A restored wood floor glowing in the sun in an Edinburgh garden room

Hardwood — Parquet

Parquet Floor Restoration herringbone & block parquet, Edinburgh & the Lothians

Parquet is the most beautiful — and most demanding — hardwood floor to restore. We sand, repair and pattern-match herringbone and block parquet with the gentle, 99.5% dust-free Bona planetary system.

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The Floor

A floor worth doing properly

Parquet — small hardwood blocks laid in herringbone, chevron or basket-weave patterns — was a hallmark of better Victorian, Edwardian and mid-century homes and public buildings across Edinburgh and the Lothians. Usually laid in oak, with walnut and other hardwoods in finer examples, it brings a geometric beauty no strip floor can match.

That beauty is precisely why it demands expertise. Done well, restored parquet is a showpiece. Done carelessly, the crisp lines blur and blocks lift. We treat every parquet floor as the heritage feature it is.

The Expertise

Why parquet needs a specialist

Grain changes with every block

Unlike strip flooring, parquet blocks alternate direction. Sanding has to account for this or it tears the grain and leaves rough patches. The planetary system handles multi-direction grain cleanly.

Blocks must be stable

Individual blocks loosen over decades. Each is checked and re-secured before sanding — a loose block caught by a sander damages both the floor and the machine.

The pattern must stay crisp

The beauty of parquet is the clean line between blocks. Aggressive or careless sanding rounds the edges and softens the definition that makes it special.

Old adhesive & damp

Original parquet often sits on bitumen, and many floors have history with damp. We assess and prepare properly before any restoration begins.

Repair

Lifted, missing or damaged blocks

Old parquet rarely arrives intact. Decades of movement, damp and old bitumen adhesive leave blocks loose, missing or cupped. Before we sand, we re-secure loose blocks, replace missing ones with matched, reclaimed or new hardwood, and rebuild the pattern so the repair disappears into the floor.

Only once the floor is sound and the pattern is whole do we bring in the gentle planetary sand — flat and even across the whole floor, keeping the crisp definition between every block.

Questions

Parquet restoration FAQs

Yes — this is core to parquet restoration. We re-secure loose blocks and replace missing ones with matched, reclaimed or new hardwood, rebuilding the pattern so the repair blends in before we sand and finish.

No — the alternating grain direction means a careless sand tears the timber. We use the Bona planetary system, whose counter-rotating discs cut cleanly in every direction, keeping the pattern crisp.

Most parquet in this area is oak, with walnut and other hardwoods in finer examples. We match repairs to the existing timber and pattern.

Older parquet is often laid on bitumen. It is common and manageable; we assess the floor and prepare it appropriately as part of the restoration.

Parquet is more involved than strip flooring because of the repair and pattern work, so it is quoted per floor after a visit. We give a clear, detailed quote with no hidden costs.

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