Questions tagged [hardwood]

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4 votes
4 answers
2k views

How to remove threaded insert that went in wrong?

I am attaching a cable management tray to the underside of my solid wood desk (acacia). I heard about threaded inserts which are good for when you want to disassemble things frequently. That sounded ...
1 vote
5 answers
711 views

How to support hardwood floors with no existing subfloors to prevent squeaking in 100-year-old home

This is a follow up question to this old thread: Replacing hardwood floor in 100 year old house with no subfloor The house has hardwood floors installed directly on floor joists and the floors are ...
0 votes
1 answer
34 views

Do I need to remove this residue from my floor and if so, how?

We’re in the process of laying down vinyl planks and want to tackle the kitchen next. We recently removed glued down hardwood and are left with this. We’ve tried sanding the residue down and it hasn’t ...
1 vote
1 answer
85 views

Please help me identify this 1927 flooring found under carpet? I need to buy 30 feet for repairs

I’d love to learn how to identify type and color so I can buy some matching repair pieces
0 votes
1 answer
77 views

Laying Hardwood in an Octagonal Pattern [closed]

Edit: I do not understand how the below is 'opinion-based' more than any other construction question. I am literally asking if carpenters here have advice on how to do a complex flooring pattern. I ...
0 votes
2 answers
50 views

Walls not straight (obviously) how to install hardwoods?

I’m installing Bruce hardwood flooring, I am just starting the first line against the wall and I’ve run into a problem, the spacing is 1/2” on either side, I ran my chalk line and started laying down ...
1 vote
1 answer
54 views

HELP - hardwood oak floor warping dramatically, how to remediate?

Hey stackexchange community, Not necessarily a DIY question- but thought I’d ask just in case, since we’re a little desperate. We have a fairly dramatic case of hardwood floor wood warping currently ...
4 votes
2 answers
62 views

Hardwood worth fixing?

Pulled up the carpets and found this section of hardwood in one room that looks like it’s been water damaged and is pretty warped. I was thinking of refinishing the floor but I think these would need ...
0 votes
1 answer
439 views

How do I go about leveling out streak marks in my wood stain?

I used knotty alder wood and sanded to 320 with a random orbital sander. Knotty Alder Min-Wax Pre-Stain Conditioner Min-Wax Oil-Based Stain Applied with t-shirt rag I see streak marks in my staining ...
1 vote
1 answer
64 views

Can the water stains in this hardwood floor be sanded out?

Do you think sanding will be able to take out these water marks, or do the boards need to be replaced? The water damage is old (prior to the previous owner, so at least 12 years) and the floor is ...
11 votes
3 answers
143k views

How can I remove blackened water stains from a hardwood floor?

We have several large (3' x 6') blackened areas on our hardwood floor where water damage occurred. This discoloration goes deep. Our goal is to sand the floors and apply a clear coat, but we first ...
1 vote
0 answers
24 views

Failing Finish on Resurfaced Hardwood Floor Renovation: What's the correct course of action?

Background My wife and I recently purchased a 1250 sq. ft. condo that needed some simple renovations. The first floor is entirely Number 1 Common Red Oak, which had likely last been installed 10-15 ...
0 votes
0 answers
30 views

How to reduce the cross section of a beech profile

What I have: A planed beech square 20 mm by 20 mm, length is 1 meter. What I want: A number of short (5 or 6 cm) pieces, but with a reduced cross section of only 20 mm by 16 mm. I could reduce the ...
-1 votes
1 answer
122 views

Steam mop hardwood floors

How bad would it be to steam mop hardwood floors once? I got new flooring through my house and then had to have a lot of drywall work done. The floors were not covered (I didn't know better). I've ...
1 vote
3 answers
969 views

How to remove hair dye stains on hardwood floor?

I made a stupid mistake of not cleaning hair dye stains from hardwood floor immediately and now it has been almost 3 months. I tried with Clorox regular bleach but it is not working. Any suggestions ...
-1 votes
2 answers
169 views

How should I terminate a flooring transition where it meets door casing?

I’m refinishing my hardwood floors(they were covered with carpet) and I have a height difference going from the dining room to the engineered wood floor in the kitchen of about 3/4”. I found the ...
0 votes
2 answers
69 views

How can I tell if this is hardwood or subfloor?

Photo 1: Photo of the carpet, pad, and wood taken from lifting up the carpet from the vent cover. Photo 2: Photo of an unfinished closet that leads to the crawlspace. Would a vent ever be installed on ...
1 vote
1 answer
403 views

Hardwood Filler is Popping up

We had new hardwood floors installed in our house and the installer used wood filler. Now 6 months later the wood filler is popping up in areas he filled that were existing flooring that remained. The ...
1 vote
1 answer
73 views

2nd subfloor layer for hardwood

I have a 3/4 inch tongue and groove plywood subfloor. I am installing hardwood flooring and the joists run the long length of the room. My hardwood manufacture guide says to run the hardwood flooring ...
0 votes
1 answer
101 views

Did contractor put in the cherry wood I ordered it doesn’t look like the sample [closed]

Just had engineered wood installed on steps. Was supposed to be cherry but it looks like oak and it has not changed color after a month even with a uv light.
0 votes
1 answer
60 views

Patching Hardwood and Removing Old flooring material

Found the original hardwood floors under some old tile I was tearing up for a kitchen renovation, and wondering how best to patch and refinish them. There's construction glue they used under the ...
0 votes
1 answer
57 views

How much will an undried hardwood shrink in the axial direction?

At the hardwood mill the man at desk said that the wood they cut (red and white oak, and poplar plus maple and others) is not kiln dried and can shrink as much as 6%. That makes sense to me and of ...
0 votes
2 answers
889 views

Is this red oak or white oak hardwood flooring?

I am planning to change a room that has laminate flooring to a room that has 3/4" hardwood flooring. The rest of the adjacent rooms and hallways all have hardwood flooring 3/4". Initially I planned ...
3 votes
1 answer
3k views

Do I need to use any sort of base coat when finishing hardwood floors with urethane?

So we are refinishing an old oak hardwood floor, we have sanded it and are cleaning it currently before we apply a satin water-based polyurethane (with no stain). Probably from Varathane or Minwax. I ...
0 votes
0 answers
55 views

How can I level an old kitchen?

I'm trying to level my old hardwood floor in my kitchen to install snap together vinyl on top. I sanded most of the high spots but I would like to use floor leveler to get it nicer. I sistered the ...
13 votes
3 answers
3k views

Does hardwood floor REALLY need an expansion gap?

The conventional wisdom is that hardwood floors need a 1/4-3/8" gap to the wall (or bottom plate) around the perimeter, hidden under the baseboard. Ostensibly this is for thermal and/or humidity ...
1 vote
2 answers
2k views

How can I transition between tile and slightly higher wood flooring? [duplicate]

My living room used to have laminate flooring and I'm switching to 5/8" engineered hardwood. There is a transition from the tiles to this floor. The tile will be a little lower than the new floor....
0 votes
4 answers
149 views

How to make 1x2 lumber longer?

I want to DIY a 99x72 inches rectangle wood frame by 1x2 lumber. The frame is used to keep a pet's playpen in shape, so the dimension is kind of customized. I found 1x2 lumber in 6 feet and 8 feet ...
0 votes
1 answer
60 views

Can solid hardwood be installed over vinyl tile?

I am pondering on how to go about my project. My house is laid out lengthwise with kitchen, dining room and living room in line. There is currently low profile carpet in the kitchen and dining room ...
5 votes
1 answer
2k views

Stain / residue on hardwood after years of rug covering

I just bought a house from the mid 1800’s. Hardwood throughout but two rooms have had rugs on the floor for obviously many, many, years. When we pulled up the rugs we found that the hardwood was ...
0 votes
2 answers
111 views

How would I fix this patch so that the hardwood looks consistent?

Going to need some guidance on how I could replace this patch so that the hardwood goes throughout
0 votes
0 answers
56 views

Best way to install T moulding

I am installing hardwood T moulding between my new hardwood floor and a tile floor. I tried just nailing down a test piece but I found the slight flex in the moulding causes squeaks with the nails. ...
1 vote
0 answers
273 views

Building a desk-Does it need reinforcement?

I'm build a computer desk, but I've been agonizing over the build because I'm concerned that there might not be enough support. These are the details: Table top: Teak butcher block with a live edge ...
11 votes
8 answers
8k views

How do I fix popped nails in hardwood floors?

Two nails in my hardwood flooring keep popping up: I have knocked them back in, but because of a bit of flex in the floor, they work their way back up. What should I do about them? Is it best to just ...
0 votes
0 answers
71 views

second floor walls short?

Live in the US. House is from 1972. I am trying to run some cable from the attic to the basement and the only real path is behind my closet in a room on the second floor. Need to drill a hole ...
0 votes
0 answers
38 views

Floor paint stripping

OK, so I decided to strip a heavy black paint and what not on top of it from the hardwood floors in a 100+ year old house I purchased recently. To that end I purchased a $150 stripping tool ("...
4 votes
1 answer
666 views

Hardwood flooring installation

We have 1/2” particle board over 3/4” plywood. Can we install real hardwood over both? We now have carpet which we want to replace.
3 votes
4 answers
126k views

How to drill a hole in the wood without an electric drill?

During a travel in Laos, I need to drill some holes into a double-door's wood to install a locker. The wood is rather hard, and I don't have an electric drill (and can't find it). I only have 2 small ...
-1 votes
1 answer
76 views

Redo of hardwood floors didn’t remove all poly

I refinished my sunroom’s hardwood floors. It used to be an open porch. When I applied the poly, I noticed swirls and scratch marks and decided to redo them again. The floors are now even, polished ...
0 votes
1 answer
126 views

Acclimating hardwood weight concern

I am having 3/4" red oak hardwood floors installed (1200 sq ft) and need to acclimate the wood. The floor is supported by 2x10 joists (16" center) with a 13 foot span. Can this wood be ...
1 vote
1 answer
97 views

How can I prevent warping while hardwood floor is stored for reuse?

I'm pulling up 1000 sq ft of hardwood floors to reuse in a couple months. They'll be stored in the same room they're pulled up from so the humidity levels will remain the same, minus seasonal change (...
1 vote
0 answers
52 views

acclimating new hardwood, southwestern Ontario, during the winter

first time question in this forum. I am expecting delivery of new hickory hardwood flooring in the next few weeks. I've been doing a lot of reading about acclimation. General guidelines specify ...
0 votes
4 answers
683 views

transition between hardwood plank and molding on stairs

I just got hardwood stairs installed. [The installer left a gap between the end of the hardwood plank and the molding and filled it with putty—and it looks terrible.][3] What can I do to cover that ...
0 votes
0 answers
53 views

Wood filler between old and new hardwood strip flooring?

House was built in 1983 and had 2-3/4" strip flooring on most of the main floor. When we bought the house in Winter of 2020, we had the two remaining rooms stripped of carpet and had hardwoods to ...
2 votes
2 answers
4k views

Spot repair hardwood floor due to Goo Gone

I just had my hardwood floors professionally sanded and finished with 3 coats of Bona Mega Water Base Satin Finish. Because we’re in the process of moving in and doing other renovations, it was just ...
0 votes
1 answer
1k views

Impact of Air Conditioner on plywood

I am going to set up a cupboard on a room which has AC. I'm wondering what would be the effect of running an AC on 22 degree Celsius(Normal room temperature would be 30 to 35 degree depending on the ...
1 vote
0 answers
53 views

Plywood over hardwood underlying a poured bathroom floor?

In this 1954 New Mexico home, in the bathroom there is plywood apparently laid over the hardwood floors. But it seems to be actually sunk below the 'grade' of the hardwood. Additionally, there is what ...
3 votes
1 answer
250 views

Is my approach to installing wood subfloor over concrete correct?

I recently purchased a new home in South Carolina, and was planning to extend the existing hardwood throughout the rest of the ground floor. Once I began to remove the existing carpet, I saw that ...
1 vote
1 answer
3k views

How can I tell if I'm looking at original hardwood or subfloor?

I ripped up a portion of my carpet and found wood underneath. Problem is: I can't tell if what I'm looking at is just subflooring or potentially the original hardwood. I've ask people who know more ...
-1 votes
2 answers
462 views

What should I cover gap with below stair banister [closed]

I am looking to install a cable rail banister when an older banister was. Unfortunately there is a gap in between the stairs and wood floor that was previously covered. Thanks in advance for your help!...