REFINISHED FIR FLOORS

Portland is full of homes with old fir floors.I have done my fair share over the years.Although fir is a soft wood compared to oak with several coats of quality finish it holds up quite well.

And in my opinion one of the best looking floors when properly refinished.The color tone that the wood takes on over the years cant be imitated!

Here are some recent before and afters...............

The "Add On" continued....

Often times an add on to existing wood will require a "lace-in".This is where the existing and new wood meet.The new wood needs to be properly joined to the existing wood.Care should be taken to keep as much of the tongue and groove in both the new and old wood as possible.This will create a much more stable floor over time.I have seen many floors not laced in properly.The result over time will be movement in the floor........

Here is an example of a laced-in area..........

The process of lacing in a floor can be tedious,but is ultimately well worth the effort!

The "Add On" Project

This is a type of project I have worked on many, many times over the years.Many homes have hardwoods in part of the house but they cut off where they meet carpet,tile or linoleum.By tearing out the carpet,linoleum,etc.... and connecting new wood to the old a more open feel can be created for the house.

In most homes the subfloor is consistent throughout the home.So the carpet,linoleum,tile,etc.. is simply torn out and the new hardwood is added right over the existing subfloor.

     
Here you see a living room in the process of having the carpet torn out.............
After the new wood has been installed...........
And finally after both the new and old wood has been sanded and finished...........

 

                                                                                                                          

One thing I look out for on these projects is to be sure to get as good a match between the old and new wood as possible.I have seen too many floors over the years where the new wood was not properly matched to the old.....and it shows!

Its not only important to match the species and grade of wood but also to match the mill or at least the region the original wood came from as well.

I have more to post on this subject, so look for more in the future................Thanks for looking!

Goodbye 2012-Hello 2013!!

WELCOME TO THE NEW BLOG!!

2012 started out slow but by spring things were picking up quick.I completed several interesting jobs and had some great clients that were a pleasure to work with!I feel very fortunate to have had such great clients.Without you none of this is possible!

Here is a before and after of the last project of 2012........

This floor is a parquet quarter-sawn oak.Parquet floors can be a challenge to sand.After doing several over the years I have learned some tricks and was real pleased with how this one came out.I used Pallman water based finish on this.I am really impressed with this finish and plan on using it a lot more this year!

A couple more before and after........

If you look closely you can see the "speckling" patterns in the boards that are a characteristic of quarter sawn wood. Very nice stuff!


Thanks for looking and look for more soon..........!