Restoring 100 Year Old Floorboards. Is it WORTH IT?

Before I started sanding I thought these floors were original to the 90 year old house, after I started sanding it became quite obvious that it wasnt original to the house. But "restoring Perhaps 35-50 year old boards" is just not as clickable! I hope you like it, please subscribe
THE BEST LACQUER for Wood Floors (by FAR):
www.amazon.com/gp/search?ie=U...
And the one thing everyone seems to forget when refinishing their floors:
www.amazon.com/gp/search?ie=U...
If you want to get serious about refinishing your hardwood floors, do a good job and save money:
howtosandafloor.com/video-course/
This description contains affiliate links. If you click them and purchase I will earn a commission.

[@andrewn.shajenko1201]

Been sanding floors in the Chicago area for a while….. happy to see there are others out there who care about standing floors…. Keep it going

[@superbiobabe]

We paid a handyman to sand the floors in a cottage we bought and the floor looks the same as it did before he started. I’m so frustrated now he’s shellacked them any advice?

[@andrewfarnden7111]

I’ve just restored a pine floor in my hallway this week with help from your ebook and video course - thank you!

[@sct27271]

Beautiful floor! Ben, you are an absolute star!

[@GentalmanLout]

Great finish as always, love the cheeky editing with the hammer work!

[@olafpieters]

You sir, are a master in your craft. Thanks for sharing!

[@graciemaca6996]

What a fantastic job you did with this floor! You strengthened the loose boards which likely squeaked, nailing them back in place. Then you sanded the floor-boards so perfectly and sealed them! Sanding a 2nd time and sealing again.😊 It really came out looking awesome! Well done!❤👍

[@p1tillhometime]

No need to watch the vid with this perfect synopsis.. 😆

[@george9710]

You can't remove squeaks by nailing the floors back in. You have flooring screws nowadays and they work much better than any nail you'll ever see but to each his own ..

[@LoudStereoTINYDICK]

Now its very easy to understand why proper floor sanding is $6+ a square foot!! Amazing work

[@2003Trailblazer]

Great lighting and camera angle showing the cross cut get run over by the straight pass with the drum

[@user-vh2pk6bd3g]

You take the time to do it right and it shows, very professional

[@scottmarroon7734]

You were very fortunate that your 100 year old pine flooring did not have any big gaps between the boards. My house was built in 1892 and has the original old pine planks. Some have rather larger gaps, so I won’t be able to go with a lighter or natural stain because I would see all those dark cracks.

[@hallowrant8091]

They look fantastic...ill be honest though, old look looks fine to me as well

[@olivercotton347]

I like it when you do a voice over on your videos. It helps explain for us noobs what you are doing and why. Anyway - I love your videos!!!

[@Marigoldblu]

Fabulouse restoraiton !

[@mrsandman2380]

Loba for the win! Just started using it and I’m in love, no lap lines!

[@p1tillhometime]

Most 1k lacquers and low sheen keep lap lines well at bay.

[@philpowell6915]

Wow...!! Magnificent job 👏 👌

[@dolphinlover1691]

Much nicer than covering it with carpet for sure! After the initial essential hand labour, the power tools make the job much easier.

[@cathyh1680]

Incredible difference! It doesn't look like the walls were affected or discoloured. That's my issue, which to do first. I heard that the walls will get discoloured by the floor sanding, so I was going to do the floors first then have the problem of protecting the floors while doing the walls and ceilings, all hardwood ceiling to & including floors, 3 layers of lead paint on walls & ceiling.

[@TimothyDeck]

Bravo!! Great job. I have wood floors I will need to tackle. :)

[@davinchipainting]

Good job 👍

[@gizzykatkat9687]

I love this!

[@mikefitzpatrick1213]

Beautiful.

[@tomkinson86]

Another fabulous and mesmerising restoration! Good job Ben

[@matildinia]

so interesting to watch!

[@LazTLaz]

Great to see you do an old British pine floor Ben. This one is very similar to mine, complete with creaks, large gaps and past plumbing cuts. Interesting to see what you improve and what you leave alone, though I guess the client had some input there. The final job looks wonderful!

[@artbyingrida]

But what to do with large gaps?

[@george9710]

@@artbyingrida You have to close up large gaps and usually you use a long shim to do so. You can cut the excess of with a chisel and then the sander will take care of the rest. It takes a very long time do to and the truth is that many old floors are simply not worth the effort or money to restore. But I'll get a lot of abuse for this so take it with a grain of salt.

[@chipmunk176]

Not using Bona anymore?, did a job similar to this a few days ago, Very old pine boards but the majority of the floor was covered in carpet adhesive so it gunked up all the sanding pads and had to scrape all the edges with a carbide scraper before using the rotex. Punched all the nails below like done here and also lifted a board and put better supports under like you did here to stop the boards moving when stepped on. Hoovering was a nightmare just couldnt seem to get bits to stop coming up through the cracks until the last coat. My job was stained walnut and coated with a few coats of Fiddes hardwax oil cut back in between. Came up lovely.

[@cha1ny104]

Very impressive. How do you seal the gaps between boards and what's a typical gap for a floor like this? And which exact lacquer did you use on this floor? Thanks

[@user-ol8jh6ji4u]

On a very small floor 6m2 would say a belt sander would be ok? Also, what would you recommend as the best finish to give the most nature look possible.

[@Dex01-Z_WingZero]

I love it👌

[@Outnumberedbykidsandcats]

They look amazing. Our house was built in the 1920s and the flooring is like this. We tried to sand it and do it ourselves and the result was meh. Having watched your videos I can see what things we did wrong so how to improve next time. The one big issue we had is that one board needed replacing completely and they don’t make the boards the same size now so the one that my husband replaced it with isn’t as wide as the original and sticks up higher. Do you know if there is anywhere you can get original ones to switch out?

[@jasonh6543]

Awsome!

[@user-rg9ib2ks1t]

Sir may I say that your did a awesome job on that floor that's how u deal with a floor like that u did the right thing and at the end it looks amazing sir a job well done 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍💯💯💯💯💯 a perfection sir 🙂🙂🙂🙂

[@HowToSandAFloor]

Cheers 😁🍻

[@themiddleclasstaxslave651]

Awesome job - I have floors just like this in the US, but in much worse shape. No subfloors, can the basement. They need to saved. 150 years old planks. Appreciate all the videos, Subscribed, definitely earned - amazing videos

[@HowToSandAFloor]

Thank you! 🍻

[@vucko97]

Perfect!

[@HowToSandAFloor]

Thank you!

[@ivannightly1919]

going to say when the alternative flooring is printed paper glued to strand board -Hell yes !!! it is more than worth it in every way FYI my replacement flooring they convinced me to put down got wet from a leaky window and the top just peeled away

[@theclownofclowns]

hey I have a question hopefully you see this within a day or so! when doing the diagnonal method and I reach a corner, should I go straight there? or just use the edger on a larger area there in the corner?

[@edwardcondon]

great video, and the floor came great as well. I want to restore a similar floor in my house. I am curious, what did you use to fill the gaps between the boards?

[@artbyingrida]

I had the same question, any solution?

[@dajumpoff08]

What is that second sander called, the green handheld one?

[@mikeyoung1934]

So diagonal passing first with lower grain? Then pass in the direction of the boards with high grain?

[@abbyarmstrong5136]

The floor on my house is over 200 year old planks. It doesn’t lay flat in a lot of areas(kind of like walking in a ship)… is it possible to use the big machines on it or is my best bet to go hands and knees and use an orbital sander?

[@arkadihughes4893]

I'm in a similar boat and my guess is it's better to do it by hand. Just be very careful to use PPE and a shop vac for dust collection. Those machines are also vacuums, so you'll end up with a huge mess if you're not careful

[@geokeyey1116]

What kind of roller did you use??

[@italolm141]

Hey! I live in Long Branch, NJ and was impressed with your work. In 2023, I founded my sand and install flooring company, IAC - American Floor, and am seeking advice on how to expand my business and find more job opportunities. I am open to any suggestions or guidance you can offer. Thanks in advance!

[@IanLopshire]

Amazing transformation! Are the gaps between boards just a part of how floors like this were constructed? We have a similar floor and the gaps make it so hard to keep clean!

[@HowToSandAFloor]

Yes, in britain these floors are generally fitted as a subfloor, the gaps are to allow for expansion and contraction. You do get cumulative contraction over time.

[@saunders400]

What machine would you recommend when hiring a sander for DIY?

[@sambryant2283]

No sawdust and Lecol. Apart from that good job. Little tip, before final sand, if you give a light water pop (I use a garden sprayer high pressure fine spray) . There is no need to sand between coats meaning there is a thicker protection layer and still just as smooth.

[@p1tillhometime]

Can't resin fill gaps that big brother, will crack and loosen within 3 seasons.

[@simpletonballsack]

What does your "sawdust and Lecol" comment mean? Are you suggesting that the floor should have been vandalised (aka, gap-filled)??

[@sambryant2283]

@@p1tillhometime I was referring to the nails holes

[@sambryant2283]

@@simpletonballsack I was referring to nails holes and the chipped parts. Not the gaps, That’s suicidal.

[@p1tillhometime]

@sambryant2283 same applies. You could putty fill the nail holes to avoid cracking... but that'd be very odd, it's considered to be part of the optic character of the floor (the visible nail holes).

[@rowankeltizar5961]

I probably missed it in another video but what filler do you use? Is it an oil based solvent ekth sanding dust or something else?

[@user-if3md2be6b]

Hello. Can you please tell me the name of that smaller sander and what exactly you treated the wood with after sanding? Is it just lake?

[@karupt422]

do the edges of the boards eat a lot of the material?

[@jasonhatfield4747]

4 disc floor sanders are much gentler and preserve far more material than the belt or other style of sanders. For most people, that would be the far safer option for sanding old floors. I've seen a lot of old homes flooring ruined by the more aggressive machines in the wrong hands.

[@HowToSandAFloor]

Older floors need more material removed, and pine floorboards like this can rip those disks off sometimes. People just need to do a bit of research on how to use the drum sander and practice with a 120 belt.

[@SusiePisarcik]

What is the first product that you apply to the floors (prior to the finish)?

[@AlecGrinage]

How long would the entire process take for a room this size?

[@stuartnorman2662]

Question, you dont fill the nail holes?

[@HAL-vu8ef]

I want to do this but my 3/4 inch tongue and groove oak floor boards don’t squeak, instead they crack and pop and sound like they are splitting even though they are not, they’ve been doing it for years. No idea what to do.

[@heniutek]

nice joob bro❤

[@user-if3md2be6b]

The surface of the floor is not leveled and I wonder what tool he uses to level it, I notice that it comes out super well and nicely leveled

[@TimeGallon]

So you would recommend using a roller for the polyacrylic topcoat?

[@HowToSandAFloor]

I think roller is the best method of application yes

[@TimeGallon]

@@HowToSandAFloor thank you! I’ve watched a ton of your videos and didn’t heed your advice to use the drum sander rather than a finishing sander to remove the old finish. I recall you saying in one of your videos, that it would take a week if you used just a finishing sander. No one in my area offers a drum sander for rent so I went with the finishing sander. It took me 55 hours not including prep time, clean up and edge work to sand about 1200 sqft. 15 hours the first day, 10 the next then about about 5 on average the next 5 days. I knew within the first minute of using it, that I was in for a long day and should’ve returned it right then and counted my loss.

[@MyCheezers]

What’s the little tool you used to get in the corners? I need that! 😅

[@p1tillhometime]

Its called a Multi tool. Made by Fein but other brands make their own.

[@jr.elwood9326]

Are you my upstairs neighbour? These noises sound quite familiar...

[@mar3oooob]

Why did you use the sander at an angle when removing the paint and not use it in the direction of the wood fibers?

[@magnushmann]

it more easily creates visible marks

[@mar3oooob]

@@magnushmann Thank you

[@p1tillhometime]

Makes the floor flatter

[@Ragnar8504]

I think there's a pretty good video somewhere on this channel that explains why you start with one or more diagonal passes until the floor is smooth and then do the final pass with the grain.

[@magnushmann]

@@Ragnar8504 There is yea

[@lillliililiil]

Why floor guys sometimes fill the gap but sometimes don't? btw, it's a great work.

[@HowToSandAFloor]

On these boards the expansion and contraction throughout the seasons is too much, the filler ends up coming out

[@Dex01-Z_WingZero]

The big green machine, is it a plainer?

[@HowToSandAFloor]

It’s a belt sander (Lagler Hummel)

[@ignacio5283]

Curious why ou didnt fill the nail holes?

[@HowToSandAFloor]

The client didn’t want it! I wanted to clear the gaps and fill them but she didn’t want that either

[@alangrant5684]

Any recommendation to hide nail spots?

[@RoyZenzo]

drive the nails deeper into the wood and use plugs or filler

[@spanishjohn420]

So that's what they've been doing in the flat above me for weeks!

[@p1tillhometime]

😢

[@alangrant5684]

1:20 Air hammer lol.

[@votingcitizen]

seems like a lot of effort to put into dressing up subflooring.

[@maximebedard6618]

good work! you need to buy knee protection dude!

[@BeasleyStreet]

Look closer @5.50

[@NUMENOREAN91]

Sanded off all the character and petina

[@ParkettaKarkusz]

Where is the Trio ? :D

[@HowToSandAFloor]

Trio can cause issues on pine floors like this

[@crayzmarc]

It's been a while

[@HowToSandAFloor]

I know! :( im way too slow

[@nayshaness]

Sadly they painted over mines

[@mattymattffs]

But why use nails which always end up creaking? You could just use screws and avoid it

[@cnut4563a]

This is what I thought. Great video though.

[@joewho8168]

I thought that was a pine floor

[@octaviogonzalez3258]

Already lasted 100 years, sure well keept Will last another 100

[@rodrigogalindez]

Nice, but to be honest the old floor had more charm...

[@HowToSandAFloor]

Maybe

[@OxenHandler]

If your client were to ask, "Why is it so blothcy?" Indicating the contrasting reds and yellows, what would you reply?

[@p1tillhometime]

"That's wood"

[@pgogel8974]

It nice but it is the sub floor

[@HowToSandAFloor]

Yurp

[@spanishjohn420]

what wood is that, elm?

[@p1tillhometime]

Pine innit

[@spanishjohn420]

@@p1tillhometime thx

[@timzstr]

😂😂😂 did you edge 1 time

[@DonaldWeber-gz8ef]

No, it's not. Rip them up and send to me.

[@larsjonckers372]

The sanding is when you took away all the looks of a 100 year old floor. Character is just gone. Might aswell be a new floor

[@MrNategeo]

Any advice on cleaning carpet adhesive off 70year old boards? I very much would like to restore it and own a 16in rotary disc and a 20in square scrubber as well as all the hand tools thanks😬 I've considered buying a scraper drive for the rotary but don't want to potentially damage the boards with a diamond scraper. I also have these same wide boards with the gaping under my carpet on the second floor, so this helps me a lot!

[@HowToSandAFloor]

sand it off with a big belt/drum machine. If theyre 70 year old boards youre going to need to start with one anyway! 36 or 40 grit should get it off