Reusing old floorboards

[padstar]

I am about to relay old floorboards after carrying out work to a bedroom after which I will move onto the next room. I had thought about replacing the old and probably original floorboards with sheet timber as I go as I thought the boards had been butchered over the years as the house had been modernised. As it turns out the butchery has been limited to hallways from what I can see so I am hoping to retain the original in 90% of the house saving money and probably leaving a better product.

The boards are in good condition but have been sanded down by the previous owners. Should I run the boards through a planner/thicknesses to rip 1mm from the sanded side to give a perfect finish or just relay as is? Or lay sanded side down?

How many mm should be left between 1) board and board 2) board and wall to allow for movement. I plan to screw down rather than nail to prevent potential seeking.

 

[foxhole]

prevent potential seeking

???

 

[lostinthelight]

squeaking ??

 

[padstar]

Squeaking. Not sure what happened there!

 

[JP_]

I'd reuse them if they are good. Screw them down as close together as possible. And insulate underneath first if there's no insulation at the moment.

 

[padstar]

Leave no gap between?

There is no insulation in the void currently. Is it normal to insulate the upper floor? I had planned to insulate the ground floor under which is fresh air/soil but couldnt see the reasoning behind insulating the upper floor. Surely the house will heat as one? Am i missing something?

 

[JP_]

sorry, missed that it was upstairs, I live in a bungalow and forget most people have 2 floors!
Mind you, I'd probably put in some acoustic insulation while the floor is up.

 

[Diver Fred]

I'd not thickness the boards. Hopefully you numbered them as you took the boards up so you can relay back inthe same place/order. Once down if the boards are not level then I suggest a going over with a sander is the better way.

 

[padstar]

I did number the boards and they were in reasonably good order before i took them up so hopefully with underlay and carpet on top they will be spot on.

When i took them up there was probably 3-5mm gaps between each board which i assume is shrinkage over the 100 years they have probably been down. Should i now but them up to each other (meaning i will probably need 1 new run across the entire room) or leave a minimal 1-2mm gap?

Also is screwing at each joist necessary or better to do every other joist? 1 or 2 fixings per joist?

 

[StephenStephen]

I'm no expert, but what I've done is to fix them back tight to each other, no gaps, and 2 screws on every joist. I would also put some insulation down first - because (a) I don't like being able to have a conversation through the floor and (b) there are times when I'm heating the downstairs and don't want to heat the upstairs. Hope that's helpful