Reclaimed Parquet floor - Not removing the tar! 

How did yours turn out? Starting mine this week

You sound like his partner If you think that’s a good job you carry on

No partner at all fella but but his right mines been 2yrs absolutely no movement so yes good on me and I will carry on

Don't do it this was tottle botch

Did you get a reply? I have the same question

I have used reclaimed maple which is a hard wood

Oak block has been in my house since 1947, previous owners had 7 children plus various dogs, my household; big dog, several cats, four children and heaven knows what else. After my building work was finished (bricks/dust etc all over it, due to re-wiring and building an internal wall), I washed it down with fairy liquid and water on a Mrs Mop, and once dry I oiled it with boiled linseed oil, 15 years later I oiled it once more (labour saving, you just wipe it on with a rag, then wipe off any excess after half an hour). No prep beyond a wash. My floor looks as good as his, though its a soft sheen rather than high gloss, but no maintenance required beyond hoovering and very occasional wash. Would highly recommend linseed oiled oak from personal experience of it, I guess you could wax but I don't, as for me the stain proof/waterproofing and sheen of linseed oil is enough. Also works to water/stain proof/sheen on tumbled marble floor in my kitchen too. It's proofed against gloss paint spilled recently, and beetroot juice which is a notorious stainer, and what I used to test a tile before deciding on linseed oil in the first place.

I’d lay out a strip of P40 sandpaper on the floor, clean the edges that way maybe

Just my pen knife edge, you could use one of those window cleaning blades with a Stanley knife blade or even just scrape them on an old concrete block. Just to get the gunk that builds up between blocks that have shrunk a little

@@Geo-Dome Thank you for the reply. I have several hundred square feet of old reclaimed maple flooring from the 50's that has loads of gunk on the edges. It will all need to be removed before it can be put down. I tried my table saw but if there was any warp to the wood it either took too much (wood) or not enough and left chucks of stuff behind. Looks like I'm hand scraping all the edges.

See video

You can put it straight on the concrete (use appropriate glue)but it has to be completely dry, any moister will wick into the wood and make it swell, then dry out and shrink over time. A moister gauge should do the trick.

I was wondering this too! Did you find out? Would be nice to know if anyone can shed some light on it please? Thanks

You put it through a planer set at a size for all blocks very easy and fast simple

@@neilmurphy3239 Thanks, I only have an electric hand held planer, would that work, as your answer gives the impression you mean a table planer?

Yes it’s called a thickness planer perfect for this type off job a hand held planer in a proper vice would be ur next option you could make something up so every block sits in the vice at same size then take off minimum Iam a floor layer for over 30 years with bitumen on back anything can happen if you relay it’s not worth the hassle I’ve seen the whole floor react and bubble like mountains especially on new floors and old all that hard work laying it and cost off hours & material and headaches cutting corners isn’t the way too go peace off mind is better in long run Jessica if you really want that floor down I have read a few comments with success Thow bitumen is always active if your home has lots off sunshine coming in or very cold in areas that’s when it blows the floor in my experiences hope this helps Jessica

@@neilmurphy3239 Thank you very much for the detailed reply. Will think seriously about my options, and possible risks. Have to admit, I don't want my floor becoming a mountain range, and the very large window in that area faces south.

@@jesshothersall without a question all these factors can cause a upset each job is different Thow and that’s why Wee look at possible upset with the bitumen back if thick I’ve seen it dissolve the adhesive too water with reaction gives you a idea at least Jessica good luck 😉

No I don't, old wood tends to be very stable, the building should also be stable for moister, if the room gets damp then dry you could have a problem but hot/cold won't affect it much at all.

I used 240 grit paper and just sanded with the grain on each block, it won't remove varnish or cut into the wood so you keep the patina of the old parquet. Great if you want an old looking floor, people often think it an original floor, but if you have scabby blocks or want a new look machine sanding is the only way. You could use an orbital sander with is kind of in between.

You shouldn't lay parquet blocks on underfloor heating, it doesn't matter whether they are stuck down with tar or adhesive. If you have underfloor heating you need to install engineered flooring which is dimensionally stable. Parquet blocks aren't.

It's common tar, a hydro carbon so not toxic but I wouldn't eat it. Same a tar in roads paths etc. There is no asbestos in it.

I’m sorry I test products like this for a living and it on an individual basis there may be asbestos in the bitumen, but each building was made differently and some bitumen predates asbestos fibres present. To be safe sent a sample to a lab and find out.

The problem is not only asbestos, but polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which quite likely in the tar. It's carcinogenic, and can cause lung cancer for example if you breathe in the dust. Not the best thing to have in your home. There's a book called "Organic Indoor Air Pollutants" on Google books, which has a chapter on PAHs and parquet floors on page 48.

I always start from a wall, so at least you have one straight edge, if you start in the middle of a room you will get cuts all the way round. Plus if you have a wall that is seen, start with that as it is easier to get it neat.

Because osmo oil is shit

Did you get a response about this ?

@@yousifsuliman2446 hi, so when I put mine down I did not put any underlay down, just straight onto the concrete with the glue. It worked fine. It is only in a small area at our doorway so I cannot comment for bigger areas. Not an expert, just a DIYer, but I can't really even see how with this sort of parquet an underlay would work as I would think it would make the floor much less stable. If you've got stuff with tounge and groove or whatever I think an underlay would be fine though. Like I say though, I am not an expert just someone who's put down a few different wooden floors.

I’m going to put it on concrete also. Did you grind the floor and self level it first or did you not need to do that ?

@@yousifsuliman2446 I self levelled. My tip would just be to make sure you have enough self levelling compound, ideally with one person mixing and one person pouring/spreading

Hi pal dosnt need bitumin off

Unfortunately there's not an easy way. Backs don't have to be totally clean to re fit but which adhesive you chose to use will determine that. some clean up easier than others depends if the black is soft or brittle. Upturned belt or drum Sander can work well but can create dust ( you don't want to be breathing in 50 year old bitcho dust).

i would say get a piece of steel plate approx 6mm thick,lay it over a fire or a propane burner torch outside in the yard/garden.put the blocks woodside down on to plate (tarside down,or nake flame will cause the tar to burn and create toxxic fumes).The block will heat up enough to make the tar soft so you can take off with a scraper,but will not be hot enough to burn the wood.You can put on a dozen or more down at a time.Also to clean the grooves,get a cheap pillar drill,and put a drill wire wheel attachment on it.adjust the height of the table,so the grooves line up with cente of wire wheel.put on some leather gauntlets and safty glasses,set the pillar drill going and whizz around the edges,turning the block flat.Fast and easy job,utting down on hours of manual labour guys

i did it by running each block through a bandsaw with a jig set to cut at 12mm depth. basically sliced each one in half and then laid the freshly cut side face up.

@@aliprimtoke I did the same about 20 years ago. I cut twice as the blocks were thick enough so got two from one....

3 choices, melt it and scrape (hot air gun?) :-/ freeze it and chip it off :-) buy a £20 cheapo throw away planer and plane it off :-(