How to Replace Strips of Wood on a Swedish Floor

Locate the end seam of a damaged board then insert the tip of a pry bar into this seam and carefully lever it up. You may have to loosen the board down its length to get it free of the subfloor. Continue until all of the damaged wood is removed.

Remove any exposed nails in the subfloor with the back of a claw hammer. Lever out stubborn nails with the pry bar. Discard these nails.

Cut the replacement boards to fit with a circular saw. Use the old boards, if they're still intact, as a guide for the length that you need. Otherwise, measure the space left behind where you pulled out the old wood and use this as your guide. Put the blade guide on the saw down and feed the wood through the saw to trim it.

Sand the replacement wood lightly with a fine-grit sanding block.

Stain the wood to match the rest of the flooring with wood stain and a paintbrush. Brush the stain on in the direction of the wood grain. If your Swedish floors have a natural finish, you can skip this step.

Seal the boards with polyurethane. Brush on a clear coat of non-yellowing polyurethane over the wood. Let this dry for eight hours.

Fit the replacement boards into place on the floor. Line up the new boards with the existing flooring. Leave a gap of less than 1/4-inch to allow for seasonal expansion. Nail each board into place.