Simple Referbishment Of A Teak House.

[naboo]

My wife is looking to purchase a piece of land with an old teak house on it. Due to finances, this would be our home for 4 years before being in a position to build something else.

I would like to cheaply refurbish it to make it liveable for those years. There is a reasonable internal ceiling, the bathroom can be spruced up with a lick of paint, I would seal the walls with plasterboard and then paint. The problem is the floor.

The floor is currently covered in plastic, is very uneaven and has cracks. I want to seal it to keep the mozzies out but have it look reasonable. The best I can think of would be to cover it with lilo flooring material and then some nice rugs on top. I'm not very happy with this.

Any suggestions on anything, or ideas for the floor? This is about the only alternative to renting and watching the money drain away.

[bankruatsteve]

Is the floor wood? Is it on poles or on the ground/over concrete? In any case, the plastic covering seems like a bad choice. I would personally never use carpet in Thailand, esp. in a house as you describe. Depending on your situation, tile would be my choice to cover concrete and perhaps nothing if the floor is wood.

[naboo]

The floor is wood, on stilts, needs something to keep the mozzies out.

[candypants]

so strip it down to the wood and seal it from below

[rgs2001uk]

This is what you need, plastic mesh sheeting used for soffits, afix to the underside of the floor.

[bbradsby]

The tape on old wood may not last, and is kind of ugly. A 10mm cement board soffit under the floor framing would work. Or, were it my house, a dark brown polyurethane sealant (caulk, to the layman) between the boards of a sanded & refinished wood plank floor is a good fix that maintains the old Thai House feel. Use backer rod for larger gaps.