Floor board gap filler (house)

Hi all. We are having new carpets laid later in the year and I've pulled up the old carpets and underlay to fix any squeaks. However, there are a lot of gaps where previous lovely plumbers and electricians have lifted boards in the past and, to put it politely, butchered the boards. I would like to fill the gaps and wondering what peeps use? The old way was papier mache with wallpaper paste, but I've read about PVA with sawdust or proprietary fillers.

Any advice would be gratefully received.

Ta

 

They should be ok and squeak-free if you screw them down, rather than nailing. Underlay should/might cover the gaps?

 

Used to be papier mache, in between wood floorboards. Just use sheets of newspaper.

 

Thin roofing felt ...if its downstairs and has underfloor venting voids lay it all over and will also stop draught .

 

If they're really bad (as some of ours were after the attention of various plumbers and sparkies), worth just buying a length of the right size floorboard and replacing the rough bits, rather than trying to patch them up.

 

Thanks all. I'm screwing down the loose boards, filling the smaller gaps, I'm going to try both PM and PVA with sawdust and see which is best and replacing about 3 boards.

 

Don’t do what a mate did and use expanding foam to fill the gaps and add insulation he blew off the ceiling in the room below.

 

For gaps bigger than 4-5mm I'd glue in narrow strips of wood. For smaller gaps, if you want to seal them then decorators caulk is quick and easy to apply and stays flexible.

 

I had a similar problem in the bedroom, but unfortunately “her indoors” wanted vynil, presumably for when I become incontinent.
Ended up laying thin ply over boards.

 

I had miles of slightly wedge shaped strips made for my last house which I hammered and glued in place, but only because the boards were pre tongue and groove with a cellar underneath and I wanted exposed varnished floor. That was hellishly draughty before I did it.
Can't even see them now, they were like white stripes before the strips mellowed, as pine does. (this is after the next owner dressed it for sale, we weren't so posh).

 

I made up some home-made filler with sawdust from the floors we’d sanded plus pva.

I’d say don’t bother though. It didn’t match the boards even though it was the same timber. It also shrank over time so the gaps came back.

 

Thanks, I might go down the slivers of wood and caulk route as we are carpeting over the floor and I want to avoid big gaps.

 

Tongue and groove boards? Big job, I bet all the gaps are slightly different widths. If I were carpeting with underlay I wouldn't worry personally.

 

Or this Chris? :-
https://www.draughtex.co.uk/?fga=tr...JB1A64Edddz6ISyB0HQ6zLEVLetNJ24BoC-6oQAvD_BwE

 

If only my floor looked that good!

 

What about gluing strips of cork in the gaps or rope

 

Did you have a rug similar to that stairs carpet in your bus Steve?

 

If it’s not on show why not just use thin hardboard over the whole floor

 

So long since I could see the floor I can't remember!
RR is covered with similar though. The stairs carpet is the next owners doing.