Restoring Replacing Floorboards

[yartin]

Hi
I have removed vinyl in bathroom, has standard redwood floorboards.
1. I will sand it and oil it for now, which floor oil for bathrooms is recommended, will any do?
2. I have plans to replace these floor boards in the future, currently they are 119mm wide and 18mm deep. Is it OK to replace them with 125mm wide and 22mm deep PSE redwood?

Thanks

 

[Deleted member 174758]

I have removed vinyl in bathroom, has standard redwood floorboards.
1. I will sand it and oil it for now, which floor oil for bathrooms is recommended, will any do?

I'd ask that question in the Decorator's section if I were you, but TBH oil finishes are not moisture resistant, making them a poor choice for a bathroom, IMHO. Oil and wax finishes on floors are prone to picking up dirt over time (especially around the edges, although the antique trade call that "patina"...). They are also a lot of work because you will need to re-oil them regularly.

2. I have plans to replace these floor boards in the future, currently they are 119mm wide and 18mm deep. Is it OK to replace them with 125mm wide and 22mm deep PSE redwood?

If you are replacing them all then a 3mm difference in thickness should make little difference. I'd go for T&G boards, though, as they are less draughty

 

[Jackrae]

The PSE will shrink. As JobAndKnock says, go for T&G

 

[Deleted member 174758]

OP, just wondering why you chose oil

 

[yartin]

OP, just wondering why you chose oil

I believe have 2 options, either oil or varnish. Oil is better for humid environment plus can apply again at any time without sanding or preparation.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

But oil has very poor wear properties, which makes it unsuitable for floors, and oil is not completely impervious to water/moisture, making it a poor choice for anywhere that can get wet/damp (e.g a bathroom). Believe me, from experience oiled wooden kitchen worktops can be a LOT of work, and they don't get as wet as bathroom surfaces. Oils can be blotchy if the wood beneath is not fully sanded and will yellow over time

"Varnish" is really a catchall term these days, with most so-called varnishes being lacquers. An acrylic lacquer can be overcoated and gives better protection and moisture proofing from the off as well as protecting the wood for a lot longer. Go for one with a UV-inhibitor and it won't yellow as fast as an oil finish

 

[yartin]

But oil has very poor wear properties, which makes it unsuitable for floors, and oil is not completely impervious to water/moisture, making it a poor choice for anywhere that can get wet/damp (e.g a bathroom). Believe me, from experience oiled wooden kitchen worktops can be a LOT of work, and they don't get as wet as bathroom surfaces. Oils can be blotchy if the wood beneath is not fully sanded and will yellow over time

"Varnish" is really a catchall term these days, with most so-called varnishes being lacquers. An acrylic lacquer can be overcoated and gives better protection and moisture proofing from the off as well as protecting the wood for a lot longer. Go for one with a UV-inhibitor and it won't yellow as fast as an oil finish

I don't know, that's why asking, so you reckon water based varnish is better than oil.
I varnished my living room, have oak parquets herringbone in 2006 and still intact.
Food for thought, was about to order floor oil....
Any particular varnish? Bona Mega is popular which I used so is Sadoline...

 

[yartin]

The PSE will shrink. As JobAndKnock says, go for T&G

I took the vinyl off, replaced about 10 broken T&G boards with PSE boards. For now I sanded what I have and will apply either oil or varnish, then depending the finish I decide to keep it or change the whole floorboards when I do bathroom renovation next summer.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

...so you reckon water based varnish is better than oil.
I varnished my living room, have oak parquets herringbone in 2006 and still intact.

Sadoline...

I've installed quite a bit of commercial oak flooring which arrived finished with Sadolin. Expensive, but seems to wear well (the last lot went onto stairs in a public library which I visit, so I get to see the effects). Never seen Bona used on a trade job to date. I've used Dulux Diamond Glaze water-based on some private jobs and been happy with the results. Seems to wear well

I took the vinyl off, replaced about 10 broken T&G boards with PSE boards. For now I sanded what I have and will apply either oil or varnish, then depending the finish I decide to keep it or change the whole floorboards when I do bathroom renovation next summer.

All softwood boards tend to shrink over time, as @Jackrae says. When the boards shrink gaps open up which you may need to caulk in order that your bathroom doesn't turn into an ice box in winter with the inevitable draughts (I live up in the Pennines, and up here it certainly would). T&G boards accommodate this, the tongues stopping or reducing any draughts. A Victorian invention, I believe.

 

[StephenStephen]

We used Osmo on our bathroom floorboards, and elsewhere. I recommend it.

 

[yartin]

We used Osmo on our bathroom floorboards, and elsewhere. I recommend it.

Did you use the Polyx oil? How long is been in the bathroom?

Different views to use oil or water based varnish for bathroom floors.

 

[StephenStephen]

Polyx oil - yes.
It's been 9 months in the bathroom, 2 years on the dining room table, 4 years on a sitting room floor...

 

[yartin]

After doing some research:
Wood floors suitable for bathroom use sold in shops are evenly split between lacquer and oil finishes, it can only mean both works matter of choice preference.... Hard wax oil products is best for bathrooms if oil finish is used, any water based varnish will do, 3 coats of each for best protection. Wood floors in bathrooms require care, don't leave water splash standing, avoid humidity, open windows, install a good fan...

 

[Deleted member 174758]

Hard wax oil products is best for bathrooms if oil finish is used

What you need to be looking for is the percentage of polymerised oils in the mixture, generally either polymerised linseed oil or polymerised tung oil. Polymerised oils cure reasonably quickly, whereas unpolymerised oils require the addition of something like terebene dryers to cure. Oil finishes can never be completely impervious to water, so will generally require multiple coats and periodic overcoating because they have much less wear resistant than lacquers - so you need to keep them dry, which in the average bathroom and toilet in the UK? Who knows? And how do you keep them dry and also bacteria-free without using something like disinfectant? (especially in the vicinity of WCs)

...any water based varnish will do, 3 coats of each for best protection.

Well, not really. Not all water-based lacquers are equal. There is a massive difference in quality between, say, the Sadolin you originally mentioned or Dulux Diamond Glaze, and what the local DIY shop sells. That difference is partly reflected in the price you pay

Wood floors in bathrooms require care, don't leave water splash standing, avoid humidity, open windows, install a good fan...

But as I say, how long will that regime last in the average household, especially where there are kids or teenagers? With the righf choice of coating you can have a "family-proof", low-maintenance floor. Or maybe it's just my own family...