Well, as I rip up the layers of linoleum and plywood in my hallway and kitchen, I am concerned about the nail holes that are in the wood (from the nailing of the plywood)...my question is, when it comes time to refinish these floors should the nail holes be filled in, or will they not be noticeable after finishing? There is still a subfloor under this floor, so the light from the basement can't be seen. Also, must I get the dried adhesive, as well as the original felt backing, off the floor before they get sanded, or is this step unnecessary as sanding will take care ot it? Thanks... <br> <br>

Hi! We just went through this about four <br>months ago. Not only did we have layers of <br>linoleum and plywood in our kitchen, but we <br>also had plaster covering the wood floor in <br>places which we had to very carefully hammer <br>out. I guess it was a cost effective way to level <br>the floor! <br> <br>We had our floors professionally refinished. <br>They filled in all the nail holes prior to sanding <br>the floors and you have to look very closely to <br>see where the holes were. I ended up leaving <br>the adhesive and backing on the floors in <br>places which they sanded right off. <br> <br>Getting your floors refinished will make such a <br>difference in the look of your home. Good <br>Luck! <br> <br> <br>

As to your question about how much gunk you have to remove, you should probably ask the people coming in to finish it. I would think that the more you can get off, the better they can do their job, but they should know best. I think there even may be some products on the market that dissolve that adhesive and make it easier to get off. They might be able to advise you on that. <br> <br>I know you said you didn't want to use polyurethane as a finish, but according to stuff I've read, it actually was used as a finish "back in the olden days". Today you can get a quick-drying satin finish poly that looks great and is extremely durable. Many of the other finishes aren't as durable as poly, they take a lot longer to dry and they require lots of coats. My floor in Spokane was finished with poly. Unfortunately, I haven't figured out how to put in a picture yet, so I can't show you here. It's on page 176 of Inside the Bungalow, but that doesn't give you an angle that shows how the shine appears. You should especially consider poly in the kitchen and bath as it stands up better to water than most other finishes (marine spar varnish being one). <br> <br>

Thanks for your input...as far as the holes...they are all nail holes (average size floor nails), with no screws, tacks, etc. The current floor underneath is unfinished, so the wood is blonde. My only other question is the remaining dried adhesive and burlap with felt backing...do I have to remove this prior to having the floors sanded? I don't want to spend days scraping if it can be accomplished by the refinisher just sanding it off. Oh, one last question, what did you all use for a finish on your floors? Did you leave them the natural color and just use oil, shellac, varnish or wax? I don't want to use polyurethane. I want it to look natural but want it protected. This is the hallway and kitchen, which will get a lot of wear, but then, there will be area rugs, too... thanks. <br> <br>

I too am in the process of ripping up 4 layers of linolium etc. on 100 yr old douglass fir floors. My contractor thinks that it would be impossible to repair because of the nail wholes. However, I was determined to save them. We have also been able to re-claim many 12*2*8 peices of timber from the addition. I researched the methods that are used and found that the "pros" either pull the nails/screws out or countersink them. Some times pulling will rip the wood which is why they countersink them. Then they use a plug to fill them. The plug bits are very inexpensive, I bought a new set on ebay for 10.00 bucks. The great thing is if you have some of the original wood from a closet area that you can use for the plugs they will match perfectly. <br> <br>Hope this helps. <br> <br>

I renovated my entire house last summer (plumbing, electricity, roof, walls, bathroom ... and floor). All of the floors were covered with carpet. The previous owner also put screws everywhere in the hardwood floor before putting the carpet. I removed each screws one by one and when I had the floor refinished, they filled the hole with saw dust and glue. I can still see where the holes were, but it is nicer to look at than having to live with carpet everywhere (I even had carpet in the bathroom!!). With the furniture in place and area rugs, only few people noticed the condition of the hardwood floor. <br>Good luck!

Your floor is very pretty! What type of finish did you use? And did you use a stain also? Won't an amber shellac make it look original and old? Mine is blonde and unfinished now...I want it to look like the other floors...lovely and old! <br> <br>

Hi. The floor refinishing company used satin finish, without stain. I would be scared to use shellac, because I do not think it will react very well with the water when the time to clean the floor will come. Good luck!

Something to consider (as noted by another responder) is the size of the hole. Most things I have seen on working with wood floors recommend filling the holes. Left unfilled, the holes collect dirt and moisture which can ultimately be more damaging to the floor - therefore, they recommend filling. If you decide to fill, look for a filler that is already stained the color of the floor (or as close as possible). Those should work best for you since you don't have to worry about staining each hole and the impact on surrounding wood. On holes that are larger and in more obvious locations (i.e., a main living area that won't be covered by furniture or rugs) you can use a graining technique on the larger fills to blend them with the rest of the floor. That's a lot more work than you might be willing to do, but depending on location might be worth it. I've seen the technique in one of my old house magazines. It may be in a pretty old one, but if you really want to know more about graining to blend, I'd be happy to look for it and send it to you if you email me. <br> <br>On appearances: I've refinished many an old piece of furniture, filling some holes and not others. I, too, find that the holes just add character to the piece. After all, we love it for it's age - and with age comes some endearing imperfections! At least, that's what my husband tells me [img]/ubbthreads/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] <br> <br>

My Rock Maple floors had been covered with carpet over the years and so had smaller sized nail and staple holes all over it. I filled them in the living and dining rooms, but after my experience with that I opted to leave all but the largest as holes in the bedroom and hallway. The small holes in the bedroom are minimally noticable when they are stained and filled with finish, and less obtrusive than the filled ones - unless you are very careful to hand tint each one before applying your finish. And even then, there's some darker discoloration around the edge of the hole anyway. My house looks like it is 90 years old, which it is. I think the small holes are in keeping with the history. BTW. if large holes have been drilled (like for previous owner's cable TV) you can try filling with a sawed off dowel. It will stain up differently, but at least it makes the statement that you cared about how the repair looked. <br> <br>I haven't attacked the kitchen yet, so I'll be interested in answers about removing old flooring. <br> <br>

I've been reading this thread with interest. I have a large hole in the floor of my dining room. A previous own (in what I can only imagine was a sad attempt to save money) drilled a 1 inch sized hole in the oak floor up from the basement for a phone line about 4 inches out from the baseboard. I spoke to someone at a local woodworking place that sold me a product called PC Woody stainable wood epoxy paste. Has anyone heard of/had any luck with this product? <br> <br>