Gap between boards. .

[rarara]

we have sanded floors, pine I believe and varnish without any stain just natural aging colour. there is one section, possibly due to movement, where a slight gap has occurred. I wasn't too fussed but recently the edges have splintered off so I should probably fill them to prevent it worsening. the gap is possibly 1cm max and half that in depth.

what is best so that I can get a good colour match to the boards? obviously needs to be hardwearing..

Untitled

• rarara
• 9 Jun 2013
• 1

 

[dann09]

1. The boards on the left are newer than the boards on the right - who laid them, when?
Perhaps this is summer shrinkage?
Where in the floor - in the field or near a wall - is this happening?

2. The last board was laid with a split ( at a large knot ), that had, or has, been filled with : a filler or adhesive or white glue.
That faulty section of board should not have been laid.

3. I presume that something has caused movement if the original new and old boards were tight - is the section size/profile the same for old and new boards?

4. Have the boards been fixed by toe-nailing the tongues, or face nailing?

 

[rarara]

Hi, thanks for the respones - will try and answer as best i can:

1. No, am pretty sure they are the same age. It might just be the natural variation in the wood as some have taken a bit more colour after sanding/varnishing (even some bits of the same board have variation). These are original boards in a 120 year old flat. The location is right across the position of a bay window - we are top (2nd floor) so some movement is to be expected.

2. Yes, it looks like the groove with the knot is an area of weakness, exacerbated by the fact the tongue isn't sitting in the groove which would provide a bit more support. The filler was done by the sanding guy, as there were a few holes etc due to imperfections in the wood or places where damage has occured over the years (laying electricity cables 30 years ago etc). I can't be sure the reason for that particular fill. Not sure if "That faulty section of board should not have been laid" would have been considered 130 years ago - they probably didn't envisage people in the future would wan't the boards sanded and exposed!

3. Movement is due to it being at the bay window as mentioned above. The boards shown adjacent which are nice and tight give a fair indication of the remainder of the room. All are the same size.

4. All boards were originally tongue nailed. Some of thoese that have been lifted over the years have face nails, but not very many.

I believe the gap is due to settlement, which doesn't concern me as happens with these type of flats. i just want to get something which will prevent more splintering and take the eye away from the gap. If I can get as good a colour match as possible, I can even apply a thin black line to look like a join. I just don't know what material is best.

 

[dann09]

Thanks for the reply:

FWIW: the tight rings on the boards on the right indicate different growth years to the LH boards - perhaps you already know this.

You could carefully lift the split board, remove the damaged area and relay it, with a metric section board in the run but closer to the wall.
If you are in the bay area the lengths involved would not be too long.

Or you could have a joiner shape a square section to T&G,
or insert a say, 40 - 50mm ripping.

Gently pounding on a beater block would drive the tongue back into the groove.

Using a filler:
1. leaves you with the difficulty of the dangerous sliver
2. any filler will work it's way out with the structural movement you describe
3. Hardwood floor mechanics often use a decorative ebony strip - expensive.

As professional builders, we always use a mechanical solution to such difficulties, steering away from fillers and glues.

 

[rarara]

Hi,

No, wasn't aware of that. Would that not be expected, unless each adjacent board was from the same tree?

I don't think the idea of lifting the boards is a winner for a few reasond:

1) there would be a lot of inevitable damage to the existing good boards in the lifting process. they are a very snug fit, about 25mm depth, well fixed with wrought iron nails etc so even in unseen areas where I have needed to lift them previously, its been a brutal job.
2) the boards are angled at each end to fit the profile of the bay, so to remove one, and shunt the others up would not work - it would create gaps at the ends as a shorter board moves into the position of a slightly longer one (not sure if that makes sense - its hard to describe).

a filler I was hoping would fill the gap, so any sliver (i would probably remove the worst) would be fairly well gripped by the filler underneath and around it. as far as further movement, thats less of a concern as it looks fairly historic

thanks for the advice so far..

 

[dann09]

Right, then go for a tube of coloured filler that will roughly match the in-place boards.
Or a short roll of gap filler covered with the above, or some other product.

AAMOI, there's a chemical that you mix with sawdust and it works well, like all of them - for a time only.