Learn How to Easily Repair Those Squeaky Floorboards

Excessively squeaky floors are not only loud and obnoxious, but they also indicate that the floors that the sounds are emanating from might be in disrepair. Squeaky floors are usually the direct result of boards that have become loose due to improperly seasoned lumber, defective construction, or just plain old age. Sounds can also result from loose boards that rub against nails in the floor or an adjacent board. Fortunately, these squeaks do not have to become a permanent staple in the home. The following simple steps detailed in this article will help you to eliminate these unpleasant sounds forever.

The first step involves locating the specific squeaky board and determining what surrounding boards are affected as well. You can have someone walk around the squeaky spot while you pinpoint the exact floorboard it is emanating from. If the problem is on the main floor and the basement ceiling has exposed joints, this project will be significantly easier because the repairs can be made from below. If this is the case, installing wooden wedges between the squeaky floorboard and the joist can tighten these loose fitting floorboards. Make certain that the wedges do not raise the entire level of the flooring.

A different approach will be needed if the basement ceiling is finished or if the squeaking is above the main floor. This scenario calls for the repair to be made on the surface of the floor rather than beneath it. After finding the squeaky floorboard and its corresponding joist, drill several small holes and then hammer in spiraled flooring nails in a “V” formation downwards through the flooring and into the joists.

Loose or unsteady joists can be made more stable by forcing additional bridging between two joists. This bridging should be placed every 8 inches of span between the two joists and then toenailed at both ends of the joists. This additional support will provide further support for the floor and eliminate any previous squeaking sound.

Warped underlying joists or floorboards can also be a direct cause of squeaking floors. A warped joist will result in sections of the flooring being insufficiently supported and will consequently result in squeaking. Forcing a piece of wood that is longer and wider than the gap up against the joist and nailing them together can repair this problem. Conversely, the floorboards themselves can become warped and are particularly noticeable when they curl upwards on an end. This problem can be solved by drilling spiraled flooring nails through the curled up end and down into the underlying joist.

Squeaky floors are the direct result of loose, gapped, or warped floorboards and joists but can fortunately be easily remedied. Determining the problem for your noisy floorboards and then following the prescriptive measure laid out in this article will assist in eliminating those squeaky floor annoyances forever.