Wooden flooring that looks like original floor boards??

[jinglebellmel]

Unfortunately we do not have original victorian floor boards to uncover in our house, however this is the look I'm after. I can't find any wooden flooring which gives the effect of sanded down floor boards - I can't quite put my finger on on the specific qualities that make origianl floor boards look different to the wooden 'click and fit' type floors that I'm looking at online. I've tried searching 'antique' and 'rustic' flooring but just doesnt look like the picture I have in my mind!

Can anyone suggest a floor that might be what I'm after, or what I am looking for in the flooring that would give it this look? Hope this makes sence- think I might just be going mad!

Not sure it is exactly what you are after but we got great flooring from B&Q. We have an Edwardian house and were hopeful of nice floorboards but no such luck. I was after dark flooring - it's a dining room - and found some in B&Q. Everyone who sees it assumes it is original. It's not completely smooth so looks more natural.

Failing that I think your would need to find a reclaimed floor. You could try eBay or a local salvage yard.

No idea of price, but this looks like i might fit the bill.

If you're not precious about real wood, we have a wood effect karndean floor in distressed oak (van gogh range here - I was a bit about the idea at first, but ours is in a room with big windows and underfloor heating, and real wood could have faded and warped, so it was the best solution - and I think it looks great now!

Thanks Cinder - I think the problem is I'm not sure myself - I have a picture in my head but am struggling to articulate it!

Marlin - Can't believe how real that looks! I've had my heart set on real wood but may have to take a look at Karndean.

Have come to the conclusion that I might just be mad after all and I think that the original boards look 'different' because I know that they are the original thing if you see what I mean?! I have found a photo of what I mean (possibley not what I descried at all) Picture 11 www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-25716387.html?premiumA=true

Is it the gaps between the boards? New wood floors don't have the gaps as they all click or slot together now, so leave a smoother finish. I sanded down my original floorboards in my old house and found they then looked too new for my liking. I know the look, but not sure you can achieve it without actually having old boards - reclaimed may be what you are after if you have your heart set on it (and deep enough pockets).

Maybe try the word "distressed"?

I have a friend who sanded the original floorboards and there are little gaps between them where the cold comes through. She puts filler in and the gaps expand and contract with the seasons so it's never quite right.

We went for good quality laminiate made by Quickstep but if you have a high budget why not try Amtico. They make some fantastic looking woody stuff which is v v hard wearing. I would have had that if £ was not a consideration!

Some of the Quickstep laminate range looks very convincing (saw some at the ideal home show) but we finally decided against it in case it didn't 'sound' right when you walked on it...

If you are looking for a prefinished range you could try searching for a 'brushed' finish. The top is brish with a stiff wire that degrades the board in the sofetr parts of the wood so you get a more natural textured surface.

We are currently fitting an unfinished engineered oak (character grade with lots of knots) and will be applying Antique Lye made by Woca which reacts with the tannin in the wood to give an aged appearance. It better look great as it's not cheap - but cheaper than the £££££ 'aged' stuff I fell in love with!

I second quickstep - not the basic range. Have a look at the samples. We have used it in two properties now and it's still looking just as good as the day it was put down and soooo easy to look after.

Yes, so easy to look after. I had a party of 30 people in high heels on it in December and it looked exactly the same afterwards.

A confession: when I looked at samples I tested them by scratching them with a key to see what happened. The answer was nothing!

One thing is that original floorboards were normally pine, and there is not a lot of pine around as replacement flooring.

For better or worse we were looking for the same thing and we have this in our lounge. (House is top to bottom in antique pine joinery and so needed to co-ordinate). It must look reasonably OK because an estate agent walked in and said "great, you still have your original floorboards".

I should point out though it's a softwood and is not a robust floor, when it was new almost every dropped Lego brick would mark it and now it is quite worn near the doors. I try to make a virtue of this and call it "character"! Must get around to re-oiling...

I agree engineered character oak with a good oil finish and not too wide a board would probably work well.

hang on better link

Admonter do a lot of softwoods and are good to deal with, I'd definitely recommend phoning them up for some samples if you like the sort of thing in their range.

Thanks everyone- loads of great tips and things to look at, very grateful!

Wendy - I think you might be right about the gaps, with this in mind I searched for bevelled edge and found this www.flooringsupplies.co.uk/realwoodflooring/engineeredwoodflooring/7607/kahrs_artisan_oak_oyster_engineered_wood_flooring which I quite like.

Fossil - LOVE your floor, it does look original. Maybe that is part of the probelem, as everything I have looked at so far is oak, but of course you're right the original boards would be in pine.

We have this m.toppstiles.co.uk/tprod44065/Dusk-Rustic-Long-Plank.html?productid=44065

People think they are floorboards when they come round

we have this in our kitchen. its ace. looks brilliant, wearing well....its been down five years and hasn't worn at all.

The edges are angled, so each piece looks individual, rather than a flat look across the whole room.

the whole range is brilliant.

the country laminate also looks like it might suit what you're after.

Just about to have our original floorboards covered up with engineered oak! When we moved in we sanded them and the look nice but very drafty and won't work with our new extension. Would have befn happy to sell them bug too lard nos sadly.

Oops sorry about typos! * but too late now sadly

reclaimed pine?

I can't help thinking that if you want your floor to look like floorboards, you should put down floorboards.

Take up the old floor, this gives you the opportunity to insulate between the joists, clean up underfloor rubbish, clean out the airbricks, insulate the underfloor pipes, and do any wiring at the same time.

You might get reclaimed old flooring, but unless it all came from one site, you may need if run through a thicknesser so that you get an even floor.

If you want to colour it,you can use Colron wood dye, but the surface will need to be protected, e.g. with satin or matt diamond varnish (not gloss) or an oil and wax finish.

You can also incorporate a hatch in a corner for easy future access.

Modern floorboards are T&G which resists draughts, but with squaredge boards, you can stuff the gaps and between the joists with mineral wool which will block draughts as well as insulating.