Property Renovation

It will frequently happen that your ruin or barn will have a shell but no internal ‘upstairs’ - so it will need a whole new first floor adding (or replacing).

To add a new floor using exposed beams is practical and attractive, but it is quite a large job. In principle you are simply going to build the new floor with your (hopefully reclaimed) beams, and leave the beams visible rather than plasterboard the underside. If you are starting from nothing you can put plasterboard on top of the beams, so that from below you have a ‘proper’ ceiling on top of the beams. Go the whole way, and paint the plasterboard first - much quicker than painting it in situ.
Before you start you will need a structural engineer or similarly qualified prefessional to tell you what size of beams (cross-section for what length of beam) to use for your particular floor size, and the spacing between them - 60 centimetres is usual.
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Methods for laying quarry tiles and ceramic floor tiles

If you intend to glue tiles to an existing floor, the existing surface needs to be strong and stable before you start. Any existing weaknesses in the floor need to be remedied before you begin. When I am glueing floor tiles I use the big sacks of premade floor glue, that simply need mixing with water before they are used, but on the occasions where I have needed to tile straight on top of some existing tiles I have used premixed glue. This is more expensive to buy, but has additives already combined that make it more flexible and more ’sticky’.

It is possible to stick one layer of tiles on top of another, if the existing tiles are solidly attached to the floor below, using this premixed glue. You do need to thoroughly clean the existing floor tiles first, then it is a good idea to ‘paint’ on a solution of ‘resine d’accrochage’ (like PVA, this will make the surface less slippery so the glue can adhere better) - available in bricolage shops. Read more

Old houses might have any of a wide range of floor types in place - including earth, old quarry tiles, wood and concrete.

Terre Battu

Flattened earth floors are quite common in old houses in France. These ‘terre battu’ (beaten earth) floors are not simply a consequence of never laying a proper floor, but were once (until about 200 years ago) quite sophisticated, with clay being spread on the existing floor and then beaten flat.

Some places in France even had a special dance that was performed on the floor to ensure it was well flattened down! These are not generally practical in a restored house (earth floors, I don’t have a problem with special dances), unless you are trying to restore the property faithfully ‘as original’ and intend to open your house as a museum.
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