FINE FLOORS IT’S ALL ABOUT THE WOOD
As much as original hardwood floors are prized today, they often pose problems that aren’t easy to solve, from burned or missing floorboards to pet-urine stains. In many cases, the damage can be repaired and evidence of past wrongs can be righted. The solution usually involves elbow grease, some serious sleuthing for the right materials, skilled help, or all of the above.
Damaged floorboards can be seamlessly replaced, for instance, but finding appropriate wood for an old floor may require looking in some unusual places. Time-honored methods include using wood salvaged from the house itself (check attics and basements for leftover boards, or even rip up a few pieces of the attic floor if it’s a match), and seeking out locally salvaged or reclaimed wood. If your floors are fairly recent by old-house standards or if the repair is a small one, you may be able to feather in newly milled wood from a local lumberyard.
While ¾"-thick flooring has been standard for centuries, the many variations in wood species, cut, grain, character marks, and fastening methods make it challenging to match new wood to old.
If you’ve pursued the obvious options without success, the next step may be to go to an antique wood specialist. “Several times a week, clients send us photos of flooring they are trying to match,” says Carol Goodwin, president of the Goodwin Company, which reclaims and mills river-recovered heart pine and cypress. “We ask them to send
