Removing Hardwood Flooring

Q: I am going to remove 3/8″ thick x 1 1/2″ wide oak plank hardwood flooring in my house. I was wondering if there is any tips to remove the planks and the nails so that I don’t ruin the pieces? I would like to re-use that wood in the living room kitchen area.
Thank You,
Klay
A: It’s easier than one might think. There is a 5′ pry bar that is made for this task, so getting the floor up is fairly speedy, but you should have two folks working as a team. Once the material is up, have a large pair of curved jaw vise grips or the equivalent. Something the shape of a large pair of water pump pliers that will enable the user to grab onto the fastener then roll it over which will pull the staple or cleat through the material with out damage. It may distort the tongue a smidgen, but it should not render it useless.
After a while it becomes fairly easy.