Attempting to remove vinyl tiles posing as floorboards stuck into wooden floor. Got the tiles off ok but am now left with most of the adhesive stuck to the floor. Tried a heat gun , tried a blowlamp but the damn stuff does not want to budge. Any ideas?
Hi Bogart,
Depending on how thick the adhesive is;
If fairly thin, film like, you might try a chemical approach - paint stripper, white spirit or methylated spirit with some coarse wire wool and paint-scraper.
If fairly thick, say about a millimetre, your best option may be a rotary wire brush to get the heavy stuff off before moving on to one of the chemical treatments above.
Try one or both of these in a discrete spot before committing though.
Is the desire to get back to floorboards you can sand, or will it be covered over once again?
If sanding I'd echo what Cubist says, except to add that a powered scraper on a oscillating multitool is worth a try. If covering over I'd be tempted to lay thin ply on top if it's that much of a pig to remove.
A new covering will be laid. The adhesive is in some places a couple of mm thick in others nothing. Laying a
covering of say hardboard is a non starter as there is very little to play with as regards floor levels. I might try using a planer set at minimum and give ut a fews passes. The room is quite small so might be a valid method.
My guess would be that the planer would soon gum up and perhaps be wrecked in the process.
Another idea though - do you have one of those steam cleaners, the kind that can also be used to strip wall-paper? If you have it may be worth a try as the combination of heat and moisture may do the trick.
If that doesn't work, a belt sander is worth a go if the adhesive is very hard - the belt may clog up but it shouldn't damage the sander, unlike with a planer.
Alternatively, if floor thickness is a problem anyway and the room is small, are you better off removing the boards and laying new ply direct on the joists? You can probably gain a few mm. Goes against the grain to take out original items I know..........