How to remove glue from old timber floorboards?

[LR]

What is the best method to remove glue from old floorboards. Can you recommend any products or strippers or similar or do I just need to sand it off?

[MitchellMc]

Hi @LR,

From the look of it, the glue on your old floorboards appears to be a type of construction adhesive. Unfortunately, there’s not much that will really soften or dissolve that kind of product once it’s cured. Chemical strippers generally don’t touch it, so you’re mostly left with mechanical removal.

One option is to use a belt sander with a coarse grit paper to grind it back level with the timber. It’s dusty, noisy work, but it will get the surface cleaned up enough for refinishing. Another option, depending on how thick and widespread the glue is, would be to run the boards through a thicknesser to shave off the adhesive layer. The drawback there is that adhesive like this is quite hard on blades, and you’ll likely dull them fairly quickly, so it’s not the most cost-effective approach unless you have ready access to sharpening or spare blades.

Let me tag @Dave-1 to see if he has any thoughts.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

[Dave-1]

Good morning @LR 

Nice boards and a pain with the glue....

Does the glue have a brittle feeling? As in aged?

I had a thought that if the glue is then a sharp slide with a decent thick paint scraper at a low angle might sheer it off. >30deg Especially if you have acess to some liquid nitrogen. Or even try with an ice cream sized block of ice, rest it on the glue for a few mins and then try and sheer off the glue with the paintscraper or cold chisel (A timber chisel I think would be too sharp and likely to mark the timber below)

Other then that the steps that @MitchellMc has suggested is where I would end up as well. A question I have, you will be using glue to install these again I presume, so how would they go if you only take off the very top of the high points of old glue? Not the nicest way to install something but in reality it will be underneath the timber. The downside of that idea is the old glue could become brittle, it could create a high point when securing it and possibly a couple of other ideas. Maybe its not neccasary to take it back to ultra smooth? But most of the way?

Dave

[LR]

Thanks @MitchellMc. I appreciate your help.

[LR]

Hi @Dave-1,

 Yes the glue is at least 10 years old. I will have a go with the ice and the paint scraper. This is going to keep me busy for a while. Thanks for your help!

[Dave-1]

Good Morning @LR 

I forgot to mention that I had some Merbau that had a very rough crystalized surface on it (It really look like it needed sanding) And used the paintscraper technique plus slow water from the hose and it worked a dream.

Dave