Remove Rocky Floor Covering

Help Around the House : Episode ARH-237 -- More Projects »
PHOTO
Help Around the House host Henry Harrison helps a guest remove a floor covering consisting of small rocks and some sort of binding material. It's a lot of good-old fashioned work, so on his elbow grease scale of one to four Harrison gives this job a definite four.

Tools:

prybars
cold chisels
ball peen hammer
sledge hammer
maul
broom
dust pan
garbage bags
knee pads
work gloves
safety glasses

PHOTO

Figure A
PHOTO

Figure B
Steps:

1. In this project the guest needed to remove a very funky 70s-style floor consisting of a high-grade polymer or epoxy binding smaller rocks to slightly larger stones, all over a plywood bed.

2. First remove any trim strips along the perimeter of the floor using hammers and pry bars (figure A).

3. The floor will probably have nails in the boards, and the sharp edges of the broken flooring can also cause injuries. It's important to wear heavy-duty work gloves and eye protection.

4. Now just go to work breaking up and removing the flooring (figure B). Bag up the debris in garbage bags as you go.

Also in this Episode
Help Around the House : Episode ARH-237
•Cover Hole in Vinyl Siding
•Realign Interior Door
•Remove Rocky Floor Covering
•Toolbox: Grabbing Tools