Sealing Gaps in floorboards - Taffy ?

[soundman]

This has been mentioned before But we havnt heard back on the results.

I know that most of the post war housing commission houses where I grew up had plane square edge boards ( no t&g) & the gaps went all the way thru.
Yo gota fill the gaps unless you like distributed floor ventilation.
I have seen a floor that was done, pine boards & black filler with cleer estipol.
Looked great.
This was done many years ago pre no more gaps so I'm not sure what they would have used.
My money would go to one of the high end sealers.
Flexibility would be imperitave or the floor would just spit it out.
A bit of dip & bulge would be a minor detail in the greater scheme of things, I don't recon the vertical profile of the sealer would change much.

cheers

[Carpenter]

STOPPPPPPPP! Don't use no more gaps. Its not designed to fill gaps that big & still perform. You need a specialised caulking compound that will fill gaps & still move, no more gaps is a cheap ####ty product that should not be used for anything other than filling small gaps/cracks in paint work. I can just about guarantee it will shrink back & fail.

[glock40sw]

I've said it before, And I'll say it again...


SIKAFLEX

I've seen it used and cannot recommend it high enough !

[mic-d]

STOPPPPPPPP! Don't use no more gaps. Its not designed to fill gaps that big & still perform. You need a specialised caulking compound that will fill gaps & still move, no more gaps is a cheap ####ty product that should not be used for anything other than filling small gaps/cracks in paint work. I can just about guarantee it will shrink back & fail.

I've got to agree carpenter, I think it will be a waste of money too. polyurethane is the way to go if you must fill it eg sikaflex.

Cheers
Michael

[Gaza]

no more gaps will not cure for ages so when the floor sander runs over it the edge will grab and it will be pulled out and go every where.

sika is the go or equal product. (me think i saw a polyurthane version under the no more gaps brand name but it was approx 15 bucks ea)

[soundman]

Both selleys and bostic do a poly sealer similar to one of the sicaflex products.
I thnk the selleys product still bears the no more gaps brand with some sort of premium tag.

I can certainly testify that no more gaps does sag substantialy if laid in thick and can take days to go off.

The polly sealers certainly go off better.

cheers

[BobL]

Jane, We have an 85 year old house in South Perth with all polished jarrah floors including the floors in a 10 year old extension. The gaps between the boards sound as though they are about the same as yours. Can I ask how variable your board colours are? I thought about using the brown no more gaps solution on a small section of the timber but the problem for us was that our jarrah flooring is quite variable in colour - very dark brown, to orange brown, salmon pink and the occasional streak of sap wood. In our passage way the boards had been covered for half a century with glued down floor tiles. Getting these up requried the use of a flat blade shovel. What remained behind in the gaps was a dark brown rubbery kind of stuff that looked like brown no more gaps. I though about leaving it there but it just looked wrong so I spent 1/2 a day scraping the stuff out of the cracks with the edge of a screwdriver. Also the floor polisher guy said it would gum up his sanding belts and he would have to charge us for extra belts.

In the last 10 years we've learned to live with the gaps, and scratches, and the patching where the the roughly cut pest inspection hatches were cut by a wood butcher. We vacuum and then lightly mop our floors with water, a couple of capfuls of metho and the makings from a couple of tea bags (the tannins apparently kill dust mite). Stuff doesn't seem to be accumulating in the gaps. Oh and BTW we have a dog that gets so excited when we come home in the evening it often vwomits. The floor and gaps clean up fine with a mop and toothbrush with all bar one row of bristles cut off.

Maybe you should try a section before you do the whole lot?

[Jane C]

Thanks everyone. I have done about 3sqm of the no more gaps and it is the biggest pain in the bum to do so I am already thinking about giving up. You are right that it takes ages to go off. This is day three and it is only just hard, however it does look a lot better than it used to. My floor sander guy said that i shouldnt use any product with silicone in it as the polyurethane will not stick to it. Does sikaflex have silicone in it ? Also will sikaflex be easier to apply or will it be about the same as the no more gaps ?.
Bobl, A house in South Perth hey! you lucky thing. Our boards sound a lot darker than yours. I did use the brown no more gaps and it matches quite well. Maybe a bit lighter than the boards.
I just cant believe that there is no product out there designed for this job. I am leaning toward the sikaflex providing it comes in a brown colour.

[Jane C]

He He, I must not have had my thinking cap on. So sikaflex is polyurethane ? is that right.

[Jane C]

I have read and re read and I am def going to use sikaflex now. I will try and find the one in the black cartridge and I like the sound of using masking tape on either side it sounds easier than trying to wipe it off without dipping into the middle. Should bunnings sell it ?

[mic-d]

G'day Jane
Firstly Sikaflex is polyurethane based and paintable, definitely no silicone in it. You might be limited in the colours tho' AFAIK there is only white, black, sandstone and grey. Sikaflex is probably a little harder to apply and its only turps cleanup so careful where you get it. You might want to try tooling it off with a paint scraper/putty knife dipped in turps. If you mask (and you should) make sure you press the tape down well so it does not bleed under the tape.You will be able to get it at Bunnings.
Goodluck

Cheers
Michael

[Carpenter]

Now you're on the right track Jane! Dig out that No More Gaps & do it again in the Polyurethane (Sikaflex). Don't bother with masking, the sander will take off the excess. Just make sure you fill the gaps to the top of the board, even a bit over, because it will look better if the caulked join is sanded flush with the timber at the sanding stage. You can get the Sikaflex in black, brown, white that I know of, its spendy (you get what you pay for) but you could maybe save if you purchase by the box. Its a lot thicker than no more gaps & so is heavier to use. Get a good quality caulking gun for this job, also it will flow a lot easier if its warm - leave it out in the sun before use.

[soundman]

A good cauking gun.... I'd bee looking for some help from compressed air if I had that many cracks to fill.
little compressor and a pneumatic caulking gun. Ohh yeah baby.
That is unless you wish to change your name to Agrippa.

cheers

[Jane C]

Mic-D, Carpenter, you guys are great. I am full with motivation now and will go and get the sikaflex tommorrow. If I am going to spend this long filling gaps I want it to last. Do you really think I dont have to tool off the excess ? because that would be fantastic, I am finding that the hardest part. Soundman what is this compresser you are talking about, I am all for spending money to make my life easier. Should I just go to bunnings and ask for a pneumatic caulking gun ? , Is there such a thing or are you having me on !!

[glock40sw]

G'day.
No, They are not having you on.

You would be able to hire a compressor and possibly the air assist chalking gun fron your local hire place. Why buy something you will probably use once?

Just make sure that the gun is compatable with the Sikaflex cartridge or Sausage.