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

[MarkV]

If #2 common fits the look you want you might also consider #2 white oak also. White oak is a bit denser and harder with a tighter grain that will take a stain more evenly if you want to stain the floor. Just what I have learned in 25 years doing hardwood floors for a living.

MarkV

 

[MotorSeven]

Thanks Mark, I would prefer white oak, ash or maple, but all the closeouts and sales seem to be in red. I think I am just going to use a clear Tung Oil based product...no stain.

 

[brin]

Thanks Mark, I would prefer white oak, ash or maple, but all the closeouts and sales seem to be in red. I think I am just going to use a clear Tung Oil based product...no stain.

Motor...When we built our house we used all Solid 4" Red Oak and polyurethane...That was 7 yrs. ago and all the floors still look as good as the day they went down.

 

[tnmike]

I dont think tung oil will hold up nearly as well as polyurethane on a floor. You can get a low gloss type that will mimic the tung oil.

 

[MotorSeven]

I've got a line on reclaimed oak flooring....80-ish years old for .50 cents a sq ft. I am going to look at it in the morning with cash in hand. If it is in good shape that will be a heck of a deal.

Brin, yes red oak is very durable, I was just hoping to fine something in a lighter color, but when scrounging ya get what ya can

Mike, they actually make tung based floor coatings. I am sure they have additives in it to give it a little more durability. WaterLox is one of them and I just bought 5 gallons for the ceiling/rafters, so I can try some out on the floor.
Waterlox original tung oil wood sealer finish protection for floors, countertops, furniture and cabinets
No...it ain't cheap, but there is a log home supplier near Kingsport that stocks it for a little over $50 a gallon.

 

[tnmike]

a little over $50 a gallon

That is pretty pricey. What is the coverage?The 50 cent wood sounds like a deal.

 

[MotorSeven]

Well, I drove down to Maryville yesterday and looked at the flooring. All in all it's in pretty good condition. The guy selling it ownes a demolition company and said it came out of a big old church South of Knoxville. It's 2 & 1/4" wide and various lengths out to 12'. It's stamped with a lumber yard name from Alcoa TN and another from Murphy NC. I will do some research to see if they are still in business, but I doubt it.

Half of it has carpet glue on it(WHO PUTS CARPET OVER OAK PLANK FLOORS????....they should be shot:laughing The glue scrapes off easily, so a floor sander will have no problem with it. The seller was putting it down in his house and showed me the finished product...it looked great.

He had over well 3,000 sq ft left out of 10,000. My neighbor is also building a house and rode with me to look at it. He liked the look of it too, so we bought all of it. So for $750 each we have enough flooring to cover the floors in both houses. I will have enough to do the main floor and the loft with plenty left over.

There is 6 bundles of the shorter stuff on the trailer and one big bundle of the long planks on the truck flat bed. I am guessing it was a 8,000lb load:

 

[MotorSeven]

The one in the middle has carpet glue on it:

I figure around 6,000 nails oughta do it. What's the opinion of tar paper under it if it's going over a full basement? Is it needed?

 

[ENG18LT]

Great find. You couldn't come anywhere near that price for new stuff. I always preferred a little character in wood flooring, rather then the uniform looking high gloss floors you see mainly these days. Don't forget pics when your have it finished. :thumbsup:


Even with installing it over the full basement you should put down an underlayment to help reduce noise (squeaks). Even with stapling every 8" the wood will still contract/expand with changes in weather cycles, not much but some. I would mostly use red rosin paper when doing an install, but if your basement is damp then go with a 15lb. felt to create a moisture barrier so you avoid cupping. 2 1/4" oak is not something we see cup very often, unless you have a damp space under it and don't put down a barrier.

A box of 2" flooring staples should be plenty for your place. There is 7000 per box. Do youself a favor and either spend the money on a good pneumatic stapler (Bostich) or rent a good one. Also get quality staples. You do not want to be wadding up staples every third board.

 

[MarkV]

Good find. From what I could see it looks like a select grade of white oak. We put 15# felt under any flooring we install. Besides being somewhat of a moisture barrier it puts something so wood is not directly against wood. The floor is going to expand and contract with the weather conditions so it loosens up to a degree. Wood against wood is often when you get squeaks in the floor. I would say use the felt and leave expansion room along the walls that you can cover with base board and shoe molding.

MarkV