Draughtex Blog

Victorian Floorboards Get New Lease of Life

Have you ever wondered what your floor would look like if you took up the old carpet and gave your floorboards a new lease of life? Well that is exactly what one of our customers, Mr CW from Cheshire, did.

“My project concerned a large attic room in a Victorian house. The floor had a horrible old carpet on it when I started.” said Mr CW ” I knew before I started that the gaps in the boards would have to be sealed because the gaps between the floor joists are open to the very well ventilated roof space at the side and the wind comes howling through.”

That is when Mr CW decided to choose DraughtEx, our flexible and no-mess floorboard gap filler. After the sanding of the boards, the gaps were raked out, the floor was painted and then DraughtEx was fitted. Fitting this filler takes very little time and a special applicator makes the task very easy.

Here are the before and after photos of the floor, which is now finished with Farrow and Ball Manor House Grey. Please note that the DraughtEx floor filler is not visible even in the close-up of the newly painted floorboards.

Following the fitting of the DraughtEx the draughts just stopped and the room is now cosy and warm.

Please click the images below

Get a 5% Refund of Your DraughtEx Costs

We have found a way of reducing the costs of our DraughtEx floorboard gap filler to you by sharing your experience with more people. Simply send us pictures of your DraughtEx project, together with a short description of how it was used, and we’ll refund 5% of your costs.

It could be a picture of the room that was insulated, a ‘before and after’ shot of the gaps in your floorboards or a photograph of you doing the work – demonstrating how easy it is! It’s up to you.

Send us as many pictures as you like – we’d love to hear from you. Everybody who sends us something will receive the refund of their DraughtEx costs.

Email us at service@draughtex.co.uk or get in touch through our Facebook page.

DraughtEx Now on Facebook

We are always being asked how to overcome problems encountered by people renovating their floors. So we decided to launch a Facebook page where you can tell us what your problems are and receive advice and suggestions from us and other keen DIY enthusiasts.

Using Facebook in this way can often lead to innovative ways to complete a restoration project or could just give you the support you need at that time to continue with the renovation.

If you have not already joined us on Facebook, make sure you do it today.

How to Save Energy by Draught Proofing Your Skirting Boards

DraughtEx already has many satisfied customers who have benefited from the unique way it fills the gap between floorboards, eliminating draughts and helping to reduce energy bills. It can also be used equally successfully at the base of skirting boards.

There is often a gap between the skirting board and the floor which can create cold draughts, chilly rooms and winter discomfort. As with floorboards, the size of the gap often varies and traditional filling methods can be messy to install and will most likely fall out over time.

DraughtEx comes on a roll and with a special applicator allowing you to press it into the gaps where it expands to form the perfect seal. There is no mess and its ‘shadow’ colour means that you will not see it is even there. The filler is available in three thicknesses to cover all gap sizes, although the standard size will be suitable in most cases. If you are unsure what size you require just order a sample pack which contains a length of each thickness and an applicator.

Research by The Energy Saving Trust estimates that a household can save between £20.00 and £40.00 per room, per year, by filling skirting and floorboard gaps. With energy bills rising these savings can only increase!

See our video to find out how easy it is to use DraughtEx with skirting boards.

New Book Recommends DraughtEx Floorboard Filler

A new book about energy saving ideas has just been launched. ‘Save Your Energy. Simple Ways To Knock £300 Off A Home Fuel Bill’ by Martin Hickman. The book describes creative and effective ways of saving money without missing out on comfort. The author states: ‘Good energy efficiency needn’t be a drag. You don’t have to skip baths or behave like a skinflint. What I’ve learnt from my experience and research is that you really can slice up to £300 off your annual outgoings (and reduce global warming) without changing your day-to-day life.’

In the Book, Martin Hickman recommends the DraughEx floorboard gap sealant. One of the measures he mentions is fitting rugs and carpets over exposed floors and goes on to say ‘A few DIY jobs can also help. You can fill spaces between floorboards. I prefer… Draughtex, which is wedged between floorboards.’

The book is available on Amazon.

DraughtEx is an extremely effective and easy to fit solution for draughts between floorboards. It can be fitted in a few hours and saves £20-£40 from the heating bill per room.

Sarah Beeny Puts DraughtEx in Her Scrapbook

What better endorsement could DraughtEx floorboard sealant aspire to than Sarah Beeny featuring it in her More4 Property Season. The show is about giving you tips and tricks to restore your property with a view to increasing its selling potential.

DraughtEx is in her Scrapbook for quick reference as a good and cheap way to eliminate draughts through gaps in floorboards. It is so easy to install even by the most novice DIY person. So not only do you get a warmer house cheaply, you also get the satisfaction that you did it yourself, saving you even more money.

Why hesitate, check what Sarah Beeny has to say about DraughtEx and start ridding your home of unwanted draughts and cold spots.

Some Tips for Renovating Floorboards

Many of our customers use DraughtEx floor gap filler as the finishing touch on a newly renovated wooden floor. Although DraughtEx can also be installed underneath many types of floor coverings such as carpets, most people make use of it to seal the gaps between exposed wooden floorboards.

Polished wooden floorboards provide a beautiful and homely look, however, you need to consider a few points to make sure that the final floor insulation with Draughtex produces the most pleasing results.

Preparation

While Draughtex is very quick and easy to fit, preparation is still important when it comes to stopping draughts between floorboards. You need to clear out the gaps between floorboards with a blunt knife or similar. Be very careful not to damage any cables or pipes underneath the floorboards. While Draughtex is flexible and will form itself around any remaining debris, the best result is achieved if most of the dirt between floorboards is removed. If you are also sealing the gap between the floorboards and the skirting board, remove any rope that might have been used in the past to seal the gap. Again, remove any dirt out of the gap.

After sanding, make sure you vacuum the floorboard and skirting gaps to remove any larger amounts of dust and dirt. This is obviously important anyway for the varnishing of the boards but will also help when fitting the floor gap seal after varnishing.

Applying DraughtEx

Once your floor is varnished and dried, fill your floorboard gaps with DraughtEx. The filler is available in three thicknesses to cover all gap sizes, although the standard size of Draughtex will be suitable for the vast majority of floorboards. The seal is very flexible and can be stretched to fill thinner gaps. Because of its elasticity, DraughtEx will also accommodate any natural movement of the wooden floor.

Start by pushing the end of the Draughtex seal in a floorboard gap underneath the skirting board using a screwdriver or similar. Use the same screwdriver to position the first two inches of Draughtex between the boards. You then tension the Draughtex very slightly with one hand while using the supplied applicator in your other hand to roll down the Draughtex into the gap. The applicator has a ledge that prevents pushing the floorboard seal too deep. When reaching the other end of the room, just cut off with a bit of a surplus which is pushed underneath the skirting board with the screwdriver. When you are filling in thinner gaps, just increase the tension a little bit more.

The specially formulated colour ‘Shadow’ will appear invisible to the eye and will present clean, even looking floorboards floorboards. You can vacuum the floor without risk of pulling out the Draughtex.

Instructional Video

For further fitting instructions see our video on how to fit DraughtEx.

Contact Our Sales Team

Our friendly sales staff will also be happy to give further advice on 0800 088 7311 or through our contact form.

How to Save Energy and Money by Draught Proofing Gaps Between Your Floorboards

DraughtEx not only helps keep your house warm, but can also help you to save money and use less energy.

Unfilled floorboard gaps in a room measuring just 12 x 12ft can add up to a combined exposed area of 3.87 square foot- similar to a small window being left open all day, every day.

By using Draughtex to not only fill gaps between floorboards but also gaps between floorboards and skirting boards to prevent unwanted breezes from entering the home, it is estimated by The Energy Saving Trust that you can save up to £40 per room per year on heating costs. A 12 x 12ft room would on average need only two rolls to insulate the floorboards. Therefore by investing in DraughtEx, you will not only feel the benefit in terms of temperature, but should also see a positive effect on your energy bills which allows you to amortise the cost of the floor filler within approximately one year.

Lower energy usage also means a lower carbon footprint, and each insulated 12 x 12ft room is also estimated to reduce CO2 contribution by around 150kg per year.

Having sold well over twenty thousand rolls of DraughtEx so far, our floorboard gap sealers are currently saving our customers a combined £400,000 per year as well as preventing over 1500 tons of CO2 emissions every year. This energy saving is enough to offset 370 cars worth of CO2 emissions over the same period!

So with winter approaching, now is the time to invest in DraughtEx. It will not only make your house feel warmer, but also help keep energy bills as low as possible through the coldest time of the year. Let us help you to save money and energy.

Stop Insects with DraughtEx

Now the weather has finally taken a turn for the better we all face the dreaded bug season! If you have experienced the irritation of insects entering the house through gaps between your floorboards, DraughtEx could be the solution to your problems.

DraughtEx provides a flexible seal that fills the gaps between floorboards, not just keeping out bugs in summer, but helping to defeat floorboard draughts in winter, too. Calculations show that the average combined area of the gaps between floorboards can be equivalent to a small window being left open. Therefore plugging these gaps can lead to significant savings on your heating bill during colder months, and less insect activity in summer.

This multipurpose floorboard gap filler not only solves these two problems, but also gives a clean, even finish that can help improve the overall appearance of wooden flooring. With so many reasons to try DraughtEx, why not order a sample pack and join the growing number of people who are delighted to have discovered DraughtEx.

Finish Your Floor With DraughtEx

If you’re renovating your wooden floor why not consider adding DraughtEx as the finishing touch. The ideal time to seal gaps between floorboards is after varnishing, oiling or waxing because the preparation has already been done.

The specially formulated colour Shadow is designed to replicate the natural shades between floorboards. Therefore DraughtEx not only seals the gaps preventing cold air from entering your property, but also gives a clean, even and aesthetically pleasing finish.

DraughtEx looks good, is easy to install and provides numerous benefits. It not only helps insulate your home, but also helps prevent irritants such as pollen, dust and insects from gaining access through your floorboards.

If you have taken the time to refurbish your floor then now is the perfect time to try DraughtEx. Why not order a sample pack and join the growing number of people who are delighted to have discovered DraughtEx.