fir floors

18 years ago

I apologize if this posts twice, but I don't see my original post from Monday yet.

Our 1915 Craftsman has Douglas Fir wood floors in the bathrooms and the kitchen. In the kitchen, it was under carpet, pad, plywood, and asphalt with newspaper. The refinisher said he could do them, but it may not look good. My other concern is that it is a softer wood, like pine and may not wear well in a higher traffic room.

If you were me would you refinish the floor or tile over it? We are leaning towards slate if we tile. We currently don't have dogs or children so we'd be more gentle than the average homeowner on the floor.

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tresbebes

18 years ago

last modified: 8 years ago

We refinished the Douglas fir floors in our 1918 farmhouse and I think they are one of the best parts of our house! They certainly get a lot of comments from visitors, many of which have no idea from whence they came. Like many of you, the floors were covered with layers of scabby carpeting, grody crumbling linoleum, and thick black advesive. I'm a firm believer in "patina" and "character". I always understood that I would still see the effects of its many years after cleaning, sanding, and refinishing.

I spent time at the house the day that the crew was here sanding and I was literally moved to tears to see what was unfolding before my eyes. I saw beautiful fresh yellow wood exposed from under thick black adhesive. The smell of newly exposed wood from boards that had been in this house for over 85 years is something I can still recall. I almost felt as if I was observing something being born (or reborn in this case) and imagined the house heaving a huge a sigh of relief as it inhaled much deserved fresh air.

Our floors did not have knots, but there is certainly a variation in color from board to board (and in many cases within the same board) from the grain of Douglas fir. We did not add stain to the floor after sanding, but proceeded directly to a polyurethane finish (:ducks to avoid being hit by objects thrown by anti-poly posters:). The overall tone of the floor tends to be medium--it's not light (like unstained maple) and its not dark (like aged cherry). It's must be Baby Bear's floor--it's just right! And it looks great against the refinished southern yellow pine woodwork.

Now, don't be mistaken in thinking that the floors look new, because they don't. There are rows of small holes where tacking strips penetrated the wood, small burn marks from who knows what, and all manor of marks, discolorations, gouges, and such that only make me LOVE the result even more! This is an old house--we aren't here to erase its history, we are only hoping to increase its longevity.

Your refinishing project may already be well underway or even completed, but I hope your results are just as satisfying and that you embrace its imperfections as being the perfect fit to an old home!

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