[LeanneP]

Hi! I'm new here so please forgive me if my posting is not so great.
We bought a house built in 1948 that has hardwood floors throughout the main floor. We are refinishing them & they're stripped down to bare wood now. In the living room area I've noticed some brown spots & when I've used the detail sander on them a fine, brown, powdery material sands out. However, the spot just keeps getting deeper & deeper. In other places, some boards are a beautiful pink color with knots that have rotted out. Also, some boards have a bright yellowish color to them. On one of the living room walls, I noticed some dark brown spots that looked like a stain splatter. After looking at this for a few weeks, I ran my hand over them to find that they smeared. I took some Clorox to them & cleaned them off.
My concern is that there's an active fungus or something that won't be controlled by putting a clear coat on the floor. My husband & son say that there's absolutely nothing wrong with the floor & that we should just "git 'er done" & go on with our lives.
Has anyone ever seen this in their hardwood flooring? Please advise, I'm dealing with a couple of hard headed men & I'm the only female on this project so I'm out numbered!
P.S. We haven't noticed these colors in the 2 bedrooms but there are a few brown spots in the dining room which is located off of the living room.
Thanks so much!

 

[texas115115]

Ok.

You may have pet stains on the floor. Thats what the floor sounds like. If you are worried about mold, then find someone in you area with a ozone machine have them set it up in your house for you. It will kill any mold you have, and anything else that needs air to live. But as soon as the machine is turned off so is the danger. Although bleach and water will kill mold too, and just about anything else. Then a new coat of paint and stain all done.:thumbup::thumbup:

 

[LeanneP]

Thanks!

Thanks for the reply. I talked to my hubby & son & they want to continue to refinish the floor so we'll be renting a finish sander on Saturday. Yesterday I put a nail down into one hole & it could go sideways all the way to another hole. All together there were 3 small holes in about a 3" line. I put Elmer's wood glue in one whole & it kept sinking in. So I put the nozzle down into it & pushed. The glue came up in the hole 3" away so I assume that the board is hollow all that way. My thinking was that the wood glue has wood fibers in it & maybe it would help keep the rot from caving in for awhile at least. We have boards to replace any damaged floor but my husband doesn't want to mess with it.
I will post pictures later to show the floor.

 

[pinwheel45]

Thanks for the reply. I talked to my hubby & son & they want to continue to refinish the floor so we'll be renting a finish sander on Saturday. Yesterday I put a nail down into one hole & it could go sideways all the way to another hole. All together there were 3 small holes in about a 3" line. I put Elmer's wood glue in one whole & it kept sinking in. So I put the nozzle down into it & pushed. The glue came up in the hole 3" away so I assume that the board is hollow all that way. My thinking was that the wood glue has wood fibers in it & maybe it would help keep the rot from caving in for awhile at least. We have boards to replace any damaged floor but my husband doesn't want to mess with it.
I will post pictures later to show the floor.

That sounds like a termite run to me.

 

[LeanneP]

Termites? Yikes!

Oh my gosh! We're in South Dakota. I didn't think we had termites. I'll post pictures later tonight so you all can see what I'm talking about.
Thanks for the answer!

 

[Maintenance 6]

Sure sounds like some kind of wood boring critter to me. Forget the ozone. Not very effective and has some nasty side effects for other things in your house. You may need an exterminator to have a look. Don't clean up too much of the evidence until you have it looked at.

 

[LeanneP]

Thanks

Thanks for the replies. There currently is no evidence of wood shavings or saw dust coming from any holes. Could it be a non active infestation? I guess it's a moot point because my son & hubby are telling me to get ready for the stain anyway. I'll do it but I won't help with the repairs a few years down the road when a table leg goes through the floor!
Thanks again for the help.
Please read my new post on stain able putty's.

 

[pinwheel45]

Thanks for the replies. There currently is no evidence of wood shavings or saw dust coming from any holes. Could it be a non active infestation? I guess it's a moot point because my son & hubby are telling me to get ready for the stain anyway. I'll do it but I won't help with the repairs a few years down the road when a table leg goes through the floor!
Thanks again for the help.
Please read my new post on stain able putty's.

Yes, very possible it's old damage. I refinished & repaired quite a few floors with termite damage & no evidence of active infestation.