We have just started on a big (for us) kitchen remodel. I was trying to do as much of the work myself to keep costs down. I had planned to strip off the old floors and install a new oak strip flooring to match the dining and living room. After doing a test area I was reminded of why back in the 80's we put the new vinyl flooring over the old floor leaving all in place. The original linoleum is adhered very well to the fir t&g subflooring with black mastic. After 60 some years it has really stuck on there. I know such old floors are notorious for having asbestos so I already sent a sample out and the test was negative.
My question is how to get the black mastic up off the subfloor. On the sample area I got all the vinyl and linoleum up with sharp flat bars and chisels but the last layer, the mastic stays stuck on the wood and only partially came up using paint scrapers. Scraping the entire floor (220 sqft) would be possible if I dedicated about a week to it but the real problem is damage to the subfloor. It is real hard to scrap off the mastic with out now and them gouging into the wood. I'm thinking the mastic needs to be softened first either with a solvent or be heat. But I am reluctant to jump into this without a little advice. So if anyone out there has successfully done this I would appreciate you sharing you experience.
kk
My question is how to get the black mastic up off the subfloor. On the sample area I got all the vinyl and linoleum up with sharp flat bars and chisels but the last layer, the mastic stays stuck on the wood and only partially came up using paint scrapers. Scraping the entire floor (220 sqft) would be possible if I dedicated about a week to it but the real problem is damage to the subfloor. It is real hard to scrap off the mastic with out now and them gouging into the wood. I'm thinking the mastic needs to be softened first either with a solvent or be heat. But I am reluctant to jump into this without a little advice. So if anyone out there has successfully done this I would appreciate you sharing you experience.
kk
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