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Feelings on Ash for wide board flooring

Started by repmma, May 01, 2012, 08:26:01 PM

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repmma

I have a good amount of large ash, thinking I would like to use it for wide board flooring.  Anyone have an opinion on ash and its uses?  I'm not concerned about a little cracking or gaps opening up seasonally, its just character in my mind.  Anyone can have a more "traditional" hardwood floor with that 2 1/2" strip stuff!! 
Thomas 8020, Timberjack 225C, Ford 5030 with Norse 450 winch, stihl saws and 142 acres to manage.

cutterboy

Ash certainly is a nice looking wood. It has interesting grain patterns like oak, and is quite hard. I think it would make a handsome floor. However, you don't often see a wide board hardwood floor and there may be a good reason why. I don't know.
To underestimate old men and old machines is the folly of youth. Frank C.

POSTON WIDEHEAD

Some one showed some pictures of an Ash floor some time back and I can't remember who it was.
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Al_Smith

 I imagine what you'll find is too wide of board would have a tendency to cup .

laffs

think im going to try some in a camp im going to build, 6" being the widest I will use. I have seen pine in old farm houses 12" wide
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Magicman

I will be installing some T&G 12" SYP for flooring in the Cabin Addition.  As I did with the 12" White Oak porch, it will be "smile" up so that any cupping will have a tendency to force the edges down.


 
Right or wrong, that is just my way of doing it.  Others may do it differently, and that is OK.
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Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

red oaks lumber

ash makes for a very stable floor, if its dried correct you wont have any problems with going 6" wide.

magic, what does your post have to do with ash floor? ;)
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T Welsh

Poor mans oak is what it is called in my neck of the woods. It has the same characteristics of oak. It will do well on a floor,You dont want to go wider than 8" or 10" wide because of cupping. Tim

Delawhere Jack

Quote from: Magicman on May 01, 2012, 09:24:27 PM
I will be installing some T&G 12" SYP for flooring in the Cabin Addition.  As I did with the 12" White Oak porch, it will be "smile" up so that any cupping will have a tendency to force the edges down.


 
Right or wrong, that is just my way of doing it.  Others may do it differently, and that is OK.

A common practice on wide old flooring was to alternate each board, rings up-rings down. Then if the wood did cup, it would be more of a wave, instead of lots of ridges or humps. It's something of a lost art now with 2 1/4" T&G having become the standard.

Al_Smith

I don't know much about hardwood flooring except millions of dollars worth of it got covered with wall to wall carpeting in the 60's .

However recently I removed about 400 square feet of Bruce fireside planking ,red oak rustic ,hobnail .Saved it for later usage.
There were several widths involved up to around 6 inches .All the flooring was grooved on the underside .I just assumed this to lessen the effects of cupping .

Delawhere Jack

Repmma, it you want to go really wide, it might be worthwhile to kerf (curf?) the bottom side every 3-4 inches about 1/3 of the way through the thickness, to relieve any stress. Drilling-screwing-and plugging across the width would also help insure that it stays nice and flat.

I am by no means a flooring expert, just a couple thoughts that came to mind.

Magicman

Quote from: red oaks lumber on May 01, 2012, 10:23:09 PM
magic, what does your post have to do with ash floor? ;)

The OP was also indicating that he was intending to use "wide" boards.  Wide board cupping was mentioned in a subsequent post and I was simply showing that I turned wide boards "smile" up to minimize the raised edges.

I also stated that I would be using some 12" T&G SYP for flooring which will also be installed "smile" up.  It is far easier for me to hold the center of a cupped wide board down than the edges.

To me, adding any information that may be of a benefit to the OP is following the line of the thread.
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

Dodgy Loner

Magicman's post was about as pertinent as it comes. I think his advice on how to install the flooring is sound. I would not hesitate to use boards up to 12" wide for flooring if I were not concerned about the gaps. Face-nailing is definitely the way to go, and arranging the grain as Magicman stated is added insurance. As others have said, ash makes a great floor.
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I donated lumber/tool use/ labor/ hardware over the weekend to build a wheelchair ramp for my neighbors handicapped daughter. I did like magic and installed smile side up. I tend to overbuild things anyways, but when it comes to a 14 year old handicapped girl taking her motorized wheelchair up something I built, I don't even try not to. Three sixteen foot white oak 2x6s for the frame, 1.5" white oak and black locust for the decking, and three sets of legs underneath it with braces all over the place. I even re-enforced their porch. I think I could drive one side of my truck on it without collapse. I also used all screw construction and plenty of em. (now that I think about it, this doesn't pertain to ash flooring either)
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markd

I installed some  random width ash boards ranging from 6" to 12" mixed in with some white oak and after 35 yrs you can hardly tell which is which. They all aged very well and show no signs of wear. I screwed them down and plugged the holes with raised plugs. It made an interesting floor and I'm planning to install an all ash floor in my livingroom in the near future. I'll saw them this summer and air dry them for a year. Markd
markd

repmma

All good feedback thank you.  I had figured on screwing down and plugging, not just for better control of the board movement but again for some character.  I'll put more thought into the width, probably wouldnt have gone over 10" but maybe i'll narrow it down to 6"-8".  Long way from pictures, the tree's are still standing... maybe in a couple years!
Thomas 8020, Timberjack 225C, Ford 5030 with Norse 450 winch, stihl saws and 142 acres to manage.

Al_Smith

Regarding ash if you prepair the surface correctly and use the right stain it's hard to tell from oak .

I did a bunch of ash trim,window valances,wide window sills  etc. from ash two summers ago .All air dried and used red mahogony stain .It is nearly a perfect match to the already installed red oak cabinetry in the kitchen addition on the house .

Relatively easy to work plus the fact oak makes my eyes water and I sneeeze up a storm from the dust .With ash I have no reaction .Poor mans oak but I like it . ;D

SwampDonkey

There is a flooring plant across the river, they use ash. Any ash that I have used is quite hard stuff. It planes up like glass.
"No amount of belief makes something a fact." James Randi

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red oaks lumber

the original post asked specific about ash, last time i knew pine and w.oak were nothing like ash. if the flooring is planed with back relief you have only one face to use and should already be flat. thats all i'm saying.
the experts think i do things wrong
over 18 million b.f. processed and 7341 happy customers i disagree

cutterboy

Quote from: repmma on May 02, 2012, 08:12:15 AM
  Long way from pictures, the tree's are still standing...

We like pictures of trees  ;D
To underestimate old men and old machines is the folly of youth. Frank C.

repmma

Any information is appreciated.  I'm open to hearing all ideas, if you mention red oak or pine tactics I wont be disgruntled!!  If it goes off topic, its just something else for me to learn. 
Thomas 8020, Timberjack 225C, Ford 5030 with Norse 450 winch, stihl saws and 142 acres to manage.

SwampDonkey

Red, as you know these topics wain and turn in other directions as everyone likes to share a little something extra in the moment.  ;)
"No amount of belief makes something a fact." James Randi

1 Thessalonians 5:21

2020 Polaris Ranger 570 to forward firewood, Husqvarna 555 XT Pro, Stihl FS560 clearing saw and continuously thinning my ground, on the side. Grow them trees. (((o)))

Klicker

I did a wide pine floor with pine. I made my boards go the full width of the room but there was a swipe  in the boards  so when you pushed the boards in at one end   there was a gap at the other. The person helping said we had to cut them and pieces them to get around them. I said they where going down without any joints. I got a 2x4 and screwed it down and used a screw   jack  from a Datsun it worked great. The boards stayed tight  there is a couple of spots where you can place  a quarter on edge but not many. Rod
2006 LT 40 HD

dboyt

The best advice is hidden in the above posts.  Ash is a pretty stable wood, hard and durable.  1) make sure it is properly dried, and 2) tongue & groove it and put relief cuts on the back.  All wood shares similar properties of shrinking and cupping, so experience and expertise with any wide plank flooring applies.  Would love to see some photos of the floor.
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5quarter

I use shiplap edges when installing a wide plank floors. one screwline per board. Predrill about 1/2 again the width of the screwshank to give it some room to move. Use 3" pocket screws and drive them through the subfloor into the joist. eliminates squeaking. You might have some trouble with 12" ash cupping up in the centers. If so, run a second screwline down the centers. twice the work, but the floor will stay flat. Ash will make a beautiful floor.

I thought Oak was called the poor mans Ash?   ;)
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