Thread: removing floorboards

well sacrifice two planks to get a gap... (start from one of the walls..) Then use jimmy bar or crow bar and start lifting where nails are.. aim to pull nails rather than boards.. boards will come off with them... that should do the job.. also depending how much space you have underneath.. it will be helpful to hit the boards with a mallet from bottom up...

Further to Prle77's suggestion, to minimise damage to those first couple of boards, you can run a circular saw along each join to cut through the tongue - greatly reduces the risks of splitting.

Also go slowly, work the planks upwards with pinch bars and/or crowbars and judiciously laced spacers with the object purely of lifting the nails sufficiently to get a claw onto them so you can pull them out - then easy. If possible, save the tongues & grooves wherever possible. You never know when they are likely to be useful in the future. Also, if you break one or other there is a high risk of you're also running a split into the rest of that board.

Finally, I saw one instance where an acquaintance, to lift the first two planks, actually used a plug cutter around each nail - and then lifted the plank off leaving the nails and plugs in situe. Later, he glued plugs back into the holes, made a bar in his shed and talks endlessly of his genius in salvaging floor boards.

Fair Winds

Graeme

Hit board from underneath with a lump hammer just enough to get a reciprocating saw blade (metal cutting)in, cut nails and Bobs your uncle / Bro inlaw / bro..... you get the idea

Hi Steve,
I made a gadget for lifting boards, after you get the first few off it just rests on joist, slip under board, push back on lever and up comes board
side view.jpg

Pete

Originally Posted by pjt

Hi Steve,
I made a gadget for lifting boards, after you get the first few off it just rests on joist, slip under board, push back on lever and up comes board
side view.jpg

Pete

Brilliantly simple, Pete. Well done.

Fair Winds

Graeme

Thanks heaps for all those replies. I'll try all and see what works best for this job.

That's a great gadget Pete. Simple and adjustable too. With a long handle it would save a lot of stress on my back.

Steve

If the place is being demolished, you can cut the joists (waste the first 50mm of board on edge) turn the whole floor up (in sections) and just nock the boards off. POP. (Just cut through the boards and joist wi Circ saw, finish cut wi sabre saw).
cheers
'TM

If you can pull the nails through and not bang them back out you will save a lot of splitting of the surface and save a lot of repairs on later projects

Grind a Jig Saw blade so that at maximum depth it is just short of the thickness of the floorboards (3/4" in the UK). You can then carefully get it to cut between 2 boards, and then rip the tonge off one board.

Lever it out with one of the above methods and carry on.

i have used a jig almost identical to the one pictured worked a treat on old baltic what nails didnt pull through when lifted were pulled out from the rear with a long set of pincers

You can wet the wood and the nails pull through the wood easier. Floorboards are best wet and then you don't break as many getting them up. I used this system in a previous life and it worked well. Good luck