Pine Floor in Bathroom - am I mad?

susedallas

Hi everyone We have just pulled up some manly old carpet in our upstairs bathroom and found that, underneath a layer of particle board, there are lovely old (original?) pitch pine floorboards in good condition - I'm so tempted to sand and varnish them instead of laying new flooring (I know tiles would be better etc but our house is a 200 year old cottage so a distressed/vintage floorboard look is what we are really keen on). If it wasn't the bathroom it would be a no brainer but as we're aware of possible issues with solid wood flooring in bathrooms, is this a crazy idea or could it be made to work with plenty of coating (yacht varnish or similar) and care with splashing. The alternative is to lay new engineered wood over the top instead, but it just seems a shame. The bathroom is on the second floor if that affects anything...

I'd love some opinions. Thanks in advance

DirectDebacle

With careful preparation you can have the floor you desire.

You need to remove everything from the floor including bath/shower, w.c., basin/pedestal, cupboards etc. so that it is completely exposed. Repair/replace any damaged boards and fill any gaps between the floorboards and skirting or wall. Fill gaps between floorboards using wedge shaped wooden fillets hammered into the gaps and glued using waterproof glue. These fillets must be at a minimum length to span across the centre of two joists. Longer lengths over more joists is preferable. They will never fall out. If you have no spare original floorboard buy suitably old board from an architectural salvage yard to cut the fillets from. Small gaps of 1-2mm can be filled by mixing your sanding dust with a waterproof adhesive for a homemade filler paste. Commercial fillers are available.

Sand as you would your other floors.

Ensure that when refitting bath/sanitary ware etc that all joints between them and the floor are properly sealed. Likewise the cut edges of any access holes in the floor for wastes or pipes are sealed prior to being hidden by the bath or whatever.

There is a wide range of finishes you can use, some with a very high resistance to water/moisture. Personally I would choose a varnish over a wax in a bathroom. Here is one site with a wide range of finishes. Google "professional floor finishes", or similar for even more choices.

Avoid soaking your floor. Use bathmats etc and mop up water quickly, don't allow it to stand for more than a few minutes. With a bit of care and maintenance you will have a floor to be proud of for many years to come. Occasional sanding back and re-application of the finish will be all it needs.

susedallas

Wow, DirectDebacle I really appreciate this fantastic advice! Thank you so much!