Hi all,

Installation prep for a 3/4" solid BR-111 Angico going well so far, but I need to add some joist blocking to firm up a 14' x 6' area because the joists are 24" OC in that area. The problem is getting the existing 3/4" AdvanTech subflooring up! The nails are embedded (some up to 1/8") and are therefore next to impossible to get out. The house is about 4 years old.

Does anyone have any tricks of the trade for getting subflooring nails out? Is it a better idea to just cut out the flooring with a circular saw and replace those sections altogether?

Thanks!

There are various types of nail pullers that will enable you to dig into the subfloor and grab the nail head and pull it out. You will find that the panels will be glued as well. How well they will come up is unknown. You may end up having to replace them. Here's some photos of nail pullers.

Thanks Gary -

I"ve actually tried those tools, first using a chisel (!) to clear away some existing wood around the head of the nail, then prying up. The nail head folded up...

If I cut out the center of the subfloor, leaving the section on top of the joist, do you think I'll have a shot at getting the remainder of the glued-on floor and nails up?

I have no problem just building up the entire floor, but the extra height may cause issues down the road in an adjoining room.

Sounds like you have screw shanked nails. They're not coming up unless you use that cat paw to slightly lift the head then use a 36" gorilla bar to pry them out. Or just cut out the plywood like you already mentioned.

What you are doing is a better option than adding more plywood everywhere.

this is a cool tool for pulling nails www.nailextractor.com

Gary;
Can't he just nail them flush to the floor and go from there? Do they HAVE to be removed?

Ray, In his original post, chipbl said he needed to remove his subfloor panels so he could add additional blocking between the joists. He was having difficulty removing the subfloor nails. However, IF he was not trying to remove the subfloor and the problem was just nail heads proud of the subfloor, then yes, one would just pound them down flush.

Gary is correct. Actually turned out to be easier than I thought once I resigned myself to replacing the subfloor board. I used a chisel and a cat's paw, took up the board, then braced the trusses per Gary's suggestion using 2x4s and joist hangers. All is solid now, screwed with decking screws and glued with several tubes of construction adhesive. Even some additional insulation for good measure.

Thanks for the help!

I did have a few spots with about a 1/16 inch height difference - thought I'd use a belt sander to smooth that out? Extra roofing felt?

Sand it smooth.