Damaged floor boards

[snowyskiesau]

As there's a council cleanup this week. I decided to pull up the damaged carpet in the office so I can sand the floors.
Generally, the boards are in good condition but two or three in one area have some damage - see pics.
Several boards have a number fo very small holes which look like insect damage. One boards has a much larger area of damage, possibly caused by the same insect damage.

Short of replacing the boards, what can I do to fill this damage? The finish will be 7008 as I have some left over from the last floor I did.

[FWIW, the house (semi) is in Sydney (inner west) and was built early 1900's]

[felixe]

Hi Geoff,

Do you know what the type of timber it is? they look like the same floorboards I have, mine are pine.
Mine are polished, but I never bothered to fill in the insect holes, adds to the character of the house .
I am sure it won't be long until some professionals can give some good advice.

Good luck

[snowyskiesau]

Felixe,
Don't know what sort of timber it is, I was hoping someone would know based on the age/location of the house.
Sanding a small area shows that it looks like pine but it's not easy to sand.
I'm happy to leave the holes as is, they're not that deep, provided the polyurethane will fill them and the finish is smooth.

[felixe]

Sorry I can't tell from the photos, but the way I tell my floorboards are pine, is because they "dent and scratch" so easily as opposed to the new (1970s) boards at the back of the house which are hardwood - and much tougher.
But, your house is a similar era to mine, mine is a 1920's Qlder and has (hoop?) pine floorboards throughout the entire original structure.

[Tools]

You will probably find that that the damage is more extensive than you realise once you sand .

Tools

[BrissyBrew]

I have similar bora damage on my old hoop pine floor boards (from a 1913 Queenslander), I have not polished them up yet and I hope that sanding does not make the problem worse. But I can live with the character lines.

[OBBob]

My last place had baltic pine floors and as Tools said, a few holes became a lot more when the sanding started. Luckily it was not in an obvious area but you may want to investgate a tille futher.

I'm not a fan of large patches of filler. You could either get some replacement sections from a salvage yard (they'll charge through the teeth but it all comes down to how much you need). Or you could sand it back and see how extensive it is ... the fill with epoxy before the floor is done?

The boras can really damage the floor and once you start sanding it just blows away loike sawdust so I would have a good look at the damage before you go too far.

[Larry McCully]

These termite cavities are a common accurence on hoop and baltic floors. I started my carrerer in Townsville and for the 1st few years , every floor had this problem. I would get on my knees and tap each board to locate any shallow tracks, most of the time , the inscet would travel in a straight line and cross over to the next board at the end match, Very rarely i saw them travel across the board. The boards that would cave in at the tap test , would get pulled out or if it was not to bad , then a resin filler tinted down to match the pine would be used.If the tracks were only a few we would show the client and sample a small bit for their decision. Even just coating over them looks good, They turn black and it gives the floor a character. At the sanding stage you find ones to bad to do any thing with then you can still at this stage replace them. Demolision yards are a good source point for same specie and age.

[snowyskiesau]

The affected boards seem pretty solid. I've sanded one such board and there is now an area about 70mm x 20mm down to a depth of about 5mm.

I don't mind the appearance of the damaged areas and I'm happy to fill them with resin/epoxy.
What's the recommended product to use in this case?

[Larry McCully]

Timber mate (CEDAR) is a good product to use in small areas. Or builders Bog, It is like car bog but sold as builders bog. Ask at the hardware they will know. the tint to use is yellow oxide and red oxide in liquid form from a paint shop. You only need 50 ml of each. Get it dispenced from the tinting machine (carosel) Take your own bottles. You will get all of the above from mitre 10 or bunnings etc

[snowyskiesau]

Last time I used builders bog, it was a pink/red colour when dry.
As I don't mind if the damage shows but do want the surface to be level, what clear epoxy should I use?

[Dusty]

The affected boards seem pretty solid. I've sanded one such board and there is now an area about 70mm x 20mm down to a depth of about 5mm.

I don't mind the appearance of the damaged areas and I'm happy to fill them with resin/epoxy.
What's the recommended product to use in this case?

Seeing as your intending to use 7008 as the final finish I suggest that you mix up a small amount and drizzle it into the borer holes. Do this over the course of a couple of days prior to the sanding getting underway. It should do the trick.

[snowyskiesau]

I started removing underlay staples and punching nails yesterday.
How deep should the nails be punched? One reference I found here said 4 mm which is what I've been doing.
Does this need to be any deeper seeing that they're softwood boards?
There is a black mark around most nails which I've assumed is from rust. Will this sand out?

[BrissyBrew]

Geoff

When you sand is it possible to take some pics of the same damages boards you have posted above, sanded, filled (if filling),stained (if your staining), and painted.

[snowyskiesau]

I'll take pictures during the whole process as time permits.
The whole job has taken a step back in priority as I have a job interview next week and need to do some study to catch up, it's been 12 months since I last worked in IT.