Wood Floor Planks Separating

Apart from moisture and temperature fluctuations wood floor boards can separate and develop gaps if the flooring hasn t been properly acclimatised prior to installation or if an insufficient expansion gap has been left around the room.

Wood floor planks separating.

Almost every wood floor will show some separation between boards particularly in the winter months when homes are heated and the air is dry. How to fix separating hardwood floors. In a nutshell it. Wood floor buckling can sometimes be solved simply by adding weight to the floor until the extra moisture dries out and the planks level out.

They weren t there in the summer solid 3 4 hardwoods will expand and contract with seasonal changes in moisture. Months may pass. Yes it can still have gaps. Is there a filler i can use.

I have 2 inch wide red oak flooring throughout my house which was built in 1984. We can hear nails pop. Properties of a floating floor a floating laminate floor is not glued nailed stapled or otherwise secured to the subflooring. Hardwood floor gaps cracks.

In many areas there are gaps from 1 32 to 1 16th of an inch between the boards. For more on how wood flooring responds to moisture read under the microscope for more from author craig dewitt read. But to answer a common question. I am assuming the floors will have to be refinished after the filler is applied and has dried.

Engineered hardwood flooring is designed to minimize gaps due to expansion and contraction of the wood. However plank separation can also occur with floating floors. Acclimatising your wood flooring is an essential part of your pre installation procedure. I have a new home with oak hardwood floors.

With a floating floor the rules of expansion due to air moisture still apply. Gapping in engineered hardwood can be due to many factors including but not limited to the material s manufacturing changes in humidity and the type and quality of the installation. The floor was put down in august and started to separate in december. Often it s a floor owner concerned with new hardwood floors separating or gapping.

If laminate flooring is separating it can be due to a few things and often fixed rather easily. Dear martin summer time installation in hot. In some locations the space is wider than a credit card. The comfort zone about how the air in buildings affects wood floors and the troubleshooting column look out below about crawlspace moisture wreaking havoc on a solid wood floor.

I have mainly discussed plank separation for solid wood and engineered floors that have been directly bonded to the sub floor. Often floating engineered wood. Is this normal or was the installation defective. Often gapping is a result of flooring that was installed during periods of higher humidity.