Replace wooden floorboards or not

I would like to lay laminate flooring in a room on the first floor. The floor consists of wooden floorboards and is uneven up to 3 cm. I would like to level the wooden floorboards with Fermacell leveling granulate and lay dry screed. My problem concerns the wooden floorboards; I have removed an area of the boards to see the surface underneath. The beam under the floorboards is visible. However, I am unsure whether my plan with the leveling granulate would be suitable, as the surface under the floorboards makes me uncertain about my plan. The other problem is the masonry; it has deep cracks at the lower area, so the leveling granulate could get into the cracks and cause unevenness. Would it be suitable to fill these cracks? With filler or mortar? I have taken pictures of the floorboards as well as the cracks in the masonry.

Ever thought about renovating the floorboards or laying new floorboards? Floorboards are not as expensive as you might initially think and you would have the suitable substructure anyway. Maybe your floorboards can also be refurbished cheaply. Compared to laminate + leveling compound, maybe also cheaper.

In my opinion, laminate is no longer up-to-date, I would choose vinyl instead.

Thank you for the information, the floorboards run from one room to the other. If I were to renew the floorboards, it would also make sense to renew the continuing floorboards up to the other room; a partial separation of the floorboards with the machine might not be advisable due to the overall surface stability. I would rather prefer to secure the floorboards with Spax screws. And what do you think about the gaps at the masonry floor, could that be a disadvantage for laying insulation or vinyl laminate?

Hard to say, looks a bit damp down there? I like to get a professional for something like that and get advice. You can also give a little something for the consultation if you want to be active yourself or independently afterwards. Maybe they can also give you more information about the price for refurbishing the floorboards or whether it's worth it or not. If you now put in a filling and trap the moisture down below with a vapor barrier to lay another floor, it could backfire under certain circumstances. I think the floorboards were open enough so that enough air can/could circulate.

Hello questioner. The advice from "garfunkel", to use new floorboards over a large area instead of laminate floor elements and to lay them directly on the supporting beams with height alignment, is the best advice that can be given to you. Laminate is actually outdated for several reasons, but on a warped/sunken old floorboard floor, this type of covering cannot be laid without expensive preparatory work on the substrate (namely the old floorboards). At least not professionally and without the risk of unwanted, partly very unsightly side effects. In your place, I would proceed as follows to save both costs and the experience of an unmet expectation: 1. Employ a good parquet installation company (as a master company). 2. Have it checked whether the old floorboards are still usable. After all, every building material has a limited lifespan/useful life. 3. Have the specialist company measure the extent and size of unevenness (meaning: create a leveling). 4. If the floorboards are still good: check for loose seating or, if necessary, partial replacement. Then sand, prime, and even out smaller unevennesses with a suitable, low-stress filler (self-leveling, fiber-reinforced) over the entire area or partially. If the floorboards are no longer usable: Complete renovation of the floorboards with height adjustment on the supporting beams. ------------------ A dry leveling would of course also be possible on the old floorboards, which should first all be checked for firm seating. Please keep in mind that the height adjustment + prefabricated screed elements require a certain build-up height, which will reduce the ceiling height of the rooms. The specialist rules to be observed also apply when laying elastic floor coverings. Specifically, this is the guaranteed ventilation of the wooden substructure via the edge joints, but also consideration of the use of the room one floor below. For example, if there were a bathroom there, additional considerations would be necessary. It's not that simple. Based on experience, as a builder you will rather lose out if you build cheaply (this point is mentioned here only for the sake of good order). Therefore, it is better to involve the specialist company at an early stage, which knows the specialist rules – and hopefully follows them. (otherwise only the colleagues in my specialist field will benefit .. :-) ) ------------------------------- Regards and good luck: Klaus

Thank you KlaRa for the detailed answer, then I will follow garfunkel's advice and consult a professional. Which professional would be specialized in this - appraiser or specialist? A primary inspection of the floorboards including the subfloor would be useful before my actual project, thank you.