How to fill the gaps between wooden floorboards?

[mmd22]

Hello All 

Wound like to get some information . tips how fill this gap .

We have this house for last 4 months . Seems like it has been polish before it was in the market ( some places Varnish is coming off ) .

I can see lots of gap between timber board specially in the kitchen and lots of high heel mark  on the floor  and dust is sticking  if we do sweep and dust does not comes off after vacuuming.

Is there any way I could fill those gap ?

All other room has some gap as well . But Kitchen and Dining area is worse . 

I do not think I would be able to sand , polish and seal the floor again as it is going to be very big job .

Can I please ask it is possible to lay laminating hybrid floor board on top of timber floor board ?

Thank you every one for your input in advance . 

[EricL · Accepted solution]

Hello @mmd22

Thank you for sharing your question about how to fill the gaps in your wooden floorboards. Filling the gap with wood filler is one option, however, if the filler is only very shallow it will come off. Generally speaking, the old filler must be removed before you put the new filler in. Mixing old and new is not advised as we don't know if the old filler is still any good. 

I recommend looking at the Integrain WoodBlend, Cabot's Wood Tone Putty and Timbermates Wood Filler. These fillers come in different wood finishes you just need to see which one is the closest to your current floor finish. I suggest testing the filler in one of the gaps and seeing if it will stay once it has cured. If successful you then proceed with the other gaps.

Let me call on our experienced members @TheRenoDad and @redbournreno for their recommendations.

If you need further assistance, please let us know,

Eric

[redbournreno]

Hi @mmd22 

You are so lucky to have such beautiful floorboards.  I don't have much experience with them except that I have seen many discussions about the value of getting a professional to sand the floors for you because it is a very big and messy job.  Bunnings do provide floor sanders for hire, which is a great option on a budget, but make sure you allow yourself plenty of time and energy for the job.

A floor sanding company would know best how to fill those gaps, but I would have thought some kind of clear epoxy resin would be the best idea. Applied after sanding and before polishing. As @EricL said - you may have to scrape out all the old filler.

If you want to avoid the trauma of dealing with the floorboards then covering them with a floating floor like hybrid vinyl planks is a great idea.  It also gives you a larger choice of colours and looks. Be very fussy about having your floor level though, by sanding down high points and hammering down or punching in exposed nails. You already have scotia at the edge of the floorboards, so you can just use that again at the edges of the floating floor. For a higher quality finish (and if you plan to do more painting or work on  the walls) then you can pull off all the skirting, lay the new floating floor, then reinstall the skirting on top. Then you don't need the scotia.  Watch carefully for transitions in the floor between rooms.  Any change in height can be tricky to manage and you may have to introduce a join strip.

I hope that helps you make a decision for your floor.

[mmd22]

I am extremely sorry for very late reply as I went to overseas .

Thank you  @ redbournreno and  EricL for your advise.

we decided to change all these floor with Hybrid flood bit later .

Thank you again . 

[MitchellMc]

Thanks for updating us on your decision, @mmd22. Make sure to post some pictures of your new hybrid flooring once it is installed. 

If you're installing the flooring yourself, I trust you'll find this step-by-step guide useful: How to lay vinyl plank flooring.

Reach out if you run into any issues.

Mitchell