Mending parquet

We've found there's parquet flooring under our lounge carpet, and we'd like to keep it. It seems to be sanding up quite nicely. The trouble is some of it has been replaced by mortar, and some of it is a black substance. So we intend to keep a bit of it, and recarpet the rest.

The bit we want to keep is part mortar :( so I'll have to move some bits from a not-to-be-seen area to fix the bit we'll see.

Does anyone know how you lift it & refix it?

Andy

Reply to
Vir Campestris
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I think it's generally bitumened in place, if you can get an "in" then protect with a scrap of wood and tap/whack sideways with a suitably sized hammer. For re-setting presumably a burner and a fresh block of bitumen?

Reply to
Andy Burns

+1 or try and work a bolster chisel under the blocks - and try to avoid recutting the blocks into their new positions (unless cutting them to length to fill in around the edges).

Cash

Reply to
Cash

I agree that the fixing is normally bitumen based. What thickness are the blocks and do you know what timber? For lifting the blocks you might try a stout trowel or even a good and sharp spade. Some years ago I reclaimed a load of 1-1/4" x 9" x 3" pitch pine blocks. Used an old turfing iron to lift them. Subsequently cleaned and laid about

100 sq. yds. Bugger of a job. Lovely floor though and the chair I sit upon rests on it now. Still have some left. I wish you good luck, Nick.
Reply to
Nick

They're little blocks - maybe 4 inches long, and 1 wide, perhaps a 1/3 thick. I won't need to cut them - the missing bit is whole blocks.

I had thought of a heat gun on the top to see if the bitumen will soften.

Andy

Reply to
Vir Campestris

How many do you need? I took one of the floors up in our bungalow as so many pieces were damaged or missing. Most of the pieces were dumped just 2 months ago but I have kept a number in case repairs are needed elsewhere but I doubt they ever would be so there may be enough for you..

I found that when one was dislodged quite large sections would pop off as the joints separated; I was glad I did not want to stick them back down again.

Mike

Reply to
mail-veil

Sounds like a 1970's floor - if so it is probably similar ours. The wood is likely to be an African timber much used then, possibly Kiaat/African teak/Pterocarpus angolensis. You can somtimes get reclaimed fingers on ebay etc - ours came in six rubble sacks with all fingers loose

I've done a fair bit of repairing and alteration to our floors, after alterations and moving walls about..... The first batch I laid on water based bitumastic paint (wickes liquid damp course), held down with concrete blocks while it dried - which worked fairly well, and was chosen to be compatible with the remaining bitumen on the back of the blocks. However, it was very messy, and for a second section I used water based flooring adhesive of the type used for thermoplastic tiles. This sticks well to a concrete sub base, and despite various warnings adhered fine to the bitumen residue on the fingers. Overall the glue has lasted better than the bitumen, with no loose fingers, whereas the odd finger has had to be re-stuck with the bitumen.

One thing that I learnt the hard way is that the individual fingers vary in size quite a lot. I think (looking at our untouched floors) that this is probably because they were originally made up in 18" squares at the factory, with the fingers marginally oversize, and then each square was edge machined to exactly 18". Sizes were still imperial then. This means that the fingers in the middle are untouched, and the ones at the edges of each square will have been reduced on the side, end, or both, by varying amounts. I found that one way to deal with this was to lay them dry, mixing the errors in size so they averaged out as far as possible. Once a section was done I surface taped them together with parcel tape criss-crossed, lifted them in

18" sections, and re-laid with the glue. Finally, boards and concrete blocks to hold them down while drying were laid on top.

The old bitumen and variations in thickness in the blocks does mean that the result will be pretty uneven, so sanding is really essential to get them flat - but there is plenty of thickness to deal with, unlike ssome engineered floors.

The process is quite long winded, especially as the laying stage is quite painful because of the size variations, but produces good results in the end.

Charles F

Charles F

Reply to
Charles F

I've been sanding already. There are a lot of paint splotches, and I wanted to know if it would come up alright.

Thanks for the tips.

Andy

Reply to
Vir Campestris

Today I lifted a correct-sized section of parquet from somewhere that won't show, chipped out the mortar where it needed to go with a bolster (I was pleasantly surprised to find the old bitumen meant the mortar hadn't stuck properly to the floor underneath) and dropped the parquet in. It needed a touch from an engineer's adjuster in a few spots, but I almost feel I could get away with not gluing it down. This was one of those rare jobs that went much _faster_ than anticipated :)

Which tile glue should I use to make it permanent?

Andy

Reply to
Vir Campestris

Bitumen based if there is bitumen underneath - or evostik (ie solvent based rubber type) otherwise I reckon. The latter will have some give which might be useful with wood involved.

Reply to
Tim Watts

The adhesive I used with the most success (and it's not too expensive) was Wickes multi purpose flooring adhesive

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It's intended for laying such things as plastic floor tiles on concrete or ply, and is water based but only while wet - so keeping up with cleaning is important during laying. Wear gloves, or you will get covered with glue that will take days to get off.... It doesn't dry totally hard, which is probably useful.

As Tim says, conventional wisdom is that nothing sticks to bitumen, but it worked, and there has been no sign of movement or lifting over the last five years or so.

Charles F

Reply to
Charles F

The problem is they will be worn thinner is well trafficked areas, you will need to sand them after laying. Old ones are thick and will stand this. They are likely stuck (not very well) with bitumen. If sticking where there is already bitumen yo can try heating the bitumen (both sides) with a blow lamp and putting down when melted. Otherwise, use fixing foam (aerosol cans). Be sure to remove dust off the floor before starting. You will need cement blocks or similar to weigh them down & prevent the foam from expanding and pushing the tiles up. A light spray of water helps on the floor prior to fixing, the foam is activated by moisture.

Reply to
harry

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