Replacing old floorboards with chipboard?

[mikejt]

Hi there,

We are planning to get rid of the capet in the living room and replace it with laminate flooring... I have already done the 3 upstairs rooms but just put plywood down over the slightly uneven floorboards, then underlay, then the laminate (in 2 of the rooms, I had to then take a bit off the doors). The problem with this is a) in my opinion, its not the best way round the issue and b) if we need any access to pipework or electrics we have to remove the laminate, then unscrew the plywood, then rip the floorboards up.

What I want to do in the living room is take the old boards up, and put 22mm chipboards down to hopefully make it flatter. The question I have is, Will the chipboard be a suitable for a direct replacement for the old boards? With regards to joist spacing and height (to some extent. i.e. we don't want big gaps under the doors)

Thank you for taking the time reading this.

Regards,
Mike

 

[JohnD]

errrrrrgh, chipboard, horrible stuff.

Use ply.

 

[mikejt]

Thank you for your quick reply!

the problem is with the livingroom though, there are a few parts where it is very uneven and in one part there is a hole! is there any alternative you would reccomend to the old boards?

 

[IJWS15]

See above

Take up the boards and replace with suitable thickness plywood - e.g.24mm

 

[HERTS P&D]

Ply wins over chipboard every time.

Andy

 

[ladylola]

If your floor is as uneven as you are saying then just screwing ply down in place of the boards won't make any difference, the ply will simply follow the joists and become uneven. It sounds like you may have to put firring strips on the joists to flatten and level them.
Try pulling a line across the surface , it shouldbe touching all the way along. Actually a better way is to raise the ends of the line with say 1" blocks and then use another 1" block to check the line and joist are parallel. This gets over any "lump" in the floor that may give a false impression.
If you have access to a laser level you'll find that the firring becomes easier as there's nothing in the way unlike using lines which you will find that you snag and catch and have to reset.
All in all it's a horrible boring job though.
I agree with the other comments though , don't use chipboard.

 

[mikejt]

Ahhh thank you, I thought you ment put plywood over the boards. The floor is not terrible, but I think a few boards are warped... I will have a look when I take the carpet up.... Thanks again for your your replies!

 

[JohnD]

If you just have a few odd boards, you could take those up and replace, and save the cost and effort of doing the whole floor. If it is floorboards ""planks") they are probably as good as anything you can get.

Sometimes floors are chopped about by plumbers and electricians and not put back properly.

I always fix down with screws, not nails.

 

[mikejt]

Thank you, I will have a look when I take the carpet up... Are the boards a standard thickness?

 

[JohnD]

yes, they're standard between about 18mm and about 25mm

i.e. no.

 

[IJWS15]

Widths arn't standard either, measure what you have and a local timber merchant will probalby carry the size.