Packing up floorboards

[Stevekane]

Im helping my son do up an old property and a good number of the original floorboards are badly broken up with a good number cut and unsupported. Anyway the boards are 20mm thick and I have “in stock” a few old 18mm ones, so my questain is what can I use thats redily available to pack up the boards?
Now before you say, just go to the demolition yard etc,,they are asking £7 per linier metre for old boards, 20mm T&G is available but is too narrow and as I already have good boards here it seems a shame not to use them.
Steve

 

[niall Y]

Thin ply, MDF or hardboard, cut in strips.

 

[Lons]

I would just cut my own but you can buy very cheap 2mm glazing packers which are around 70 x 25mm from memory, I used to buy them in hundreds, they are quite brittle and can shatter if nailed but screws are ok and better to screw down floorboards anyway imo, alternatively if you cant find 2mm ply or hardboard you can buy various softer plastics in sheet form and cut it up.

Bob.

 

[Stevekane]

Many thanks to you both, I have a bag of glazeing packers but as you say quite brittle and fiddly, I like the idea of ply but where on earth am I going to get a small bit locally? And whilst I think 2mm ply is available I dont know about mdf or hardboard? Slice up some myself,,I have visions of it just splitting when I screw through it but its clearly the simplest option and depends on the wood,,,,,I had thought about roofing felt doubled up but concerned it might crush over time,,,its all a bit of a daft project really but Im just trying to avoid paying the robbing buggers at the demolition yard £80 or so for stuff they probably end up burning!
Steve.

 

[Doug71]

This type of shim is great for packing things, I have linked the 1mm version as Screwfix don't do 2mm ones but they are available elsewhere

https://www.screwfix.com/p/broadfix-plastic-shims-large-101-x-1-x-43mm-200-pack/37775

 

[Alasdair]

You get 2mm hardboard in art shops in small sizes. They sell it as backing board I think. You might even find it in b@q but I think 3mm is the thinnest they do.

 

[Inspector]

Perhaps I'm a little thick today (opposite of your boards) but why can't you get some 2x material and rip a bunch on the table saw?

Pete

 

[Jacob]

loads of 2mm ply online and ebay.

 

[Setch]

I had to shim two rows of floor boards for a customer, to soften the transition between old and new floorboards.

I used hardboard, thinned to circa 2mm and then feathered into a wedge with a combo of block plane and 1" chisel.

Hardboard seems to have 'strata' which pare/plane apart quite easily, so it's easy to refine the thickness/taper.

 

[bryan267]

What about going down instead of up. Where you going to sand the floor anyway? Or maybe put the old 20mm through a thicknesser, guess it depends how many your replacing

 

[Woody Alan]

Wickes had loads of thin ply in 1/4 sheet sizes when I went in the other day, can't guarentee it's 2mm as I wasn't specifically looking but it was getting that way if not.

 

[Jonm]

As others have said, I would use plastic packers and screws, making sure the screws go through the packers. If you are concerned about your packers shattering then do a test.

However, I expect you will have one and a bit packers per joist and they are not full width so perhaps a bit fiddly to get the screws through the packers. If you have a lot to do it may be quicker and easier to use 2mm ply. Amazon sell it, here is an example, there are others.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/300x200x2m...ywords=2mm+plywood&qid=1648455354&sr=8-6&th=1
Personally I would not cut thin strips of wood on the table saw as I would be concerned they would split when the fixings go through them. Edit unless you pilot hole through board and packer.

 

[JBaz]

If you can find a wooden slatted venetian blind (at the tip?) the slats are a pretty consistent 2.5mm thick.

I keep the spare slats from blinds that I've shortened and use them for all sorts. Really useful things.

 

[John Hall]

Wooden window blind strips always come in useful…I always check in skips for them

 

[Stevekane]

Many thanks to you all, great ideas, we have a big department store call the Range fairly near to us and they do lots of craft and artists materials, and the big shims look promising too.
Pete, your indeed right, but I seem to recall very thin slices of timber wanting to split if you nailed or screwed through it, I guess they just don't have the strength to resist the splitting forces,,,but the trick might be to slice some up and try them,,lots of things to try so thanks once again.
And big thank you to everyone, I will check out Wicks as being probably to easist to ask what they have,,,the blinds idea is good, but finding a scrap set might be difficult. Im not sanding the floor just repairing
Steve.

 

[Thingybob]

I used to buy a packer sheet from the wood yard in Manchester gave em a couple of quid for an 8'x4' sheet some damage to the edges but a goodly amount for packers , They are what ply sheets are protected with when delivered and the lads used to put the money in a box for christmas drinks winner all round

 

[Thingybob]

By the way it was 2mm thick so just what you need try your local yard no harm in asking

 

[carpenteire2009]

+1 on the above, last time I purchased a half bale of ply sheets it had thin ply protection sheets top and bottom, very handy and usually binned I'd say.

 

[okeydokey]

For window blind slats try a place that fits them they will have a pile of old ones or samples that might do - as regard thin timber splitting put in position then pilot drill then screw down