Wooden floors squeak: what to do to eliminate the unpleasant sound. Floors creak - causes and solutions If floors creak

If a wooden floor creaks - what to do and what to do

All those who live in old private houses often experience the same problem over time - the wooden floor creaks - what to do? in this case We'll tell you in this article. A positive point in this case is that all the work can be done with your own hands.

Possible causes of squeaks

If logs creak, the following reasons are possible:

• The boards are poorly secured. This fact is the cause of squeaking most often. How to remove creaking floors in this case, you ask. You just need to secure the boards more securely, and self-tapping screws are best for this. Unlike nails, they won't loosen after a while.
• The pads under the joists are loose or incorrectly installed. Over time, the floor in the apartment creaks because the joists become less stable and this becomes evident when walking.
• Formation of gaps between boards. This happens if insufficiently dried wood was used as a raw material during the laying process or it could have dried out after a change of season. In this case, the boards begin to rub against each other, which is accompanied by an unpleasant sound.
• Laying without maintaining a gap between the boards and the wall. In this case, squeaks occur due to the fact that a 10 mm gap was not left from the wall, which is necessary so that the board can expand freely during changes in the microclimate. As a result, the boards swell or swell - a squeak appears at the wall at the point of contact with them.

Naturally, squeaks can also occur if some of these factors are combined. In order to understand how to remove the squeak wooden floor, you need to understand its nature. Often, a simple inspection is enough, but sometimes it may be necessary to remove a couple of boards to determine the condition of the joists.

Now you need to understand what to do to prevent floors from squeaking if they are made of plywood. An additional reason that causes squeaks may be intersheet friction. Since the installation of the covering from sheets is carried out in compliance with the gaps, which are soon covered with putty, this is why such side issues arise.

Getting rid of floor squeaks

It’s worth talking about how to remove the creaking of a wooden floor in an apartment. The following tips will help everyone with a 90% chance of getting rid of creaks in the floors. In this case, you only need to stock up on fasteners. Read also: “How to eliminate creaking parquet flooring - proven methods.”

Screwing the floorboard

In the old days, there were probably no boards that were not attached to the floor with nails. Such floors still exist and many of them have not been repaired for decades. It can be assumed that most of the nails have become loose and need to be replaced with modern, effective fastening in the form of self-tapping screws.

Sequence of scrolling the floor:

• Initially, you need to find out the thickness of the lag. This can be done by drilling a hole in the floor and measuring the length to the base. You can go the other way - remove one floorboard. The screws should be 1.5 cm shorter than the combined length of the floorboard and joists.

If you decide to use a screwdriver instead of an electric drill, then it must be powerful enough and have a capacious battery, otherwise the repair process will be significantly delayed.

• If the screwdriver cannot screw in the screws, you can drill holes for them before installation. It is not necessary to remove old nails if they do not interfere.
• The logs are usually located at a distance of 600 mm from each other. To understand how many screws you should purchase, you need to multiply the number of joists by the number of boards located across the entire width.
• Next, everything is banally simple - you need to screw all the boards tightly, while the caps should be hidden. If you can still hear creaks somewhere, then these places need to be marked so that they can be further secured later.
• Next comes leveling the surface using plywood. It is also attached to the floor with self-tapping screws in increments of 150-200 mm. If you screw them in less often, they may become loose.

Gaps between boards

If there are gaps between the boards that cause the floors to creak, what to do without disassembling them, in this case, is to fix them using wooden wedges.

Sequence of operations:

• plan wooden wedges from wood, determining the desired size;
• cover them with glue and hammer them into the gap, the wedges should fit tightly;
• After the glue has dried, the excess part of the wedges can be cut off flush with the base.

The disadvantage of this method is that the rail needs to be adjusted to the size of the slots each time, and this is a very long process.

It’s easier to use a cord instead of a rail:

• You will need to buy a braided cord with a synthetic base. Next, it is impregnated with wood glue or PVA glue, and using a core or punch, the cord is driven between the boards to about half their thickness.
• The upper part of the cracks is filled with homemade putty, which includes sawdust and PVA glue. It should have a paste-like consistency.
• The putty should be applied with a slight excess so that after drying, the excess can be cut off flush with the main floor.

Restoring regular floorboards

Not everyone knows what to do if the floor in the apartment creaks, in the case when an ordinary board was used to make such a floor.

The creaking occurs because the floorboards begin to sag during loading, since nearby boards do not hold them in any way.

What to do to prevent wooden floors from creaking in this case is to fasten the boards to one another.

Will need long drill, wooden dowels and the following sequence of actions:

• Make a hole in the board at an acute angle so that it reaches the adjacent board.
• Cover the dowel with PVA glue and drive it into drilled hole. It should penetrate about 50% of each board.
• The second hole should be made in the other direction in a nearby board after 200-300 mm. Thanks to this, the dowels will support the boards in the same way as tongue-and-groove ones.

Deformation gap

A 10 mm gap should be provided around the entire perimeter in case of temperature changes. If you removed the baseboards and found wedges underneath, then they mandatory should be removed. If there is no gap at all, then you will need to remove the outer boards and shorten them, and then attach them back.

Loose logs

If, after checking, it turns out that the joists are not installed entirely correctly, then in such cases, it is often necessary to re-construct the floor, be it in an apartment or a private house. There are cases when this problem arises in a specific place, it is easier to solve it - you just need to remove part of the sheathing and replace the pads under the joists or on them.

It is worth noting that the logs should not be fixed to the base, thus deteriorating the soundproofing qualities of the floor.

Thickness of boards and spacing between joists

If the wooden floor in your apartment creaks, what should you do if this happens when you move across it? This happens when the board is laid too thin or the distance between the lags is insufficient.

You should take the dimensions of the problem floor and compare them with the required indicators. If the difference is very large, then you will need to redo the floor, providing it with intermediate boards to ensure sufficient structural strength.

The problem can be partially solved by adding additional supports between the joists, but you need to understand that this solution is temporary.

You will need to do the following:

• Large screws will be needed to ensure the boards are securely fastened together.
• The length of the screws should not be less than the distance from the top of the board to the concrete screed.
• Make a hole with a diameter slightly smaller than the diameter of the screw. The excess length of the self-tapping screw must be cut off.
• The self-tapping screw should be screwed in until it reaches the concrete base.
• Self-tapping screws must be cut so that they are not sharp, otherwise they will quickly damage concrete screed and will no longer support sagging boards.

It is worth remembering that laying flooring over a squeaky floor will not save the situation; annoying sounds will not go away. In any case, measures will be needed to restore the floor; it is better to do this in advance.

Tip 1: What to do if the floors squeak in your apartment
Tip 2: How to behave with a brownie

Development modern technologies did not discourage people from believing in various supernatural phenomena like poltergeists, conspiracies, mythical creatures. For example, many believe that in residential buildings And apartments certainly have a brownie.

Those who believe in the brownie usually try to establish contact with an incomprehensible creature. But since such beliefs are increasingly classified as obsolete, few people know what to do to achieve this.

The question of who a brownie is can be answered approximately like this: an energetic entity that is constantly located in your house or apartment. The occurrence of this type of energy directly depends on the behavior of the people living in the apartment. With constant swearing and quarrels in the premises there will be a corresponding, not particularly good energy. On the contrary, if the residents are peaceful and cheerful people, the atmosphere in the house will be very favorable.

People imagine brownies in different ways - someone claims to have seen them in the form of a light clot, a creature a certain shape, some have only heard of it, others have never seen it at all, but they have no doubt about the existence of brownies. The question of how to appease a brownie mainly arises in cases where this entity “behaves badly” and interferes with the residents.

When moving into a new home for your family, it will be useful to establish a good relationship with the brownie living there. If this entity decides to show its bad side, creaking floors and dishes suddenly falling on the floor will constantly spoil your mood, and it’s good if the matter is limited to only this.

To create favorable energy in housing, and therefore deserve good relations to your brownie, you should keep the house clean. Wet cleaning, frequent ventilation premises, timely disposal of trash and unnecessary things will help ensure coziness and comfort. Don’t put off fixing the water supply system; fasten the broken ones in a timely manner. door hinges, do not ignore a rickety cabinet. Try not to sort things out in a raised voice - negotiate peacefully, look for compromises, and take the time to talk with family members. This will help you not accumulate negative energy in the premises.

To appease the brownie, sometimes they resort to such means as displaying treats or setting up a special pleasant place for this entity. This could be, for example, a shelf with figurines and amulets that, in your opinion, the brownie might like. This option is more suitable for those who imagine a brownie in the form of a tiny creature, a man. Meditative exercises are effective, during which a person thanks his home for warmth and safety, for a feeling of security, the opportunity to provide comfortable conditions for yourself and your household. The entity called the brownie will certainly provide good mood and comfort for people who do not forget to thank the brownie for his efforts.

The floors are creaking, what should I do?

The floor can become deformed for various reasons, for example due to high humidity. If the floor has been installed for a very long time, it will begin to creak and then become completely unusable. But if you carry out repairs at the right time, you can save the floor and get rid of the unpleasant noise caused by the appearance of cracks. To get rid of the problem, you need to understand where the squeak comes from and what causes it.

Why do floors creak?

When installing a wooden floor, squeaking is guaranteed, although most people treat this normally and do not take any action. But there is another group of people who cannot sleep at night because of the eternal squeak, so they are looking for all kinds of ways to restore the floor. Before determining the cause of the problem, I had to familiarize myself with different types floors For example, wooden floors in dachas were most often installed by professionals, so they had no problem choosing required thickness boards, high-quality dry lumber, and installed joists wherever needed. This guarantees a silent wooden floor for at least several seasons.

Any floor will creak in five years, but this is very good result, since all floors begin to creak immediately after installation, and it makes no difference whether it is installed by a professional team or the owner of the cottage. The noise that occurs when walking on the floor is very unpleasant and can be heard throughout the house, although sometimes it is quiet. This is mainly due to the fact that the tree begins to rub against another tree, and an unpleasant sound immediately appears.

The boards can rub not only against each other, but also against the joists. This is due to the fact that the logs are installed unreliably, the mounting points are not mounted well enough, so unpleasant noise occurs. Although professionals should not make such mistakes, they do occur. When installing a board, it is ground against another, this ensures that there will be no displacement, and along with it, noise. Unfortunately, wood quickly absorbs moisture and reacts to the temperature in the room, so in different seasons the wood begins to collapse under the influence of cold and moisture. For example, in spring or autumn, the size of the boards may increase as they swell due to exposure to moisture. This provokes movement and deformation of the floors. But then the most unpleasant thing happens - winter or summer comes, and the size of the boards decreases because they dry out. Because of this, gaps appear, which subsequently renders the floor unusable.

Several cycles of drying and wetting go through, so the gaps become quite large, the boards begin to run into each other and make an unpleasant noise. When a person walks on the floor, they bend and shift relative to each other, friction occurs, and a terrible squeak is heard. The chances that squeaking will occur after the first season are very high, since the floors are not installed well enough. If you are lucky and the floor was installed by real professionals, it will become unusable after 3-4 years of use.

Why do new floors squeak?

It doesn’t matter whether your floor is new or old, it will still creak for the same reasons. Of course, old buildings once had high-quality floors that dried out and became warped due to too much time passing. But even in new houses, problems arise, mainly because the floor was installed incorrectly, without following the laying technology. Although there are exceptions, if shrinkage occurs at home, which is quite rare, the floor will also collapse, but this is due to incorrect calculation foundation and does not occur very often.

There are several main reasons why the floor begins to creak:

• Dried and low-quality materials were used during installation. Construction Materials. The boards and joists begin to dry out, the sizes of the plywood sheets change significantly, and between wooden surfaces gaps form;
• There is no layer between the plywood and the joists; for example, installing a layer of waterproofing can significantly reduce noise. Also, noise occurs due to improper installation of the laminate or parquet substrate;
• The boards and joists are installed poorly because the ends regularly shift relative to each other;
• There is no technological gap near the walls.

The problem may arise due to incorrectly selected thickness of plywood, beams and joists, and boards. If the distance between the joists is incorrectly selected, the floor begins to creak. Please note that logs are made of timber, and they minimum size is 10x8 centimeters. It is necessary to maintain a distance between the logs of about 40 centimeters, a maximum of 60 centimeters. To prevent the boards from bending under your weight, you need to buy boards with minimum thickness 40 millimeters, and plywood with a thickness of 20 millimeters.

How to eliminate squeaking wood floors

When installing floors, the strongest wood is used, because the loads on the floor are very high. But as mentioned above, humidity and air temperature deform the structure of the wood, and this causes creaks and sagging of the floor in the most unexpected places. Despite the fact that many people face this problem, it can be solved quite simply. To get rid of squeaks, you need to acquire the following tools and materials:

• Drill;
• Hammer;
• Nails;
• Floor paint;
• Nail puller;
• Wood sawdust.

First, understand which boards cause the most squeaking. Just walk along the floor and listen to the sounds, in some places it will be louder. Check whether the creaking occurs in a specific place on the floorboard or whether the entire floorboard creaks. In most cases, sounds occur in boards that are poorly attached to floor beams or joists. When you find all the floorboards that are causing the squeak, write down their locations. Next, check whether there are any important communications under the floorboard.

Take a drill and make a hole on one side of the floorboard, you need to drill directly into the beam through the board. Screw a screw into the resulting hole the required diameter, you can also drive a nail, but a screw is preferable. Recess the head into the board, both when installing a screw and a nail. Walk the floor again where you did the work and check if there is any noise? If it creaks, but not as much as before, you can make a hole on the other side of the board and screw in another screw. Next, perform this operation with all floorboards that cause unpleasant noise. As a rule, the problem will be solved after this procedure.

If the problem persists, but the noise level has decreased, you can use wooden wedges. Install them in the gaps between the floorboards and joists. To secure tongue and groove boards, you will need screws with countersunk heads. If the boards are driven in very tightly and the heads of the nails are almost invisible, use a nail puller and lift the board. This way you can understand where the logs are installed.

The most common cause of squeaking is the friction of each board against the boards located next to it. When you find problem area, pour a little graphite powder or talc into the crack. Seal the gap with wooden wedges if you do not want to use powder.

Often, creaking occurs due to boards that have been destroyed under the influence of temperature changes and high humidity. The floorboards dry out and are placed in a different position, which causes squeaking. Prepare pasta from wood sawdust To thin it out, use floor paint. Seal every crack with this paste and the problem will be solved. To prepare the mixture you will need a small part of paint and about four parts of sawdust in the same quantity. When you apply the mixture and it dries, walk along the floor and check whether the unpleasant noise remains. Typically, the squeak should disappear.

You should also remember...

In order to reduce the chance of squeaking due to drying of boards and joists, you need to place a special damping gasket between the boards and joists. For example, insulation or waterproofing. Special underlays are used for laminate and parquet. But it happens that they are laid, but the floor still creaks - re-lay the underlay to solve the problem. You can reduce the chance of noise by loosely laying boards or boards, maintaining a gap between them with a distance of about a millimeter. This will not affect the quality of the coating, but the boards will not rub against each other. You can use wedges, but they are only used for plank floors. The ridges of the boards may be damaged, so this method is not very popular.

What does the master advise you to do if the floor creaks?

Currently, spruce or pine boards are used, but at one time it was believed that these materials were not suitable for laying floors. They are used mainly in Europe, where high humidity and a pleasant climate. In Russia, you need to use wood that does not absorb moisture - cedar, oak, ash or maple. It is advisable to place fabric between the boards and joists. This will reduce the friction force of the boards, so the noise will be invisible or not appear at all. The method is quite effective; you can try putting thick fabric between the boards even before you follow the recommendations from our article, which we described above.

Annoying creaking wooden floors It does not have a calming effect at all and very rarely evokes childhood memories of summer holidays with my grandmother. Therefore, to save your own nerves, find out what to do if wooden floors squeak.

Certainly, perfect option The solution to this problem is to take advantage of the opportunity and begin a long-planned renovation with a complete replacement of the floors.

If this solution does not suit you, then you will have to start restorative repairs of the floor. This is a troublesome matter, and besides, you may not be able to completely get rid of the squeak. However, it’s still worth a try, since no specialist will give you a guarantee of the result or lack thereof.

Causes of squeaking

Creaking wood floors occur in two situations, which depend on the material your floor is made from:

• if floorboards (or any other flooring, for example, chipboard) do not fit very tightly to the joists (or wooden beams);
• if the parquet does not adhere tightly to the surface of the base on which it is laid.

In both cases, there is only one way to get rid of the squeak - to remove the space that has appeared between the floor covering and its base. However, in these cases you will have to act differently.

Floor on joists

The only way to solve the question of what to do if wooden floors squeak when they are laid on joists (wooden beams) is to screw the floor covering to them more carefully.

For this you will need:

• long wood screws,
• screwdriver or drill with a screwdriver attachment.

The process of eliminating the squeak itself will look like this:

1. Find the most creaking places on the floor (so as not to “lose” them later, mark them with chalk).
2. Next, determine where the joists (beams) go in the floor. If the floor has been painted several times, the paint will have to be scraped off to find the nails that secure it to its base. In the case when the floor covering is made of boards, to find the joists under them, you can remove the outer boards (the joists always run perpendicular to the wall at a constantly maintained distance from each other). At the same time, you can look under the floor structure and see the condition of the joists. If from under the boards you “smell” of mustiness, dampness and mold, then instead of cosmetic restoration of the floors, you should still completely replace it.
3. Now you need to screw self-tapping screws into the logs (beams) so as to press the boards (or chipboard) to them as tightly as possible. The pitch of the screws in this case may vary depending on the intensity of the squeak, but still should not be more than 15 centimeters. Be careful not to hit the nails with the screw, as this will cause it to break and you may be injured.

Parquet

Creaking parquet can cause no less inconvenience. And since in this case the creaking occurs due to its deformation individual elements(and not the entire floor covering), then, first of all, it will be necessary to find them, since the defect will have to be eliminated point by point.

To get rid of the squeak you will need:

• drill with a drill with a diameter of 6-8 mm,
• ordinary cement (about 20 g for each creaking plank) - if you don’t have it, then a mixture for plastering work is suitable,
• a very large syringe without a needle.

Having prepared everything necessary for the repair, you can proceed to the main action:

1. Carefully drill a hole in the middle of the creaking parquet strip.
2. Prepare cement mortar, the consistency of which should resemble regular milk.
3. Fill in cement mixture into a syringe. Make sure you can squeeze it out without it getting stuck in the syringe. If the mixture is too thick, dilute it with water. If the mixture is too liquid, you will have to add a little cement.
4. Insert the syringe into the hole and pour the solution into it in small portions. Remember that after each “dose” of the solution, another portion of air should come out from under the parquet. Take your time - neither cement nor plaster mixture do not harden instantly.
5. The hole must be filled with the mixture until it stops accepting solution.
6. Wait for the solution to harden and make sure that the parquet no longer creaks.
7. Fill the hole in the parquet plank with a special putty (or mastic) for wood.

You should not immediately try to get rid of all deformed parquet planks from squeaking. First, it’s better to do a “test” repair and only after making sure that this decision The problem helped you, continue to get rid of other squeaky places. If the creaking does not go away, you will most likely have to re-lay the entire parquet, along the way renewing the surface of the subfloor and replacing damaged planks.

Video

Here you can see an example of work to eliminate the creaking of a wooden floor:

A large number of people are faced with such a problem as creaking floors. Let's try to figure out why the floor creaks, what are the reasons for this phenomenon. This problem is mainly typical for wooden floors and laminated finishes. There is no such problem for floors, but bare concrete is not found in residential premises. There are several main reasons why we hear this unpleasant sound when walking. Knowing about them, you can eliminate the squeak yourself.

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Causes of floor squeaks

Both an old floor and a newly laid one can creak, although this is a more typical problem for old flooring.

1. The most common reason is the use of low-quality material in the manufacture of the floor. Boards and logs made of such materials begin to dry out quickly, shrinking in size. At the same time, the gap between the canvases increases, which serves as a source of squeaking.
2. Another popular reason for creaking is the lack of a layer between the plywood and the joists (the base of the floor consists of a beam on which it is laid finishing coat). Great solution This problem can be solved by laying a waterproofing layer between the timber and the coating, which will also serve as protection against extraneous noise.
3. If a parquet or parquet floor creaks, this is due to improper installation.
4. Incorrect installation of boards and beams leads to regular displacement of the ends relative to each other. This results in a fairly loud creaking noise.
5. The lack of technological space near the walls also leads to creaking floors.
6. The thickness of the plywood sheet, boards and joists is too thick. It must be remembered that the distance between the logs should be within 40-60 cm, and the thickness of the plywood should be 2 cm. If a board is laid, then its thickness should be 4 cm.

Floors are creaking - what to do video:

Eliminating squeaky wood floors

So let's look at how to fix this problem. First of all comes to mind complete replacement gender and, probably, this really is one of the solutions, but with a big disadvantage. Financial expenses for such work and the purchase of material will be maximum. Therefore, we will not delve into all the nuances of completely replacing the coating and will consider more simple options. There are several simple ways to eliminate squeaks, which can be used by the residents themselves.

Hammering wedges

If the floor creaks due to improper fixation of the boards to the bars, then here is what you need to do in this situation. The creaking occurs due to the contact of the boards with each other and in order to eliminate this moment, you need to drive wedges into the space between them so that the distance is 20 cm. If the reason lies in friction between the beams and boards, then the wedges are driven into the space between these parts ceiling.

Using polyurethane foam

There is a method in which to remove a squeak you use polyurethane foam. It is poured into the space between the floors and, due to expansion, it forms a fairly rigid cushion that prevents the floor from creaking. But this method is expensive and short-lived, since the foam is destroyed after prolonged loading and must be refilled.

Application of anchors

One of the most reliable methods, but only if the base of the floor is a concrete slab, is fastening with anchors (a hex bolt that, when tightened, secures it with expanding petals). As we have already said, this method is very reliable. But the problem is that it requires a lot of labor. After all, to ensure that the reliability of the flooring is not in doubt, you need to use up to 200 hand-tightened anchors. In addition, such a quantity of fasteners can cost a pretty penny. Do not forget that the fasteners must be completely recessed into the floorboard.

Creaking occurs due to a loose fit of the coating

Using plywood sheets

A fairly reliable way to eliminate floor squeaks in an apartment is to lay plywood on top wooden covering. Plywood sheets are usually used with a thickness of up to 12 mm, and laying is done with glue. In this case, the squeak will go away, if not forever, then for quite a long time.

Fastening with self-tapping screws

A common way to combat squeaking floorboards is to use self-tapping screws. They are screwed into the floorboards, connecting them to the joists. The disadvantage of this method is that it is necessary to correctly determine the location of the lag and not fall into voids. In addition, you need to make sure that there are no communications in the places where the screws are attached. Do not forget that the screws must be completely recessed into the floor.

You can fix the place causing the creaking

Laminate flooring

A very popular covering is laminate flooring. It's beautiful and durable material, but which also has the misfortune of creaking. Let's look at why laminate flooring creaks. There are three main causes of squeaking:

1. A floor with an uneven surface.
2. There is no gap between the baseboard and the laminate.
3. Debris getting under the cover.

Uneven surface

Even small bumps and depressions can cause a laminate floor to squeak. In this case, the coating strips begin to rub against each other and make an unpleasant sound. To eliminate this problem you will have to spend a lot of effort and money. After all, to do this you will have to completely remove the covering and make a screed or use a poured floor. The permissible curvature for laying laminate is within 1 mm per 1 sq.m. In addition, to eliminate the creaking of the laminate, you can use cardboard, which is placed under the creaking place. But this often cannot be done, since only part of the covering will have to be lifted.

Fixing boards with self-tapping screws

Eliminating other causes

Troubleshooting the other two problems is easier. Laminate creaks - what to do if the reason is the lack of a gap between it and the baseboard? After all, this distance should be 10 mm and therefore, to increase the gap, you need to remove part of the laminate in the place where the creaking occurs and, by cutting the panel, increase the gap. If debris or sand gets under the laminate flooring, typical problem unscrupulous installers. It could easily be avoided by simply carefully removing the base and wiping it with a damp cloth. But if this is not done, then in the future, to eliminate the cause, you will have to remove the coating, carry out a thorough cleaning and re-lay it.

Parquet floor

The popular parquet flooring is similar to a regular wooden floor, absorbing all its advantages and disadvantages. One of them is that parquet creaks just like a wooden floor and the reasons for this creaking are also similar. As you know, wood absorbs moisture very well and is susceptible to drying out. Therefore, as a result of these phenomena, deformation occurs parquet board and creaking occurs.

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Ecology of consumption. Estate: Perhaps you cannot find a stronger irritant than a creaking wooden floor. It is especially annoying if such a phenomenon occurs to residents soon after overhaul and you have to tear off the finishing coating. Today we will tell you what to do if your wooden floors squeak and how to avoid this in the future.

Perhaps there is no stronger irritant than a creaking wooden floor. It’s especially annoying if this phenomenon occurs to residents soon after a major renovation and the finishing coating has to be torn off. Today we will tell you what to do if your wooden floors squeak and how to avoid this in the future.

Causes of squeaking

Actually, there is only one final reason for a creaking floor - friction between two poorly secured parts. And here typical places In which such a phenomenon can be observed, a wooden floor has three.

In the simplest case, the floor creaks due to friction between adjacent floorboards: one of them bends under load and scrapes against the adjacent one. Such a creak has a characteristic dry sound and is quite easily detected when successively pushing through the floor boards.

A more characteristic creaking with a thin squeak occurs due to loose fastening of the boards to the joists with nails. Rusty metal inside dry wood creates a really nasty grinding noise and it is much more difficult to determine the location of the origin due to the fact that the nail heads are usually hidden under several layers of paint.

The third and rarest type of creaking is loose connections of composite joists and jumpers between them. The appearance of such a creaking noise is typical for frame and multi-storey buildings with complex system wooden floors. The sound of the floor when walking in such cases is muffled and crackling.

Should the floor be torn down?

If the wooden floor was laid with tongue-and-groove boards for painting or covered with varnish, then there is no need to tear off the boards. It is quite possible to eliminate the creaking between the floorboards and from the surface, plus there is a reason to restore the wooden floor, smooth out unevenness with putty, and renew the paintwork.

In some cases, repairs may require tearing out the finished surface or the boardwalk underneath. For example, if the subfloor boards creak, on top of which the finishing floor is laid - la minat or linoleum. In such cases, the finished floor is sorted out, performing the required manipulations and getting rid of squeaks, and then laid back.

If the source of the squeak is the log system, then you will have to carry out more extensive renovation work. The greatest difficulty lies in localizing the creaking joint, which is almost impossible to do blindly. Therefore, the breakdown of the floor planks cannot be avoided.

Wedging method

The creaking ends of the floorboards can be wedged together, thereby concentrating friction in several places and avoiding the string effect. For this, ordinary wooden chips or wedges with a thickness of 0.5 to 3 mm and a width of up to 30–35 mm are used.

This method is good for eliminating squeaks in old floors made of good-quality boards, where cracks of uneven thickness have appeared as a result of shrinkage and warping. The first wedge is driven in at the widest point of the creaking joint, then several more are added at an indentation of 50–80 cm. To make it easier for the wedge to fit in, you can widen the joint with a chisel, hammering it in by 3–5 mm.

Wedging is a rather meticulous process, but it is almost the only method of local repair of a creaking floor without tearing down the flooring. After compacting the boards, it is necessary to seal the cracks with putty; in the simplest case, a mixture of PVA and fine sawdust will do.

Reinforcement of the floor

The reason for the appearance of squeaking at the ends and fasteners of the boards may be that the flooring is not pressed tightly enough to the joists. This is a typical disease of a wooden floor: after several drying cycles, the nails can become loose and the entire flooring becomes loose.

The essence of strengthening the floor is to restore the tightness of the boards with self-tapping screws, which do not lose the quality of the pressure over time. The catch is that by pressing a warped board in one place, you can loosen the fastening at other points, so it would be correct to reinforce the entire floor at once.

Another subtlety is the need to drill the boards before screwing in the screws to avoid the threads getting caught in them. The method is ideal for eliminating creaking in rough floor. Finish coatings can also be strengthened with self-tapping screws, but the marks from the caps will have to be masked with putty, which, moreover, must be matched to the tone of the wood when opening the floors with varnish.

The greatest difficulty is to determine the location of the joists if the traces of the flooring are hidden. Among all the methods, two of the most effective ones can be identified: drilling with control of the drill output in order to determine the installation step of the logs and tearing off the outer boards.

Overhauling the boardwalk

A major overhaul of a wooden floor is the only way to eliminate squeaks with a guarantee, without requiring significant financial investments. And with creaking logs, there is practically no alternative to this method.

The idea is to sequentially tear down and reattach the boards without changing their order for a tighter fit. First, 3-5 boards are removed from one edge, then, with good additional light, they visually assess the space under the floor, the safety of the joists, and the presence of harmful organic matter.

When sorting through, they fix the first board and tear it down one by one after checking and fixing each subsequent one. All boards are checked for rotting and damage by pests, unsuitable ones are replaced with new ones of the same thickness, adjusting the ends with a plane for tight joining.

To avoid creaking between the floorboards in the future, you can hold the boards together on wooden dowels and tighten them tightly with a car jack. If there is no need for hidden fastening, it is recommended to use self-tapping screws - two for each attachment point to the joists.

Surface reinforcement

Not very budget, but very effective way To get rid of the subfloor from squeaking - lay plywood on it with frequent attractive fastening with self-tapping screws. The thickness of the flooring must be at least 12 mm, fastening is carried out in each board in two rows in a checkerboard pattern no further than 30–35 mm from the edge.

In addition to self-tapping screws, a mixture of sawdust or mineral chips with bustylate glue will help to achieve high-quality adhesion. It is important to arrange the sheets of flooring in such a way that the joints between them do not contribute to the deflection of the boards in the future. Ideally, the additional flooring should be divided into two layers of 6–8 mm each, fastening them together glue mixture and carefully consider the ligation scheme for the joints.

The method is characterized by high technological complexity. In addition to high-quality tightening of screws and correct location sheets, you need to remember the layout of the boards so that each of them is reinforced and tightened. To do this, mark the location of the joints on the walls with marks along which they stretch the thread or beat off the lines with a dye cord.

Other options

There are also many “folk” ways to get rid of squeaks between floorboards or in places where they are attached. Contrary to popular belief, sealing cracks between boards with an adhesive mixture does not produce an effect, at least not long-term.

It’s better to properly heat the joint construction hairdryer and pour melted paraffin or stearin into it. The method of impregnating boards with Vaseline or vegetable oil. Just don’t use machine and motor oils, they are not environmentally friendly.

As a preventative measure to prevent squeaking, it is recommended to tightly join the floor boards using tongue-and-groove ends or oak dowels. You can also treat the ends of the boards with compounds that reduce friction - silicone sealant or rubber paste. Instead of regular nails, it is better to use rough nails, which are less susceptible to loosening. published

Many residents of old houses eventually face the problem that the wooden plank floor begins to creak. Such floors usually lie on joists located on top of a concrete slab, become loose over time and begin to creak when walked on. This becomes especially noticeable and annoying at night, when you try to walk quietly through the room and corridor, the floor creaks, and you end up waking up your loved ones.

The main reasons why floors creak

If the floor creaks, then before starting repairs, you need to analyze possible reasons occurrence of squeaking. Basically, the reasons why a wooden floor creaks are due to the features of its design. There are several options that were mostly used when covering floors in old apartments and houses:

1. In the first case, they laid wooden blocks or logs, with the distance between them being approximately 40 cm. On top of them was placed a sheathing consisting of a layer of chipboard or plywood, on top of which was a covering of fiberboard sheets.
2. In the second option, wooden boards were attached on top of the logs fixed to the concrete slab.

If the floorboards creak, then the cheapest option would be to secure them with self-tapping screws, especially since you can do this yourself. First, you need to decide at what distance from the concrete slab the old flooring is located. To do this, you need to drill a small hole in the floor with a diameter of about 4 mm and measure the depth; this can be done using wire. Then you need to purchase and not stick out on the surface of the coating. The next step is to determine the location of the logs; this can be done using old nails or by tearing off the baseboard near one of the walls. Then holes are drilled in the floor slightly smaller than the diameter of the screws, onto which all the floor boards are secured in order using a screwdriver.

Also, to prevent the floor from creaking, another method is used. To do this, you need to take self-tapping screws of the same length as the distance to the concrete slab, first cut off the sharp end from them and simply screw them into the floor. They will create additional support and the floor will stop creaking. It should be noted that these two methods are good if the logs are not rotten and are well secured. If the logs themselves “walk”, then you can additionally secure them with large dowels directly to concrete slab. Another reason why the floor in an apartment creaks may be the friction of the boards; in this case, you can drive small wooden wedges between them.

To more clearly understand the principle of scrolling the floor, you can watch a video about eliminating creaking floors in an old Khrushchev-era building.

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