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https://www.askthetrades.co.uk/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl DIY Forum >> Carpentry Questions >> draughty wooden floor https://www.askthetrades.co.uk/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1318081063 Message started by Natedog on Oct 8^th, 2011, 2:37pm

Title: draughty wooden floor
Post by Natedog on Oct 8^th, 2011, 2:37pm

the floor in our front room is very draughty. unlike the other ground floor rooms which are concrete, the front room is wood, with a small void underneath. my first thought was to put a vapour barrier and insulation under the floor, but there is only 6" or so between the underside of the joists and the ground below.

so i figured that the best way would be to seal up all the gaps between the boards with some caulk, but am unsure what would be best to use. i've seen "flooring and laminate sealer" which i presume is the kinda stuf i'd need, but i can only find it in very light colours, and we want either very dark brown or black.

any suggestions?

Title: Re: draughty wooden floor
Post by Joiner on Oct 8^th, 2011, 4:01pm

Is it your house, and are you capable of lifting the boards and is it practicable to do so?

Title: Re: draughty wooden floor
Post by Natedog on Oct 8^th, 2011, 10:15pm

yes it is our house, but there are 2 built in dressers and an understairs cupboard which will make lifting the floor a pain. hence looking for an easier option :-/

Title: Re: draughty wooden floor
Post by greg on Oct 9^th, 2011, 10:22am

If you are able to lift the boards without splitting them all, then you could put celotex between the joists.

I have seen floorboards before where people have tried filling the gaps with caulk and to be honest, it doesn't look too good.

You can fill larger gaps with tapered wood fillets which you glue into the gap then plane / sand flush with the surrounding boards and stain to match.

Title: Re: draughty wooden floor
Post by londonman on Oct 11^th, 2011, 10:54pm

You don't have an open fire in the room, do you?

Title: Re: draughty wooden floor
Post by Natedog on Oct 12^th, 2011, 3:34am

Wood stove, yes. But we've also got a vent in the outside wall to let it breathe.