Project: Casita Verde, Seaside Ca
- Whole-House Green Retrofit
Stage: Interior Flooring Installation
Scope of Work: Sourcing, Design + Installation
Material: Reclaimed 2 x 6 World War II Era T & G Douglas Fir
Sealer: Environmentally Sensitive Bona Products
Intention: My house in Seaside is 680 sf. Given the small footprint, we wanted a flooring material that oozed comfort and durability. The primary prerequisites for choosing and sourcing the flooring material was it had to have a previous life/function and had to have been deconstructed/disassembled either here locally or within 500 miles of Seaside. We were in luck. We found 800 sf of old factory subfloor material in Petaluma- 680+/_sf we set aside for the main house and the remaining material for the detached soon-to-be-designed-and-built shed structure in the back yard for extended living space. The flooring had been salvaged from an old mill in the bay area, rich with history and ready for assembly. Note: It was a jouney in and of itself just getting the material- another post entirely!
During our whole-house green retrofit process, the flooring was garaged for two years (thanks Dad for sacrificing your parking spot for so so long) while the rest of the house was being gutted, converted, expanded upon and reconstructed on the exterior and interior. It has been a long time coming and I am grateful for all the hands that went in to this adventurous project. I want to especially thank my sister Kim for coming down from Fremont to help sand- having her artistic eye and 'go for it' spirit is always a pleasure and a joy.
Images Below : Installation Process
Given the flooring's age, thickness and type, the installation was a labor of love to say the least. The installation took about four times longer than a typical engineered flooring.
Given the flooring's age, thickness and type, the installation was a labor of love to say the least. The installation took about four times longer than a typical engineered flooring.
Below: Images of the sanding, wood filler, and sealing applications.
Final sea
ling/ buffing Conclusion- After living with the flooring for (1) month:
Regardless of the obvious challenges that come with using reclaimed flooring, I wouldn't have done it any other way. The home feels cozy and inviting with the floors rich variation of texture and color. It's light enough to illuminate and reflect day light throughout the house and rich enough to ground the white-washed walls. Originally I was envisioning a dark wood floor, but I've found that this material creates an expansive sense of place in such as small limited living space- it also ties in with the doug fir window trim, interior doors and beams, emphasizing simplicity and minimalism which will contrast nicely with the more modern and industrial furnishings of the home.
The flooring is as soft as butta on the feet, easy to clean with warm water, and has been PERFECT for yoga sessions in the living room. I love the slight imperfections and variation of the wood under my feet- I can literally sense the subtle layers of imbedded history as I walk.
The one thing I would have done in addition is applied another final coat of sealer to fill the cracks between boards ENTIRELY . This final step would have eliminated the 'dirt between the cracks' issue... As a result, we take our shoes off before entering the house which has been a blessing in disguise- I have become more grounded and connected in this new home...Who would have thought that this material that caught my eye would become a constant grounding mechanism to my every day? The power of architecture and material alive and real.
