Hardwood Floor Gaps
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I installed 3/4'' hardwoods in my living room and didn't let the wood acclimate to the temps and now I have gaps in my floor where the boards have seperated.Any suggestions to fix this?
11 answers
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Have a very old house and gaps can appear over time. You can buy coloured filler to match your stain. I apply painter's tape on each side of the gap. I then use a fine artist's paint brush and paint in a bonding agent (like a glue). I mix more of the bonding agent with the filler. Then push the filler in with a putty knife and smooth. Remove the tape and let dry. Then retape and apply poly.
Marion Nesbitt
on Dec 11, 2014
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I HAVE LAMINATE FLOORS THROUGH-OUT OUR NEW HOME. I WAS NEVER TOLD NOT TO USE A STEAM CLEANER ON THEM, I USED IT TWICE ON A LOW SETTING..ONLY TILL A FRIEND TOLD ME NOT TO. NOW I HAVE BEEN TOLD BY FLOORING CO. TO JUST USE A SWIFFER JET. WELL MY PROBLEM IS ALLLL MY FLOORING IS CHECKING AT THE JOINTS AND RIPPLING ON THE SEEMS. WHAT DO YOU RECOMMEND FOR LAMINATE FLOORS?
Wanda Johnson
on Dec 11, 2014
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Best treatment is from the very beginning. Some people confuse laminate with hardwood, the treatment of these 2 are the opposite as day and night. Diy laminate floor when you decide on a pattern read everything you can find on laminate floors. Where ever you purchase it have them open a box and put some of it together and if at all possible attend a DIY class on installing. Labels on every laminate I have looked at say no steam, make sure that you have them locked together for a very tight fit. Mine has been down for a little over 2 yrs. I use a mop with a pad. I wring as dry as I possibly can set a small fan my floor is dry in a matter of minutes I use a fragrant cleaner, after it is dry I rinse with a small amount of vinegar in a gallon of water again wring the mop dry and same fan to dry. At least once a week I use my vacuum the brush buffs the floor and it has maintained the original finish. You have to look to see any joints.
Cindy tustin
on Dec 11, 2014
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My mother has laminate flooring. Got up during the night to visit the bathroom; left the water running; ruined all the way down the hall and half the den. Laminate just peels off when it is too wet.
Dianne H
on Dec 11, 2014
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My family is in the hardwood floor business. Eledge flooring. I asked my brother about this and it has to do with the temp. In the home. Winter the wood will have gaps. But summer time they close up. Our family has been in this business for 40 yrs if there any question you want me to ask him let me know.
Wglindner
on Dec 11, 2014
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wglindner,thanks for the info.My floors have gaps between the boards year round.They appear to be the same size all the time.Any suggestions helpful.
Tammy Pressley
on Dec 11, 2014
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Tammy I asked my brother and he said without him seeing. The only thing he say was in summer they should close up. But if they ate staying open . Make sure on the gaps to clean out all debris in gap and use color wood filler for small gags but make sure you get all debris out of gags. On other gags you can use wood shims cut to fit gags. If you have big gags you will have to cut wood to fill the gags. Hand sand those place. And clean with a cloth and stain if your floor have stain. If natural put clear coat on it. That the best thing you can do. And never use a room humidifier because this will keep gags. I hope this helps you but he said make sure you get all debris out off gags before you start because the debris can push up your patching. Let me know if this helps you.
Wglindner
on Dec 12, 2014
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Thanks for all the help.
Tammy Pressley
on Dec 12, 2014
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Im so sorry this happened to your new flooring. The store who sold it to you should have reminded you to acclimate it!!! Bummer.It won;t fix it overnight, but investing in a home humidifier will help greatly. Do you know what species of wood you have? Plus-It may help your health too! Anytime a real wood floor is installed in a home, this is the second item a homeowner should invest in automatically. Real wood flooring expands and contracts with the amount of moisture in the the air-Hence the gaps opening and closing during seasonal changes like mentioned in comment above.. Also find out what species of wood you have. Is is native to North America or foreign? . .Lessons learned:The best tip I can give here, is if you are installing hd wd flooring, make sure it acclimates in the house 2-3 days where it will be installed.. Do not keep it in the garage!. This means cutting open each box lengthwise and letting the existing house air circulate around every box..If in question, check it with a moisture reader tester tool. (yes they make these) The tool gives percentage guidelines as to what it should read based on the wood species .
Cag77
on Dec 12, 2014
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My brother has been laying hard wood floor for 40. Year. And it said do not use a room humidifier. If this is real hard wood. The humidifier will just cause more of the floor to gag. But if you fill the gags the floor will look alot better. When citing the strip of wood clue then tap the wood in.
Wglindner
on Dec 13, 2014
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Also my brother layed my floors and they are beautiful I get just a small gag in winter but I know its there but you can hardly see it.
Wglindner
on Dec 13, 2014
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