re-using / re-installing hardwood floors

Good evening, We closed on our house last week which is a gut rehab, and spent the entire day today going through all of the original details our house has. Everything is saved but nothing is attached. We have the original shutters, moldings, doors, etc, so it is a huge puzzle right now. It will spend an enormous amount of time to sort through everything but we are willing to do so. We noticed the previous owned saved all of the original hardwood tongue and groove flooring. It is stacked up in the cellar right now. Why, i don’t know, but im wondering if it can be used, and what the pros and cons are. My understanding is that the wood is thicker then the standard hardwood floors of today. It is 3 1/2 by three quarters. What should we do with this? We have tons of it. Any help would be appreciated. Thank you

stuyheights

in Wood Restoration 10 years and 8 months ago

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rh | 10 years and 8 months ago

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Yes, it’s possible, but it’s best to ask not only the floor installer but the heating contractor as well. Quartersawn is recommended and also, not all species of wood work with radiant because of the heat and humidity.

stuyheights | 10 years and 8 months ago

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Thank you for your replies. Very helpful and sounds promising. Is it possible to do radiant heating under these floors you think?

rh | 10 years and 8 months ago

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That’s great that everything was saved! You say the floors are hardwood, so it sounds like it’s not the wide plank. If the previous owners knew what they were doing, they only kept the usable pieces, but check out the tongue and grooves on each board and check for nails. If it’s a short piece with broken tongue or groove, not worth saving. If it’s long enough and only an area is destroyed, it can be cut down. Hopefully the basement isn’t too damp. Eventually, when you have the space upstairs, store the flooring up there to acclimate to the room temperature. Worst case scenario, the flooring can be re-milled, but that may cost more than new floors. I love my floor guy, Desmond. http://reclaimedhome.com/2012/10/15/reclaimed-pine-flooring/

daveinbedstuy | 10 years and 8 months ago

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Decent flooring can always be recycled depending upon how carefully it was removed. Old flooring always looks better than new. Jose, whom I and others have recommended here, recycles flooring. Give him a call and he will assess your situation. 917-355-7977