My hardwood floor squeaks

SPRINKLE TALCUM BETWEEN CRACKS Wood floors squeak for different reasons. Sometimes the floor wasn’t attached well enough to the subfloor. Other times a seasonal cycle of swelling and shrinking causes the floorboards to rub together. If the squeak is caused by a surface gap between boards, try a dry lubrication. Pinpoint the noisy boards and sprinkle talcum powder or graphite liberally in the crack. Lay an old towel over the powder and work it into the gaps with your foot. Wipe up the excess. If your floor has a wax finish, as opposed to a top coat finish such as polyurethane or varnish, try pouring liquid floor wax, the same kind you’d use to refinish the surface, between the boards.

SHIM BETWEEN THE FLOOR AND JOIST The problem may be a space between floor and subfloor. (A telltale sign is a floor that “gives” underfoot, as if there were an air bubble beneath it.) If you can access the floor from below, try this: Go below with a flashlight. Locate the squeak by having someone walk on the floor above. Carefully hammer a wide shim, or thin piece of filler wood, into the space between the subfloor and joist, pushing the subfloor up to remove the bubble. To keep the shim in place, spread construction adhesive or wood glue on the upward-facing side before hammering it.

SCREW THE SUBFLOOR to the floorIf there is a gap between floor boards and subfloor, and you can access the floor from below, drive screws up through the subfloor and into (but not through) the floor boards. Before you drive the screws, have someone stand on the floor above to make sure you get a tight fit. Be sure to use screws that are not more than 11⁄4 inches (3 centimeters) long. Also, it’s a good idea to use washers on the screws to prevent them from overdriving, which can force the floor up or, worse, allow the screw tip to pierce the floor’s surface.

SCREW THE FLOOR TO THE SUBFLOOR If you cannot get below the subfloor, screw trim screws—about 21⁄2 inches (6 centimeters) long—into the floorboards from above to hold them snugly to the subfloor. To prevent the floorboard from splitting, drill pilot holes slightly smaller than your trim screws into the floorboard only (not the subfloor). Angle the drill toward the center of the floorboard. That angle helps hold the floor down. Once the hole is drilled, have someone stand on the loose board to push it tight against the subfloor, and then drive the screws into the predrilled holes. Countersink them (that is, drive the heads slightly below the surface of the floor). Fill the holes with a wood putty, trying to match the color as closely as possible. Try to choose a spot in the lighter colored, open-grain part of the floorboard, as the puttied screw hole will be less conspicuous there. Hide it even more by scratching the surface of the putty with a sharp blade to mimic the grain lines.

Sponsored Links