The Log house Project begins........

[ENG18LT]

One other note - be sure to allow 2-3 weeks acclimation time inside the house before installing. VERY IMPORTANT!!!!!!!!!!

 

[MotorSeven]

Mark, I'm going 30' wide x 36' long, so is 3/4" enough for expansion all the way around? Another question, where the flooring meets the french door thresholds, do I leave a gap then cover it with a custom transition threshold board?

 

[MotorSeven]

One other note - be sure to allow 2-3 weeks acclimation time inside the house before installing. VERY IMPORTANT!!!!!!!!!!

I have a moisture meter, and I will check it, but I don't think it will show much swing between the subfloor and planks. The guy had it stored on a second floor not heated or cooled, so it should be acclimated already. It took 4 guys 5 hours to get all that flooring out through a balcony, onto a forklift then onto my trailer.........

 

[MarkV]

Mark, I'm going 30' wide x 36' long, so is 3/4" enough for expansion all the way around? Another question, where the flooring meets the french door thresholds, do I leave a gap then cover it with a custom transition threshold board?

Yes 3/4" around the perimeter will be fine and is the recommend amount. You have a bit of a plus or minus factor so it doesn't have to be exact. Go ahead and run tight to you door thresholds, it is common practice. The remainder of the floor will have enough freedom to make up for expansion.

Just to be clear the amount of expansion is not going to be dramatic but is enough to buckle a floor if it is run too tight. In your case without using AC in the humid months it is important to have room for expansion though. You also have the advantage of using antique flooring that has really stabilized over decades, is my guess. Suppliers have not supplied boards over 8' in the last 30 years. That is so they can fit in pallets on a semi trailer. Who knows how old yours is. It should be nicer straight grain old growth oak than you can buy these days. There just aren't that many old growth trees anymore.

MarkV

 

[MotorSeven]

Thanks, yes the guy said he thought the church was over 80 years old...sometime around 1930-40 so first growth trees are a real possibility. I did get a quote for "cabin grade" 5" red oak from a local factory @ .75 a sq ft, but mostly short planks. I think this reclaimed stuff is a much much higher grade and I like the narrow planks better and of course the price was a bonus.....

 

[woodlandfarms]

We have red oak over slab. Installation for the slab was quite interesting. they mopped the floor with a sealer, then put tarpaper and plastic down. Then take 1/2 plywood cut into 2 foot widths spaced 1 inch apart going against the top wood grain direction,

I think I have pix if you want them.

 

[MarkV]

Thanks, yes the guy said he thought the church was over 80 years old...sometime around 1930-40 so first growth trees are a real possibility. I did get a quote for "cabin grade" 5" red oak from a local factory @ .75 a sq ft, but mostly short planks. I think this reclaimed stuff is a much much higher grade and I like the narrow planks better and of course the price was a bonus.....

Well you got a real find. I did flooring in Atlanta and was involved in a historic restoration project in the Baltimore Hotel. I had to have old growth oak reclaimed from old beams and re-milled to to match the flooring standards the specs called for. I paid $8.75 a foot for that in 2 1/4, it was all about the antique quality for the project. That is way high for todays Select and Better oak flooring. Oak prices change daily like the stock market but you would be under $3 per ft for current material. It would be pretty but not as nice as your straight grain old growth. I wouldn't worry too much about expansion with your flooring. By the way it is a tedious job to remove old flooring and the old cut nails plus keep the flooring in as good of shape as you showed.

Let me toss this out to think about. I know you are an accomplished DIY guy. You might want to consider having the floor sanded by someone who does it full time though. The biggest reason is the type of equipment you can rent. Our sanders cost about $8k, run on a 220v feed and weight around 150#. The power and weight is what makes the sander do a clean even cut. Kind of like a heavy boxblade and a light one. Rental sanders I see are much different. We use drum sanders and the roundness of the drum is everything for a good non rippled finish. It cost about $500 a year to have them trued. Rental sanders lack that. The non-drum sanders that you see are not going to have the cutting power for your glue and multiple layers of vanish.

For what they are worth, just my thoughts. Happy to answer any questions my years of flooring can help with. Again, great find. I'd use it in my house.

MarkV

 

[Obed]

Wow! What an awesome find regarding the flooring. Personally I would install it "by the book". That flooring is too valuable to take chances or shortcuts with. We stored our red oak flooring in our house for 3 weeks prior to installing to make sure it was acclimated to our house's environment. Last spring I can remember hearing the loud popping noises as the wood moved around as moisture conditions changed. That wood will move some as conditions change.

Yes, you definitely want a barrier between the concrete and hardwood.

I'm excited for you. That floor is going to be awesome!
Obed

 

[MotorSeven]

Ok, I have read the reviews, do I hear a big {gasp} if I say I am going to go buy the HF 2 in 1 flooring stapler?
2-in-1 Flooring Nailer/Stapler

Cleats or staples....Lee...Mark?

 

[brin]

Ok, I have read the reviews, do I hear a big {gasp} if I say I am going to go buy the HF 2 in 1 flooring stapler?
2-in-1 Flooring Nailer/Stapler

Cleats or staples....Lee...Mark?

Motor...I just got this 20% off coupon For HF...but you have to use it quick...I hope it uploads..