floorboards resting on heating pipes

[Smokey730]

Hi All

I have a problem i hope you can advise me on

I had all my central heating replaced (boiler, rads & microbore pipework changed to 15mm). the main run of pipework upstairs runs along the landing. the floorboards were pretty rubbish here, broken & cut short from previous owners/contractors) so i said to the plumber i would replace them for new when the work was done.
The two main pipes run across cut-outs in the joists, but where i need to put the new floorboards basically where the floorboards meet on the long egde is exactly where the pipes run, because of this i cant nail or screw the long edges of the boards to the joists without bursting a pipe. therefore the boards are pressing on the pipe. is there a way of supporting the floor boards? a mate suggested fitting "noggins" inbetween the joists, but he doesn't know what size wood to use or how best to fix them. All i got from the plumber was that is where the pipes ran before with the old system, which he is right of course, but he didn't suggest how to resolve it.
i would have thought it would be better to have the pipe run centrally to a floorboard but what do i know
any ideas?

cheers

 

[HERTS P&D]

Take up the 'faulty' floor boards and fit wider ones. This way the edge will not be on the pipe work.

Or remove the floor boards, draw a map/take a picture of the pipes and lay a sheet of 18mm ply.

Andy

 

[Smokey730]

thanks HertsDrainage

it's only a run of 2 floorboards together across the length of the landing that need replacing. i thought floorboards were pretty much the same size, although i had to buy a metric size roughly the same as what's in the house, which was an imperial size due to house being built in the late 70's

your idea of ply sounds the best though, just like having a double width floorboard & then i won't be treading/pressing on the pipes & easier than fitting a load of noggins all down the landing

thanks again

 

[Smokey730]

would chipboard loft panels be suitable or is ply better?

 

[HERTS P&D]

Don't use chipboard, it will break up. Use ply it's much stronger. Mark where the pipes run on the ply and use screws to fix down.

Andy

 

[HERTS P&D]

Don't use chipboard, it will break up. Use ply it's much stronger. Mark where the pipes run on the ply and use screws to fix down.

Andy

 

[cantaloup63]

I agree with herts, twice

 

[Smokey730]

thanks guys, cheers for info, much appreciated

 

[Smokey730]

Gonna sound a bit thick here, but B&Q have in stock hardwood ply & softwood ply, the hardwood being twice the price of the softwood, so guessing the hardwood ply would be the one i need but i wouldn't know the difference as i'm not too clued up on different types of wood...Doh!!

 

[big-all]

my suggestion would be assuming the boards are around 22mm thick is use 18mm ply b&q will cut for 50p a cut add 3mm ply/hardboard to the joist not over the pipes then you have the correct thickness and a few mm clearance to allow for movement

 

[Agile]

If the floorboards are pressing on the pipes then thats going to stress them and could cause leaks.

A bodge is to grind out some wood from under the boards/ply.

If the pipe diameter has been increased then the installer should have cut a deeper notch!!!

 

[Smokey730]

the notch depth is fine guys, it's the position of the notch that's the problem, it's slap bang in the centre of the floorborards (long egde). everything is ok till you tread on them, because i can't secure the long edges of the boards to the joists because that would mean drilling/nailing into the pipes the boards dip down onto the pipes, which as you say will stress them
think the boards are 18mm

 

[Agile]

Can someone who understands that please explain it to me?

 

[TicklyT]

Rip one of the two boards lengthwise, and fit the two halves either side of a full width board over the pipes.

 

[gaswizzard]

Can someone who understands that please explain it to me?

It aint rocket science.

You don't do installing so possibly why you are a little confused?