BUNGALOW WOOD FLOORS
For over 40 years we (Hubbie & I) owned wood flooring companies, specializing in preserving the precious wood of historic floors, one of the most at-risk pieces of historic fabric in homes & commercial properties. Hubby was hands-on, running production & I answered the phone, answering questions about floors-lots of questions.
Read the answers to wood flooring questions posed over near half a century in the articles below.
OLD HOUSE RESTORATION VIDEOS-Old Growth Wood
Old growth wood, from deep within the forest primeval. From fairy tales to an awed reverence in bungalow fans, the forest is endemic to the lore of humankind. Trees have been regarded as sacred in many early traditions. Since the dawn of time humankind has understood...
BUNGALOW ARCHITECTURAL SALVAGE RESOURCES
I put a call out to my Facebook followers for their favorite bungalow architectural salvage resources. I have long been a fan of the idea of salvage, as well the the practicalities of the practice. In my previous article, I write about the cultural, economic &...
BUNGALOW ARCHITECTURAL SALVAGE
If you should be fortunate enough to have a bungalow, architectural salvage can be your BFF. Merriam Webster defines salvage as "property saved from destruction in a calamity (such as a wreck or fire)." Cambridge adds, "to try to make a bad situation better." Not...
OUR OLD HOUSES ARE BUILT FROM OLD GROWTH WOOD
From their framing to their siding to their doors & windows to their built-ins & their flooring, our old houses, are built of old growth wood. Thousands of board feet of it. "Old growth." What does that mean? Let's have a tree history lesson. Fossils show that...
CHOOSE THE RIGHT WOOD FLOOR FINISH FOR YOUR BUNGALOW
Learn how to choose the right wood floor finish for your bungalow to restore & preserve your floors’ beauty for the next 100 years.
HISTORIC BUNGALOW WOOD FLOORS 101- Tree Anatomy
I’m a tree-hugging, wood flooring profession, specializing in the restoration & preservation of historic floors. I’d like to pass on what I have learned over 35 years in the trade. I consider historic bungalow floors to be the single most endangered historic fabric, well, maybe second to windows.
SPECIES OF WOOD FLOORING MOST COMMONLY FOUND IN HISTORIC BUNGALOWS
It is important to know the species of your bungalow wood floor because different species have different properties & should be treated differently. For example, Maple is difficult to stain while Oak takes stain readily. This article takes a look at these characteristics so that you can determine the species of wood in your house & better know how to restore your floors.
BUNGALOW WOOD FLOORS RESTORATION GLOSSARY
This bungalow wood floors restoration glossary will help you in dealing with trade professionals & in understanding your proposal/contract.
HISTORIC BUNGALOW SUBFLOORS
Let’s go from the bottom up. Your house is built over a crawlspace. You have a series of masonry piers lifting your bungalow off the ground. On top of those you have sill beams which are “timber-sized” rough lumber: 3” X 6”, 3” X 8”, 4” X 6”, 4” X 8”, and on top of those you have the flooring joists which span the open space, between the beams. All together, they carry the weight of your house, your furniture, your bathtub & appliances, your family, your grand piano, your 200 lb. mastiff & your weight set.
WHEN SHOULD YOU REFINISH THE OLD WOOD FLOORS IN YOUR BUNGALOW?
The first floor I ever refinished was in 1981. It was in a bungalow near downtown Phoenix. I went to the library and read books about how to refinish floors. The floor was maple, notoriously difficult to stain, but I didn’t know any of this and just sanded away with the equipment rented from Home Depot, using the stain and finishes I got from the paint store. I have a background in chemistry, which helped, but otherwise, I was just wingin’ it!
