subfloor as flooring

[email protected] wrote:
> Several years ago I read about using subfloor ( the one with all the
> chuncks and chips of wood) to create a countertop. The subfloor was
> sealed etc. I want to use this same idea as my flooring in my dining
> room. Has anyone done this or seen it done? Can you think of any
> pitfalls to this idea? What would you recommend as a sealer?

It sounds like you're describing oriented strand board (usually
abreviated OSB). To me, it sounds really odd to use either for a floor
or counter top. I guess it's possible though.

For a sealer, you'd want to use polyurethane, probably many coats. You
should probably sand it before applying the poly. I bet the kitchen
counter used that two-part epoxy bar top material. It's impractical to
use that as a floor sealer as it's expensive.

The only issue I can think of is that it comes in 4'x8' sheets and
probably has tongues and grooves along the edge. It will be nearly
impossible to hide the edges.

Are you planning just to put a finish coat on the sub floor or put the
same material on top of the subfloor? You could cut it into one foot
square tiles and create an interesting effect.

I'm not sure how durable it would be. OSB is probably made from
softwoods, not hardwoods. But who knows. There could be anything in
there.

What is your goal: cheap or unique? If you want cheap, I think you
should consider the long-term cost of this idea. Of course, you could
always cover it later. If I were looking to cheap out on it, I might
consider trying to pick up odd lots of various types of wood from a
hardwood floor installer, then mixing them up and using them to
randomly fill the room. Of course, they would all need to be the same
size, bevel, and site vs factory finished. They might even give them
to you if they're planning to throw them out.

brian

I'd be worried about water. OSB is NOT good when wet--the compressed wood
swells. And you can seal the surface, but not the edges.

I'd tell you the story about how my upstairs toilet didn't really seat well
on the sewer pipe, and leaked, just a little bit, into the particle board
underlayment, over a six month period, but it's pretty disgusting.

On the other hand, I too like the appearance of the chips of wood, and have
used it in my shop, on the walls.

Whatever you use as sealer, I'd start out with about two coats thinned to
about 50 percent consistency, so it soaks into the wood well, and saturates
it, then start building up with the thicker stuff.

Good Luck






<[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Several years ago I read about using subfloor ( the one with all the
> chuncks and chips of wood) to create a countertop. The subfloor was
> sealed etc. I want to use this same idea as my flooring in my dining
> room. Has anyone done this or seen it done? Can you think of any
> pitfalls to this idea? What would you recommend as a sealer?
> Thanks,
> Donna
>

On 13 Nov 2006 13:20:26 -0800, [email protected] wrote:

>Several years ago I read about using subfloor ( the one with all the
>chuncks and chips of wood) to create a countertop. The subfloor was
>sealed etc. I want to use this same idea as my flooring in my dining
>room. Has anyone done this or seen it done? Can you think of any
>pitfalls to this idea? What would you recommend as a sealer?
>Thanks,
>Donna
>

A shop in Wall Drug, SD has that (OSB) as their finish floor. The
colors that jump out of that stuff is fantasic. For the floor, screw
it down with the 'bumps' up, sand it with a vibrating floor sander and
finish with several coats of poly.

Don't know how it would look on a counter top. Sand, finish and lay a
piece on and see.

Pete

We lived on OSB as a house was being finished. It's not a real good floor
because it catches dirt, but it can save money until you are ready for
something else/ I bought goof paint at Lowe's for $3/gal and really flooded
the osb...enough to smooth it out a bit.
Wilson
<[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Several years ago I read about using subfloor ( the one with all the
> chuncks and chips of wood) to create a countertop. The subfloor was
> sealed etc. I want to use this same idea as my flooring in my dining
> room. Has anyone done this or seen it done? Can you think of any
> pitfalls to this idea? What would you recommend as a sealer?
> Thanks,
> Donna
>

On 13 Nov 2006 13:20:26 -0800, [email protected] wrote:

>Several years ago I read about using subfloor ( the one with all the
>chuncks and chips of wood) to create a countertop. The subfloor was
>sealed etc. I want to use this same idea as my flooring in my dining
>room. Has anyone done this or seen it done? Can you think of any
>pitfalls to this idea? What would you recommend as a sealer?

If I were going to do this (and I'll admit, I am not), I'd get the
2'x2' dricore panels (http://www.dricore.com/en/einstallation.htm).
It'll look more like a tiled floor, and the quality control is pretty
good on the tounge and groove joints. It's designed to be a floating
floor system over concrete, so there are no screws to worry about, and
they come with a coating of some sort already on them- probably not
ready for foot traffic, but at least floor polyuretane won't just soak
into them as quickly as you can apply it.

I've used them a few times as basement subfloor, and it actually does
look pretty good before the flooring covers it up. Just make sure you
get a really good topcoat on them. The only downside is that they're
going to be a little thicker than plain OSB, because they come with a
plastic layer on the bottom that is supposed to keep the floor a
little warmer and act as a vapor barrier.

If it's too bumpy, you'll have to just keep adding more coats of poly
until it's as smooth as you want it to be, or find a self-leveling
clear epoxy to finish it.