Understanding Why Your Wood Floors Could Be Coming Up
Dec 9, 2014
Occasionally, even a well-installed wood floor can release from the sub-floor. There are many reasons which may be difficult to predict prior to installation that your wood floors can cup or buckle. It may be that the concrete slab underneath the floor wasn’t properly cured. Or, the flooring could be coming up in places where the adhesive didn’t stick to the subfloor.
Most likely the problem will have something to do with moisture or humidity, that there is an excessive amount of either, or the conditions are too dry. Check your manufacturer’s instructions, which can be found on the packaging or manufacturer’s website, as to the acceptable levels of moisture or humidity prior to purchase.
The best time to understand why your floors could come up is before you have a problem. So be sure to familiarize yourself with the installation method before the installer goes to work, and check the NWFA (National Wood Flooring Association) rules and regulations for all wood flooring installations.
There are a number of ways to install wood floors and many products have more than one acceptable form of installation. You’ll need to do your homework to determine what the best type of installation for your home is, or hire a trusted installer to make that call for you.
Nonetheless, you’re likely reading this because you’re having issues with your wood floors coming up. And it does us no good to talk about what you should have done. Instead, you need to know what to do now.
First, check the rest of the floor to see if this is an area problem, or a problem with the entire floor. If the rest of the floor seems like it’s in good shape, you should look into repair options. The main focus here should be determining “why” the flooring is releasing or cupping. The cause must be fixed first before turning your attention to the repair.
For example, If there is a leak from a pipe, or a wet slab due to improper grading on the outside, these issues need to be addressed and fixed or you will continue to have problems with your flooring.
Because each home is unique and there are many factors that play into the reason that your wood flooring may be coming up, we cannot diagnose your problem here. The best thing to do is understand what factors could affect your floors, do your best to prevent them, and then look for those factors if you do have a problem.