We have just moved into a rental and want to divide the living room with an internal wall. The landlord says it's okay as long as we are prepared to restore it when/if we move out. The floor is parquet, so we are considering whether it would be possible to build a wall without damaging the parquet, i.e., without nailing or screwing into it. The internal wall should be about 4 meters long and about 2.5 meters high. The walls and ceiling around are concrete, and there should be a door in the internal wall.
Thank you in advance!
Thank you in advance!
Should it go across the room, so to speak?
Can you accept a slightly higher threshold?
In that case, I would probably try anyway
I would like some kind of blanket at the bottom to protect the floor. On top of that, an ordinary base plate, and where the door is supposed to be, I want a flat iron for stabilization under the door. Say a 70x8 mm or something like that, which you then embed into the base on both sides. If you then build a regular wall and attach it to the room's walls and ceiling, it should be sturdy enough, I think.
Can you accept a slightly higher threshold?
In that case, I would probably try anyway
I would like some kind of blanket at the bottom to protect the floor. On top of that, an ordinary base plate, and where the door is supposed to be, I want a flat iron for stabilization under the door. Say a 70x8 mm or something like that, which you then embed into the base on both sides. If you then build a regular wall and attach it to the room's walls and ceiling, it should be sturdy enough, I think.
Thanks for the answers!
Yes, the wall should go straight across the room from wall to wall.
Flat iron sounds like a very good idea. Do you then place a threshold on it or can it possibly replace the threshold?
I'm thinking about what to have between the wall and the floor. Felt would protect the floor, but it would mean less grip, I guess. Double-sided tape would give good grip, but is there a risk of marks from it? Then I'm wondering if there shouldn't be some kind of insulation in between for soundproofing. I assume you can't have both tape and felt/insulation. Can someone help me with how to think about this?
By the way, is it a good idea to make the studs a couple of millimeters too long so that they press the sill down to the floor, or can it damage the parquet?
Yes, the wall should go straight across the room from wall to wall.
Flat iron sounds like a very good idea. Do you then place a threshold on it or can it possibly replace the threshold?
I'm thinking about what to have between the wall and the floor. Felt would protect the floor, but it would mean less grip, I guess. Double-sided tape would give good grip, but is there a risk of marks from it? Then I'm wondering if there shouldn't be some kind of insulation in between for soundproofing. I assume you can't have both tape and felt/insulation. Can someone help me with how to think about this?
By the way, is it a good idea to make the studs a couple of millimeters too long so that they press the sill down to the floor, or can it damage the parquet?
Between the floor and ceiling, double self-adhesive rubber sealing strips are installed. The wall studs are cut so that there is firm pressure against the floor and ceiling studs; use shims if necessary to achieve sufficient pressure. Double-sided tape might be even better but can be a bit tricky to remove when the time comes. The wall is guaranteed to stay in place without nails or screws in the floor or ceiling; I've tried it myself.
Thanks Brother!
Now I feel fairly confident that it will work. I think I'll try using a flat bar and upright studs to press the sill and roof beam against the floor and ceiling.
The only thing I'm a little unsure about is what to use in the joints between the new wall and the ceiling, floor, and the old walls. Three different suggestions have been made. Felt, double-sided tape, rubber sealing strip, and I'm also considering sill insulation. Can someone compare them and sort this out for me?
Now I feel fairly confident that it will work. I think I'll try using a flat bar and upright studs to press the sill and roof beam against the floor and ceiling.
The only thing I'm a little unsure about is what to use in the joints between the new wall and the ceiling, floor, and the old walls. Three different suggestions have been made. Felt, double-sided tape, rubber sealing strip, and I'm also considering sill insulation. Can someone compare them and sort this out for me?
Take regular foam. An old mattress if you have one. Cut into strips, the same width as the studs.
I was originally planning to ask the staff at the hardware store some questions, but then I realized that perhaps it's not always the sharpest knives in the drawer who work at the discount stores, so maybe it's best to ask here a bit first.
Where is the easiest place to find flat bar? I've searched a bit on the internet and can't find a reasonable store that sells it near me. It's not available at the hardware store, right?
And how do you "embed" it in the beam? Do you cut a groove for it in the underside of the beam and screw it in place?
Where is the easiest place to find flat bar? I've searched a bit on the internet and can't find a reasonable store that sells it near me. It's not available at the hardware store, right?
And how do you "embed" it in the beam? Do you cut a groove for it in the underside of the beam and screw it in place?
I have a suggestion for double-sided tape that is very strong AND easy to remove! At work, we call it the "green tape," but it obviously has a real name... The last time the tape showed its strength was when two people tried to pry away a 70 cm podium, which took a while, and then we "rolled" the tape off the stone floor without leaving a mark. We use the tape in the museum industry, where it is very important not to damage the existing setup since we change exhibitions all the time... If you're interested, I can look it up for you!
I'm probably going to try this one with http://www.biltema.se/products/product.asp?iItemId=152419
Choose tape carefully, there have been occasions where the paint came off when we removed the protective paper after painting. I don't have any specific tape suggestions, other than that it probably doesn't need to be very strong; it just needs to provide a little friction. If you secure the sill with the studs according to the previous suggestion, it should hold quite well anyway.
One thing you should consider when dividing a room like this is how the sun affects your floor. If the floor gets bleached a lot by the sun, you may end up with two different shades on the floor the day you remove the wall, or if the sun shines equally on the different rooms, you might get a "stripe" on the floor. It's not certain that the landlord will "allow" this, and you might have to refinish the entire floor....
- M
- M