Replaging floorboards - skirtings

[David.WE.Roberts]

As part of the lounge refurb we are going to lift the 1930s well hacked about floor boards and replace.

Now all these boards tuck nicely under the skirting boards and the plaster.

What are the chances of getting them all out from under the skirtings then slipping 18mm boards under without damaging the skirtings?

If we use wide T&G boards such as Caber then the last board may well be a challenge.

Oh, and as an alternative flooring we keep looking at various particle boards.

Particle board with large wood flakes seems to be used a lot in NZ as flooring and it does have a much more attractive finish than green flooring grade chipboard.

Anyone been down this route?

Cheers

Dave R

[meow2222]

Why not remove & refit skirting?

NT

[David.WE.Roberts]

Damage to the skirting, damage to the 1930s walls - old sandy plaster.

We are trying to avoid having to re-skim the whole room.

If the skirting boards come off then it is almost certainly a complete re- skim.

The boards will be held in by huge rusty nails into wooden wall plugs so gentle removal with no damage may not be achievable.

Cheers

Dave R

[harryagain]

To remove, just put a cut with a circular saw down the middle of the room and start prising up from there. Mind you don't cut any wires or pipes. set the saw to the thickness of the floorboards.. The tonges will have to be cut either with a sash knife or saw in the first one out.

To replace, each board will have to be in two parts. The joints should be staggered and over the centre of a joist. No problem so long as the new boards are the same thickness. The last board in will have no tongue.

Why not just leave the floorboards in and put additional material on top?

[David.WE.Roberts]

Solid (Kingspan) insulation between the joists.

So the boards have to come up.

[Old Git]

Get a narrow parallel punch and drive the nails right through the floorboards. Should be able to slide the boards out then.

[Brian Gaff]

Probably cos half the plaster comes with em!

Might be an idea to also put in some under floor insultion as well at this time. Brian

[David.WE.Roberts]

Unless, of course, the nails are under the skirting board.

[Roger Mills]

Sadly, there's a good chance that some of them will be - which is why you really need to remove the skirting.

If the only reason for replacing the boards is to fit insulation under them, is there any other way of doing do? Could you take down the ceilings below in order to gain access, or use some other form of insulation which could be squirted in through a few holes?

[David.WE.Roberts]

Briefly, no.

In more detail

(1) it is the lounge so on the ground floor

(2) it is a suspended floor so squirting stuff in is going to require a lot of 'stuff' and would compromise the under floor ventilation via air bricks for the whole ground floor.

So the floor is coming up - just a question of the skirting boards.

Cheers

Dave R

[Dave Plowman (News)]

There are always going to be some of them with a joist close to the skirting that are near impossible to remove without some affect on the skirting. Depending on the house design, some may also continue under an internal wall.

[stuart noble]

This might help with the nails.

[David.WE.Roberts]

:-)

Unfortunately I already have one and it makes a chocolate teapot appear a design icon in comparison.

Looks like the skirting boards are coming off.

Cheers

Dave R

[David.WE.Roberts]

Fortunately solid walls all round in this case.

Cheers

Dave R

[RobertL]

AIUI you will have 'interfered with a thermal unit' by replacing the floorboards. So, officially, you have to insulate to modern standards don't you?

Robert

[Dave Plowman (News)]

I've just fitted real wood floor over the existing boards in my living room. And did remove the skirting - was well worth the effort as the final results are stunning. Having trimmed the skirting to give a perfect fit to the floor - and also replace damaged parts (it's over 100 years old) .

On the outside brick walls I made up battens and screwed them to the brick. Then removed if needed and planed to the correct height. The skirting is screwed to them and the heads filled over - so I'll be able to remove them without damage at a later date if needed.

[Martin Bonner]

This is one of the jobs that a Bosch multitool is brilliant at. Run round the perimeter of the room with a circular saw set slightly

*shallower* than the thickness of the boards. Prise up boards from the middle of the room with brute force and ignorance (it will get much easier once the first board is up). Slide multitool between joist and floorboard to cut any nails. Remove board.

If the skirting is nailed to the floorboards, then you'll need to slide the multitool between skirting and floorboard too.

[harryagain]

Doesn't matter. Raise the other end of the skirting board and bash the nails with a hammer and sash knife. They will com loose. But they can't be put back of course.

[Roger Mills]

How much space is there under the floor? Can you get underneath in order to fit the Kingspan?

[David.WE.Roberts]

No.