Old yucky linoleum is off, now needs some tlc
For those of you who have been following our home (built in 1917) improvement projects, we finally figured out a safe, easy and non toxic way to get that horrid linoleum that had black tar underneath off the wood floors in the craft-music room (see pics “improvement” here & here). Water. Yep, HOT water! No need for commercial or chemical strippers… ok, that sounds rather funny! LOL Not to mention saving my pretty little knuckles from using a scrapper (boy, that was tedious & tiring!)
Anyhow, we figure there just had to be a better way! After some searching, Jordanne found this nifty trick; however, the trouble for me was how to keep the hot water on the linoleum for hours and live in the house at the same time. I figured I couldn’t do the whole floor but only sections at a time. I rummaged in the garage and found a stack of burlap coffee sacks, laid one down on the floor and poured boiling hot water. Then I put down a waxed cardboard box and an old throw carpet so that we could walk over the soaked floor and burlap without our socks and shoes getting wet (*shudder*). It worked! The horrible linoleum and black as tar glue came right off. Now, I am one happy girl … wood floors! Woot! I sooo love wood floors.
The wood floor is old and not perfect; but I will give it a good cleaning with Murphy’s soap and a good oiling afterwards.
Comments(15)
Nebraska Dave says:
December 8, 2011 at 6:25 amAnais, home improvement and be challenging especially when still living there. I used your method of removing tar from the floor to remove old wallpaper from the bathroom walls. I used a cut up old thin towel and soaked it in very hot water then slapped it on the wall about a 12 by 18 inch section at a time. It would stick to the wall quite nicely. After about 30 to 45 minutes the wallpaper would peal off the wall very easily. I have to sheepishly admit I tried all the fancy wall scratchers and goopy chemical sprays to take the wallpaper off the walls but it didn’t work. After much trial and error I found that the simplest solutions are many times the best. Some folks say that a little vinegar would have helped but just plain old hot water and a towel scrap worked wonderfully well.
Have a great wooden floor/home improvement day.
Anais Dervaes says:
December 8, 2011 at 6:50 amLove it! Who would have thought SIMPLE solutions are sometimes the BEST solutions! 🙂
Ginger says:
December 8, 2011 at 7:10 amI love figuring out ways to NOT spend money. My grandmother was born in 1917 and scooting along just fine. The old ones are the best ones.
Anais Dervaes says:
December 9, 2011 at 5:42 amRight on!
Mike says:
December 8, 2011 at 9:26 amIs the flooring tongue-in-groove hardwood flooring? Did you have any problem with the hot water causing the flooring to warp?
Anais Dervaes says:
December 9, 2011 at 5:42 amThe water wasn’t on too long… besides the hot water had to penetrate the linoleum and tar first!
Justin says:
December 8, 2011 at 11:12 amWood floors are definitely the way to go. Glad you got this project started and seems like you’re happy with it. Congrats!
Loretta says:
December 8, 2011 at 1:43 pmBeautiful! I love wood floors.
Chris says:
December 8, 2011 at 3:31 pmGreat job and great tip! What kind of oil will you be using on the floor after the Murphy’s? I have a floor to do here and want to stay away from “the chemical junk”. Thanks for sharing!
Erica says:
December 9, 2011 at 1:31 amWhat kind of oil do you use on your wood floors?
Anais Dervaes says:
December 9, 2011 at 5:41 amlemon oil
Chris V says:
December 9, 2011 at 7:22 amThanks Anais! I have an old floor to be refinished and I’m going to give your method a try (murphy’s then lemon oil).
Paul says:
December 10, 2011 at 9:41 amSurprising! I don’t believe that that chemical of H20 can replace the other complicated chemicals to remove that dirty black tar. I believe this will be an economical solution for me. In fact, I have no a lot of budget for home improvement this year, but this idea is really enlightening!
grace says:
December 11, 2011 at 8:54 pmSo awesome! I have old carpeting over an old wood floor. Carpet shouldn’t be too bad to get up but the wood is for sure gonna need some tlc! Thanks for the tips 🙂 Although, chemical strippers ~ kinda sounds like some creepy futuristic movie! lol!
NJ Cellulose Insulation Contractor says:
January 12, 2012 at 10:08 amIt is good to see you were able to remove the linoleum with only hot water! Sometimes the best thing to do is not “over-think projects.” The less chemicals you have to use the better.