![]() Secondly, they begin to emit squeaky, popping noises. Should You Fix Popping Hardwood Floors?ĭuring winter, you might notice that your hardwood floors, which looked very beautiful upon installation, begin sporting some separation between the floorboards. Therefore, when the subfloor moves up and down – as you walk on it- it rubs against the nail, resulting in the irritating squeaking noise. But, the nail holding them in place stays firmly fixed. This settling and drying make them pull away from one another. A consequence of this is that the wood joists and subfloor eventually settle and, with time, dry out. Most of the older houses were built without attaching the subfloor to the joists with subfloor adhesive. The edges smoothen and become less rigid as they continue to rub against one another. However, it’s hardly possible to have a perfectly level subfloor when installing your floor since the board edges need to get used to each other. These gaps will allow the floor planks to rub against each other, thereby making creaking noises. This is because an uneven subfloor can lead to the formation of gaps and voids. When gluing your hardwood floor to concrete, it’s crucial to first ensure that the subfloor is level. Your Hardwood Floor Is Glued to an Uneven Subfloor As it does so, it rubs against the nails or screws, creating squeaking sounds. ![]() Consequently, when you walk across the floor area, the flooring or subfloor (or both) moves up and down. This results in a gap between the joist and the subfloor. The subfloor may also have been too wet when the floor was installed above it, or the planks might have been fixed without a moisture barrier.įloor joists tend to warp, bow, or shrink if they were damp during installation. The moisture could take up to a year or more to clear up, depending on the floor traffic and humidity conditions in the home. This term refers to the wood flooring reaching its equilibrium moisture content. The creaking noises could also result from installing floor planks before allowing them to acclimate to the house. Floor Planks Failed to Acclimate to the House These floors are attached to the floor joists underneath using nails, which tend to loosen with time, causing popping noises when you walk across them. Hardwood floors make a popular flooring choice because they are not only elegant but very strong too. ![]() The sound occurs when a plank loosens, causing the nail to rub against the subfloor. Your hardwood floors could also be making creaking noises because of the following additional reasons: Your Planks Could Be LooseĪre your floors nailed down to the subfloor? If the answer is yes, then the nails could be the source of the popping noise. When this happens, the floor is unable to move as it continues to absorb moisture. Secondly, the popping sounds could also result from installing wood planks using incorrectly-sized fasters or fewer fasteners than required. Therefore, the floor may remain in a popped position depending on your subfloor’s condition, the humidity levels, and the extent of the expansion. When temperature and humidity levels go down, your floor pops back down. So, if your hardwood floor expands and the expansion gap around your room is insufficient, the wood will pop up. Hardwood floors behave in the same manner since they come from wood, which still absorbs and retains moisture as wood flooring. It’s also comforting to realize that it is not unusual for new hardwood floors to make such noises.įirst, wood is an organic material that naturally expands and contracts with the rise and fall in both temperature and humidity. Fortunately, a defective floor may not be one of them, so you need not worry about that. There are several reasons that explain why your floors could be making those popping sounds.
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