Motor oil spills in garage

Q: I am planning to sand and finish a 60 year old pine or fir T&G garage floor that will be my workshop. One problem is that many years of motor oil spills have created deep oil stains that will not sand off. What kind of finish will be compatible with this damage, in terms of sticking to it?

What kind of gap filler would be compatible for the 1/4″ gaps between the boards. This will be a heated space in winter.

A: I would suggest an exterior varnish such as Circa 1850 marine grade, tung oil base. You could email Mark Chaimberg at Swing Paints to ask his thoughts. www.circa1850.com or www.swingpaints.com.

Filling these large gaps can be a problem. The one wood filler product I have read about which guarantees not to shrink, crack or fall out is Timbermate. www.timbermate.com. They have a U.S. distributor, but since it is made in Australia, it is quite expensive due to shipping costs. Other than that, Color-rite makes a huge line of over 400 colors of what is more like a caulking in a squeeze tube. Easy to work with and flexible, but a bit pricey also.