Anyone done this for their floor?

[Ray-CA]

http://www.designsponge.com/2013/12/before-after-cartolinas-end-grain-block-flooring.html

Found this site and this floor looks really cool. I have an 8x27 foot area for "lounging" that I may do this in but wonder how it would hold up in the working part of the garage.

Thanks,

Ray

 

[DEERE G]

I've seen this type of flooring in HUGE steel mills in Cleveland, OH.
It was used in the areas where large coils/spools of steel were being stored.
I'm not sure how long the board are though. (Into the ground) These rooms are 10's of thousands square ft.
The lift truck roadways are concrete and the steel sits on the wood.
I was fascinated by it. It looked so neat.

 

[Krodad]

pretty cool, but what would you use for material?

 

[6t7gto]

Ask these people about durability..
http://kaswell.com/

 

[ADSR]

Never thought about using end grain like that. It looks very cool.

 

[reddevildemo]

We have that in the machine shop. The blocks are 2" thick. Holds up great to forklifts and very heavy parts falling on them.

 

[Angelfire]

These floors were used extensively years ago and held up very well. The few issues I've read about them include the potential for pretty much burning your facility down if over time, excessive oil spillage and such occur and then there's an ignition source. I would think for the average home shop, this wouldn't be a concern. I believe they layed them on a bed of sand but I could just be dreaming that.
Cheers,
cc

 

[daveroy]

This was used in the MARTIN BOMBER BUILDING (building Airplanes) on Offut AFB. I was told that if a part was dropped onthe floor, the floor would 'give' enough not to damage the part (or at least half a chance anyway). Maintenance was a matter of screwwing in a lag bolt and 'popping' out the bad boards one at a time, and dropping in a new one (with some persuasion).

Once they stopped building planes in there the 'planks' became source for retirement plaques... and you would become a 'plank owner'. They were in the neighborhood of 6-8" longand true 2X8.

 

[pauls_workshop]

Forget about 19th century factories using these, I've been in plenty of factories STILL using these today! There are variations on how big the wood is but end grain cuts like this, about 1" thick or so have been used a long time. You just replace them every so often if you need to. Hold up to forklift traffic, embedded metal chips, and just about anything. I've been in factories where the floor is a "metal" floor, made up entirely of chips, fully embedded in these wood end grain blocks. At that point, they don't really wear at all and become a floor literally as tough as nails since they are pretty much made of steel chips. - Paul

 

[tncatadjuster]

I first had the privileged of seeing one of these floors in person back in the early eighties, really nice. It was probably 6,000 square feet and beautiful, I was told it was over fifty years old.

No doubt it would be the most forgiving and replaceable of systems. The original high tech floor tile and renewable to boot.

It was 3"X3" X 6" deep and locked tight.

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

I first had the privileged of seeing one of these floors in person back in the early eighties, really nice. It was probably 6,000 square feet and beautiful, I was told it was over fifty years old.

No doubt it would be the most forgiving and replaceable of systems. The original high tech floor tile and renewable to boot.

It was 3"X3" X 6" deep and locked tight.

Me too. The Ford Ranger plant in Edison, NJ had this in the machine shop.
I have seen in other old auto assembly plants.

 

[MG44]

What about in a residential application such as a family room? How would you seal the surface?

 

[BMcC]

I think if you had a dedicated workshop area, it would be good to go. As a garage floor where it might be subject to water, it probably would not be the best choice.

Ray-CA if you are just using it for a lounge space area it would probably work well for that.

 

[pugs]

The Falk gear plant in Milwaukee has this floor in the shop. They can just set the big gears down anywhere without worrying about dinging them.

 

[jmlcolorado]

Is there another link? The one OP posted is broken. By the sounds of the discussion, it sounds pretty cool.

 

[Ray-CA]

Is there another link? The one OP posted is broken. By the sounds of the discussion, it sounds pretty cool.

The link still works for me, but here it is again:

http://www.designsponge.com/2013/12/before-after-cartolinas-end-grain-block-flooring.html

Ray

 

[theoldwizard1]

Used in factory with very LARGE equipment. The blocks are laid on sand.

If the equipment needs to be changed out they remove the clocks, bring in the heavy equipment ad remove the machine. If the machine had a foundation, it is busted out. New foundation poured, new equipment set, sand leveled blocks reinstalled and your done.

In factories they are treated with some kind of oil so they feel "greasy" when you walk on them. Neoprene soles are a must. Leather soled shoes are ruined quickly, but the sole doesn't start flopping for a couple of days.

 

[GSEninja]

Really like this idea! Wife has to have a coffee bar/lounge in the house, great option for that room!

 

[hh76]

I really wanted to do something similar after seeing an old factory floor done this way. My biggest problem came from trying to figure out what to do with the huge depth/thickness difference between it and adjacent floors. Should have planned for it from the beginning.

My workbench top is actually made from 15 x 30 x 3" sections of industrial flooring.