1-3mm gaps between floorboards

Hi all,

Just wondering if anyone can advise on the best way to fix a few gaps we have in our floorboards? They're anywhere from 1mm - 3mm wide. House is brick veneer; (assuming this is the term used to describe where brick is put over the old weatherboard home it used to be?)

All help appreciated :)
 
Nah, what you've got is "cladding" :)

Brick veneeer in Victoria is your "standard" brick home (as different from "double brick") - i.e. a wood or metal frame with a single lsayer of bricks.

The Y-man
 
We have mostly 1-2mm gaps with a few areas as wide as 3mm.

Our hallway which appears to have been exposed and coated in polyurethane the longest (done by previous owners) has either been done a few times or has had very thick coats applied, as the gaps are filled with what appears to be hardened polyurethane.

We did the rest of the house after pulling up carpet and lino then applying coating but those gaps are still there. They bug me too and are so much harder to clean.

I figured next time we do the floorboards I will inquire about applying either thicker coating or more layers.

Has anyone tried this or would they have used some other clear material to fill these gaps?
 
Hi all,

Just wondering if anyone can advise on the best way to fix a few gaps we have in our floorboards?
There's a product called Aqua-Seal Pafuki which can be floated onto the floor to fill the gaps. If you want to be pedantic you can mix in some of the sanding dust so the sealant matches the colour of the boards.

cheers
 
Mary & Mat

Are they solid floorboards (nailed) or floating floorboards. Either way first start with geting a golf ball and putting it on the floor, if it rolls in a constant direction then there is a warp in your floor. this could be from any number of reason even down to your stumps ( worst case scenerio )

Jezza
 
Thanks to all for your feedback.

Re are they solid, yes. Ball rolls, but can roll back again in original direction. Can we still fix?

Noooo...not the stumps!

Thanks to weg, maloo & itinerantotter...very good tips!
 
Go to the big green shed and buy some Fuller's "Caulk in Colours".
It's water based, comes in heaps of colours and real easy to use. What timber are your floorboards?

Boods
 
Check Dusty's advice on this thread. Of all advice I've read, he seems to be the most knowledgeable.....he recommends timbermate, but don't water it down too much and apply after nailing, sanding and primary polishing.

We've recently sanded and polished a hardwood floor in a 30s house in Brisbane. Finished with 2 pak poly. Looks great. Cost 2k. We decided not to fill the 2-3mm gaps because we were going to do a major reno sometime in the future if we hold it. We haven't touched the stumps and it would need to be leveled with a major reno.

We've painted inside and wanted the floors looking good to test the market in spring and make it nicer to rent to students.
 
Go to the big green shed and buy some Fuller's "Caulk in Colours".
It's water based, comes in heaps of colours and real easy to use. What timber are your floorboards?

Boods

Sorry for dealy replying, had to wait & ask partner...they're just hardwood, nothing fancy. Does that make a difference?

thanks also for your advice :)
 
Sorry for dealy replying, had to wait & ask partner...they're just hardwood, nothing fancy. Does that make a difference?

thanks also for your advice :)

Hardwood covers just about every timber used in flooring! I meant what species? Jarrah, Karri, Tassie Oak etc...

Timbermate (also available from the big green shed) is ok to use, but you will have to coat over the top of it as it dries porous. Most floor sanders will use it when sanding/coating a floor, but will use it after they have sealed (fiirst coat) and before the two final coats.

The caulk in colours dries water resistant and won't lighten up when it ages.

Also be aware that timber floors will gap up during the warmer dryer months and the gaps will close during the cooler wetter months as the timber expands and contracts.

Boods
 
The problem with filling the gaps between boards is that is the way the boards move, so that is where any fill is most likely to crack.

These are are the different options I look at for filling gaps between boards (for everything else it is timbermate)

Trowel in the Bona mix and fill product for floors coated with Bona water based products.

Mix up a blend of very fine sawdust from the floor and some primer and then fill with that.

Use tinted car bog. (this is cheap and surprisingly effective)

Trowel in the Redifill mix and fill products.

Rip down pieces of similar board and glue in the slivers with PVA. This is probably the most effective way I do it, but also the most time consuming.

Best of Luck
 
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