recently bought a home in which the hard wood flooring in the living room and dining room have 2 1/4″ oak around the perimiter,with 3 1/4″ pine in the center.I understand this is pretty typical of older homes and was done to save a bit of money by having less expensive material in the center of the room where it could be kept out of sight by a rug.But the pine is like 5 shades darker than the oak and over all it looks pretty crappy.I’d like some ideas for dealing with the situation,(aside from putting a rug in the middle).Is there a way of ripping up the middle and replacing it with something that will blend better with the perimiter,like replacing the middle and then sanding and staining the entire floor?I’m open to any and all ideas.Thanks in advance.
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Yeah, why not? Just set a circular saw to the correct depth (3/4"?) and have at it with a flatbar. If the pine is in good shape I would just leave it as a novelty, but that's just me. Get a good floorguy in there if you're unsure.
Hi Jim, welcome to BreakTime (BT). I looked at a house a couple months ago that had similar floors.
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There are a variety of options for it:
1. Go over the whole floor with another floor covering
2. Pull up the pine portions and replace it with oak that matches the perimeter (probably take a sanding and refinishing)
3. Pull up the pine and put a contrasting wood in the center
4. If the floor is solid enough replace the center pine with tile
There's 4 options. I'm sure someone else could come up with 4 more. When pulling up the pine, the first one is the hardest. From there you should be able to pry it out. you probably have 1x underlayment below it.
jt8
It's better to light a candle than to curse the darkness. --Chinese proverb
Edited 5/17/2005 11:01 am ET by JohnT8
Here is a picture that danbuilt posted a while back. Nice combination of different woods. I believe that is aluminium vent and trim in between the wood.
Here is that thread:
http://forums.taunton.com/tp-breaktime/messages?msg=56716.1
jt8
It's better to light a candle than to curse the darkness. --Chinese proverb
Edited 5/17/2005 11:36 am ET by JohnT8
If you do replace the pine (BTW, this was common) I'd go for some look of contrast, either in wood and/or pattern. It's impossible to get new woood to look the same as the old oak. Like maybe run a 'square' around the edge for a few courses, and then fill in.
Also, if you pull up the pine, save it! It might actually be very nice wood. If it is yellow pine about 7/8" thick and you are near central Ohio, I'll come get it...
Also, if you pull up the pine, save it! It might actually be very nice wood. If it is yellow pine about 7/8" thick and you are near central Ohio, I'll come get it...
You'd better be careful, he might say "yes" when you get there its still nailed down ;)
jt8
It's better to light a candle than to curse the darkness. --Chinese proverb
It sounds like a good place to do a decorative inlay.