Repairing Solid Nail Down Hardwood Floors

You may note several methods in which to repair or replace one or two boards on a nail down hardwood floor. The principle is the same as I've seen This Old House regular Tom Replacing floor boards Silva use a method to drill holes into the affected areas first then hammer and pry the damaged sections apart. This works fine for those that want to keep sawdust to a minimum.

Our method calls for making two cuts on the board to be replaced. The first step calls for adjusting the circular saw to be used the actual depth or thickness of the flooring. This helps to keep sawdust low and not having to cut into the subfloor. Our example shown is a repair on a bordered floor that involved covering radiator holes and some damaged sections.

Where Should I Make The Two Cuts?

Most professionals simply cut two lines with no set measurement in mind down the middle of the board. On the other hand, by keeping the cut to about 3/8 of one inch from each long seam, you'll be cutting through the nails that were used to fasten the floor. This can speed up the process especially if they're barbed cleat

nails that can be very troublesome to remove anyway. As always keep a keen eye on safety if attempting such a project.

But, if you're dealing with an older floor, say prior to the 60's this method cannot be used safely. The years before specialized flooring nailers, thicker steel cut nails were used to fasten the flooring. No circular saw will go through these nails without rattling the man behind the tool. It is also not a safe way to do this kind of repair. This could be one reason why Tom Silva doesn't bring out the skill saw because he sees these older floors all the time.

In my travels I'm always looking for new ideas or "how guys do things different." This repair was done in the Baltimore area with the installer making the two cuts to each board end joint, then making a cross cut on an angle in the center, thereby making it easier to remove the first piece.

As luck would have it our installer did not take the long cuts all the way to the end joint of the next board. Doing so will create fewer problems as when the strips being removed can sometimes cause damage to adjacent pieces. Once the cut out is removed you'll find the center piece will come out easily by wiggling and raising the piece at the same time.

Chisel Away The Scraps

In our photo example the chisel itself is used to bite into the loose pieces and tapped on Chiseling out damaged boards an angle with the hammer. This will force pieces into the center and no damage will be incurred on other areas. Keep as far away from the next seam if that area is to be saved.

Surprises are always common when working in older homes. We were taken back to find the actual thickness of the flooring was half inch. Obvious it had never been refinished, nor did it have an end matched tongue and groove system, which was common with older floors that were generally top nailed rather than nailed into the sides.

Another surprise was the method of installation with 6 penny finish nails. It definitely made removal a much easier task.

See Our Video - produced way back when. It get's the point across well, but will not win any awards for professional design.

Related Pages:

• Other Hardwood Repairs
• Weaving In New Floors
• Circular Saws