>> How to Use Wood Pallets to Create a Floor <<
Dining room done and sanded.
Semi gloss finish done.
>> How to Use Wood Pallets to Create a Floor <<
via imgur / pretendadult
Wow. You just saved me thousands of dollars ….. love your site.
After planning the boards did you tongue and groove as well? It looks like a fine job to me.
This was my question as well.
No the floor was edge planed after being ripped to uniform width but wasnt milled with a T&G. That is why in one picture you can see the installer using a face nailer instead of a regular flooring nailer.
Very Impressive and beautiful.. Great Job…
I am calling Bull Shit. Pallet wood is made of pine and is to soft to be make into a floor. Unless you plan to never walk on the floor that floor is gonna look like shit in less then a day.
You can clearly see the variety of woods used. Not all palet wood is pine. It is just scraps that have no other useful purpose. I have even found cedar on some pallets. Most are pine, but it said he collected for over a year. Maybe they discarded the pine.
Many pallets are made with white oak boards.
Shut up…. ehow.com/way_5318251_ideas-building-wood-pallets.html
Wrong.. Many are made from hardwood. Google it !
Eastern White Pine flooring has been installed in homes for over 300 years, and many of them are still in place today.
I agree with you. White Pine, once dry gets very hard and can resist hundred years, only gets nicer. With the proper product on top gets even more resistant.
there you go – they will be only good for three hundred years or so
John,
They are many grades of pallets. For heavy material like landscaping stone. They are made of hardwood.
They did a great job and have put a lotof effort in it. Great reuse of the wood!
Not all pallets are made of pine. Some are made of hard woods.
A lot of pallets are made out of oak, which would make a great floor. The pine weigh about 25 lb and the oat weigh about 100lbs.
John L, many people have pine floors. Try googling before you speak of things you know nothing about!
All the pallets we use at work are oak.
Nope not all pallets are made of pine, I collect nothing but oak pallets here in Colorado. They make more solid pallets for the heavy stuff they put on them.
Sorry, you called the wrong number. Pallets are made of all kinds of wood, scrap wood is commonly used to make pallets. Oak, walnut, mahogany, all kinds end up as pallets.
I like how you added so much to the conversation, too. “Nope, gonna look bad.” I bet your friends think your the most uplifting guy they know.
Most pallets I have seen where assembled using oak. I actually have used pcs from one before to create s mighty fine threshold.
Depending on what the pallet was used for it could have been most any hardwood…
Pallets that had heavy materials- slate, concrete, etc….
Oh yeah, Take your negativity somewhere else
A lot of that wood looks like lauan, which would not be good to combine with pine, because it will contract and expand at different rates. It has to come from some pretty classy pallets, which might be mentioned at the get go. Planing and edging the boards seemed very easy, which is a real illusion. One of those 9000 nail heads could mess up a planer or an edger very badly. Most pallet wood is 5/8s or less, so getting it to clean up is pretty impressive. Since the boards are just butted together, and since the lumber is not kiln-dried and each board is going to have different moisture content unless the pallets were stored for the year and a half in a very dry ventilated place, the boards are going to have a lot of cracks and gaps particularly since the shrinkage and expansion rates of different wood can be radically different, and just sealing the top surface of the wood doesn’t keep moisture out. I imagine that after a year or two it will look like a bunch of pallet boards nailed to the floor. For all of the effort, getting a part-time job at McDonalds and using your wages to buy some 3/4 t&g #1 Southern Yellow Pine, which has the density of a hardwood, would take less time and give you a much better look that would last a lot longer.
There are lots of hardwood pallets around, pine pallets would not be very strong. If these boards were pine they would all be the same color.
Pine floors have been around for centuries. I put pine floors in my house when I built it in 1999 and they still look fabulous. I get compliments on them all the time.
There’s no bullshit there at all. Pallets come from all over the world and all over the country, so the woods used can be anything from pine to Honduran Mahogany, to cherry, to……..I once picked up some tile from the supplier, not a store, and there was a giant pile of pallets out back. On closer look I could see a lot of it was from Brazil and other countries b/c a lot the pallets were stamped with company names and address’. They let me take all I wanted. I took the pallets apart and used only the thickest piece that holds the top and bottom together. Some of that wood is EXTREMELY expensive if you were to buy it at a speciality lumberyard.
Are you dumb? There’s hard wood pallets and softwood pallets pine is a softwood! They used all hardwood yeah shmuc
Yep, I agree with you. This may look nice, but it boils down to major time investment, which no – one with a job has, and a floor that’s a durable as a potato chip.
Almost every pallet I have ever seen was made down south using hardwood.
John L – before you call b.s. you might do some research. Depending on their source, pallets could be fir, pine, even maple. Pine too soft? Tell it to those 300 year old pine floors in the upstairs of my childhood home.
Not all palletes are made of pine, obviously.
Depending on what kind of business you have, you can get pallets from all over the world. Pallets are mostly made of lower grade, whatever is at hand, wood.
A lot of pallets i have come by at work are indeed hardwood. I’ve even had some cedar come through the warehouse. And never assume pine is always soft, southern yellow pine is quite dense and is readily used for flooring…hell, old growth pine is hard as a rock.
John L, you are SOOOoo wrong. I deal with pallets everyday and a good amount of them are made from oak, it may not be the best oak, but it has character. I don’t really think that you would be able to slice them down to a 1/2 inch, not thick enough, but could be planed down to 1/2 inch or an acceptable 3/8.
Also have seen many pine floors that look awesome, even as they age and dent. It depends on what your personal taste is and the look you are going for and whether you want to spend $5 a square foot or 5 cents a square foot.
Pallet wood is made from a lot of different woods. Most of the ones that I get are actually oak, which would make a great floor.
Ur a dumbass. Pallets are made of all sorts of wood. There are some pine, sure, but there lots of oak and other hardwoods.. really, mostly oak. Ive built lots of stuff with pallets, and trust me… the oak ones are quite a pain to pull apart, made with a nail gun through hardwood.
not bullshit. I used to install hardwood floors. the finishes that they put on wood floors is incredibly durable…and that was 20 years ago. obtaining the wooden pallets is gonna be expensive cause suddenly reclaimed pallet wood is at a premium.
Actually, many pallets are actually made from hardwoods like oak… I have absolutely no idea how they can afford to do so, as I’m sure pine and fir are much more economical.
I put down a pine floor in my house and it came out beautiful and is now three years old. Still looks great.
Incorrect John.!
the majority of pallets are made from Spruce .
Some pallets can be made of harder woods depending on what country they are from, what product will be on it, if it was transported by boat , air or truck. There are too many variables to consider and your uneducated opinion isn’t needed here.
The floor looks very impressive !
Great idea. properly finished any wood can become a great floor. Really appreciate all the work that went into this.
to Jon L. – Forget your meds today?
I’m going to disagree with you. He put down a harder more sturdy sub floor and place the pallet floor on top of that. This floor would be more the safe to walk on.
Maybe where you are from pine is used but 90% or more of the pallets I use (I’m a contractor) are oak.
Actually quite a few pallets we get at work are oak or made of rainforest hardwoods just depends where the pallet comes from
Lots of pallets are made of oak and other hardwoods. I’ve got several oak pallets in my driveway this very moment.
Pallet wood is not pine!
That’s not entirely true. Hardwood pallets are often made from oak. Softwood pallets are made from Fir trees such as pine.
Most pallets are mixes of various blemished hardwoods, that have been kiln dried to ensure that they don’t have any unwanted fungi, lichens, or insects. Making them perfect for second hand construction with lots of personality.
John,
I have never seen a pine wood pallet. The pallets I get are so hard we can’t drive nails through them. Single 48 x 46 pallets weigh about 70 lbs.
I love using them for projects at home. But driving the nails out takes a lifetime to do.
Wrong. We had a wide plank pine floor in my parent’s house and it held up just fine. Sure, it would dent if you dropped something heavy on it, but after 10 years it still looked nice. Try it before you knock it. It works.
I just worked at a sawmill where we where cutting oak into pallet boards so I call bull shit on your comment.
You are completely mis-informed John L.
Pallets are not only made of Pine. That would be absolutely ridiculous and completely unsustainable.
Pine actually works. Yes, it is soft, but with a little care it can be a good floor for a long time. I live in a little historic town, Jefferson, Texas (http://opnseo.com/b). We have more antebellum homes per sq mile than any place else in the country. Many of these buildings have pine floors. The floors do mark pretty easily. You have to be careful with furniture legs, especially chairs. Some of the homes in town prohibit women’s high heeled shoes! In most cases the marks become part of the allude of the already rustic floor. An occasional coat of finish keeps them looking great.
I am glad to see so many people refute your comments John. In this case, you are wrong on both counts. 1: Many species are used for pallet construction. 2: Pine, whether domestic white pine, red pine, or if you can get it, southern yellow pine, as well as many other sub-species of pine are commonly used in the flooring industry.
My source of information? I was a flooring installer for 43 years before retiring.
pallets are often made out of hardwood, I’ve never seen dark brown pine as shown in the photos. Guess what, you don’t have to make floor out of pallets, so you can go get pissed off somewhere else at something you might actually do instead of coming on here bitching about something somebody else did
Actually, John L most pallets are made of hardwood. There was a pallet factory the next town over, and they used hardwoods. Some lucky people were able to get their scrap wood to use in their woodstoves.
You’re about as ignorant as they come. Does that floor like like it’s all the same wood?
…call all you want. I’ve been using pallet wood for projects for years, and 99% of it is either hickory or oak. Pine won’t hold up to the abuse that pallets must go through. Don’t believe? Get on craigslist and look around for free pallets. Almost all of them will be oak. In fact, if you look at the photos they have posted almost all of these are oak and hickory. I don’t see a pine board in the bunch…
…but hey, I only did furniture restoration on antiques for nearly twenty years, what do I know about wood?
Recently refinished an old pine plank floor in a 150 year old homestead for a client. It is beautiful. Has withstood the test of time. The beautiful thing about wood is that it often becomes more appealing with age and wear. no wood is zero maintenance. If you aren’t looking for rustic, why are you looking at a pallet floor? Also, heavier loads call for different species of wood pallets. many are made of oak.
John l just wanted to let you think about your comment because I’ve refinished thousands of pine floors… Just saying
pallets are always made of harder woods like birch or maple or tamarack . it looks terrific!
How about You go out and collect some Pallets, maybe You come to like the ones that are not Pine. They use a lot of heavy Oak, I have seen Teak and Mahogany and other exotic woods. Just saying.
John L, only certain pallets are made from pine, many are made from Oak, Redwood, or whatever is readily available. Most of the time it is the poorest grade wood that are leftovers at the mill. So it would take a LOT of picking through pallets to get the boards you would need to do this, plus a lot of prep work on them to make decent enough boards for a floor.
Seems kind of Draw a Circle Draw the Rest of The Owl. Lots of steps left out.
if you have a consistent source of “worthy” pallets and have a pallet deconstructin method that works properly…I think the time spent preparing would save a considerable chunk of change, as well can fucntuin5with many design settings…not just rustic. Of course this after you’ve beaten your head against the wall from prepared pallet wood falling apart, splitting, you name it. Pallet wood is good for roughly woodworking and most times not worth the headache and effort. Pine and poplar are soft woods, but with a good sealant and finish on the floor…I don’t see much damage occurring….thstate my two cents
Thanks for your input Jonnathon but it’s very easy to find hardwood pallets. Most are oak and are usually found in places that move very heavy objects like stone, trees, brick, steel etc. Use your head and think outside the box. DIY
Not all pallets are made of pine. I’ve com across many pallets made of hardwood.
Many pallets are made out of rough sawn hardwood. They are made to take extreme weight loads. Soft woods are used in light duty pallets. This floor, with the right finish would wear like iron. Thing is, count on trashing planet blades, since many are made by recycling old pallets and contain broken nails that you may not see. Metal detector would be great for culling boards with nail fragments.
This is brilliant we get loads of teak pallets at work, I can totally see me doing this. 🙂
Actually pallets are made out of different woods. Some are oak and some are pine. But pine floors actually hold up pretty well. My husband’s aunt’s home has had tongue and groove pine floors for over 18 years and yes they are a bit scratched but still look very nice.
John L a lot of pallets are pine but there is a lot made out of oak. The better ones are made out of hard wood not to fall apart.
John L – I agree with you – much of the floor does not look like pallet pine AT ALL. The strength of pine is very different than many flooring wood, why it’s not called “softwood” floor.
Really? All those pieces look like pine to you?
Not all pallets are made from pine… poepol..
Pallets use all kinds of wood pine, oak, maple etc. NOT just pine.
Sorry John L. Pallets are made from oak. That is why they are incredibly heavy and strong. If they were pine they would never hold upwards of one ton+ of weight. Wood pellets come in one ton loads on one pallet.
John L, you are SOOOoo wrong. I deal with pallets everyday and a good amount of them are made from oak, it may not be the best oak, but it has character. I don’t really think that you would be able to slice them down to a 1/2 inch, not thick enough, but could be planed down to 1/2 inch or an acceptable 3/8.
Ya, given their width, they were most likely PLANED to 1/2 inch, not sliced. But I think that was just a terminology issue with the author.
John L , before you go throwing out disparaging comments, you really should get your facts straight so as to not appear to be such an ignoramus. Not all pallets are made of pine, oak is used often when the weight of a load exceeds the limits of a pine pallet, such as concrete block. Often I’ve paid a redemption fee on a pallet because a company will want it back to use again. I’ve seen pallet wood that really is beautiful and almost hated seeing it go into my wood stove which has been what I’ve used old pallets for.
There is a reason these are considered scrap wood…
I have personally made 1000s of oak pallets in my life John L. You are correct most pallets are pine but not all. Depends on what they are used for.
@John L – Not all the pallets are made of pine. Quite often you find hardwood pallets that are meant for re re reuse. I lived on Pacific islands for many years and almost all the pallets we saw were hardwood to deal with the humidity and termites
^^^ I thought floor from historical homes built in the late 1800-1930s had pine floors??? Maybe I’m mistaken. This looks awesome!
How were the boards affixed to the floor? Were they face nailed or glued since there was no tongue and groove?
I DROVE TRUCK FOR 30 YEARS USED NOTHING BUT HARDWOOD PALLETS TO HAUL PRODUCT ON..THEY LASTED A HELL OF ALOT LONGER THAN THE PINE ONES DID..THIS GUY DID A GREAT JOB ON HIS FLOORS……
Just make sure you know the history of the pallets you use! They may have been treated with hazardous chemicals to extend their useful life! As the pallets were not created with the intent for use in your home they may not have to meet normal safety regulations. Foreign made pallets should be especially worrisome, remember the Chineese drywall issues! And that drywall was made to be used inside your home, pallets are not.
Not all pallets are pine some are a mixture of hard woods of various species, take a hard look at pallets i have seen all oak, or maple, or chestnut, or a mixture of pi e and hardwoods together. Take a hard look at those pallets
Palletts can be made out ofvany materials and woods. They use the culled lumber from furniture and cabinet factories. They use whatever they can find at the cheapest price that will do whats,needed, and certainly do not care about color or variations or density. if put together with a hammer and nails odds are they are a soft wood, but most be it hard or soft is put together with spiral or glue coated strip nails and power nailer and can be a real bear to take apart. My time is,worth more than salvageing dam old pallets no matter what wood they are made out of.
Looks Awesome!!
One question though….did you put the wood to dry up before installing it? What happens when the wood dries up and it shrinks creating gaps between them?
Nice work!
I was wondering the same thing regarding drying the wood and gaping after installation. I’m looking at putting a pallet floor in a mountain cabin. Will the dampness of the woods affect the floor?
I own a pallet manufacturing business and we build brand new pallets out of solid oak trees. No chemicals. So there are good pallets out there!
To the fella suggesting this is too much work and too time consuming. I suppose you are right if you have the money to spend on a new floor, by all means, pay someone to do it for you. But understand this there are many low income families who would love to put the effort into it to have flooring that looks so nice. Never mind those who are eco minded. You would be surprised how many are turning to the waste not want not way of life. God forbid you should ever find yourself in such circumstances that it is a necessity.