Comments on: Yikes! I have Gaps in My Hardwood Floors http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/2009/11/gaps-in-hardwood-floor/ Home Design Tips and Advice from an Architect Sat, 28 Jan 2012 22:31:13 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Bill http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/2009/11/gaps-in-hardwood-floor/comment-page-1/#comment-5531 Bill Sat, 28 Jan 2012 20:53:24 +0000 http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/?p=407#comment-5531 Mike - Gaps in the winter are normal. Very large gaps are not. If you humidify your house in the winter you will reduce the size of the gaps and possibly the number of them. They should all disappear in the summer. It's just wood "doing its thing." Mike – Gaps in the winter are normal. Very large gaps are not. If you humidify your house in the winter you will reduce the size of the gaps and possibly the number of them. They should all disappear in the summer. It’s just wood “doing its thing.”

]]> By: Mike http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/2009/11/gaps-in-hardwood-floor/comment-page-1/#comment-5504 Mike Sat, 14 Jan 2012 16:01:19 +0000 http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/?p=407#comment-5504 We had hardwood installed in the summer of last year now that it's cold we See alot of gaps n wood. We can see them along the side of wood and at top of wood in some spots. Is that normal? We had hardwood installed in the summer of last year now that it’s cold we
See alot of gaps n wood. We can see them along the side of wood and at top of wood in some spots. Is that normal?

]]> By: Bill http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/2009/11/gaps-in-hardwood-floor/comment-page-1/#comment-5495 Bill Mon, 09 Jan 2012 02:54:16 +0000 http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/?p=407#comment-5495 Mark - It sounds like either the moisture content of the wood flooring or the wood subflooring was still not correct when the flooring was installed, or the difference in moisture content in the subflooring and wood flooring was too great. When you are "seasoning" the flooring, you should place sticks between the boards to let air flow all around it. This is called "sticking," as you might have guessed. Without sticking, the interior boards in the stack could take a very long time to dry. There is really no way to predict the exact amount of time the wood should "season." It all depends on the climate conditions. You'll only know it done by measuring the moisture content of the wood with a moisture meter. Shoot for a moisture content of 8% to 10%. But don't stop there. You also need to be sure the moisture content of the subfloor is within three percentage points of the wood flooring. If the difference is too great, you'll get differential movement that will cause cracks later on. Chances are you don't own a moisture meter. But you could borrow one from a flooring company or a good builder, or possibly even rent one. It will be well worth the effort. Mark – It sounds like either the moisture content of the wood flooring or the wood subflooring was still not correct when the flooring was installed, or the difference in moisture content in the subflooring and wood flooring was too great. When you are “seasoning” the flooring, you should place sticks between the boards to let air flow all around it. This is called “sticking,” as you might have guessed. Without sticking, the interior boards in the stack could take a very long time to dry. There is really no way to predict the exact amount of time the wood should “season.” It all depends on the climate conditions. You’ll only know it done by measuring the moisture content of the wood with a moisture meter. Shoot for a moisture content of 8% to 10%. But don’t stop there. You also need to be sure the moisture content of the subfloor is within three percentage points of the wood flooring. If the difference is too great, you’ll get differential movement that will cause cracks later on. Chances are you don’t own a moisture meter. But you could borrow one from a flooring company or a good builder, or possibly even rent one. It will be well worth the effort.

]]> By: Mark http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/2009/11/gaps-in-hardwood-floor/comment-page-1/#comment-5486 Mark Sun, 08 Jan 2012 21:01:20 +0000 http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/?p=407#comment-5486 Bill, I live in southwest West Virginia. I recently had a water leak that caused me to have to remove part of my hardwood flooring and replace it. Once the hardwood was removed, we placed 3 dehumidifiers in the 10x18 area along with 3 fans. Seemed like overkill to me, but that is what the insurance company contractor said needed to be done. These were allowed to run for about 3 days, and the floor sat unfinished for about 3 weeks after that. I have 1x12 subfloor layed on 45 degree, then 1/2" plywood on top of that with tar paper between the two sub floors. There was no damage such as cupping, turned edges, or ply seperation to the plywood. The first week of December, I re-installed the 2-1/4" hardwood flooring. It is tavern grade flooring so there was a few very, very, very small gaps on the end of a few of the boards where the factory cut was not perfect but overall the floor was installed very tight. I now see several joints widening. Most are of the business card thickness that you talk about, others are wider, some maybe 3 or 4 cards wide. The puzzling part to me is none of the rest of the floor that was installed a couple of years ago seperate like this. (This floor was installed in April which would be a more humid time than December in my area). I stacked the new floor up in an adjoining bedroom for several days before I installed it to "season" it to my house. I did not spread it out, but stacked the 10 boxes up 3wide and 3tall with the 10th box stacked on top. Is it possible that the floor couldnt get air to it to allow the humidity to get out of the wood before I installed it? I am getting ready to install flooring in another adjoining room and wondered what I should do to make sure the cracks do not appear in that room as they have in my dining area. For the record, I do have a heat pump which I know sucks most of the moisture out of a house in the winter. Bill,

I live in southwest West Virginia. I recently had a water leak that caused me to have to remove part of my hardwood flooring and replace it. Once the hardwood was removed, we placed 3 dehumidifiers in the 10×18 area along with 3 fans. Seemed like overkill to me, but that is what the insurance company contractor said needed to be done. These were allowed to run for about 3 days, and the floor sat unfinished for about 3 weeks after that. I have 1×12 subfloor layed on 45 degree, then 1/2″ plywood on top of that with tar paper between the two sub floors. There was no damage such as cupping, turned edges, or ply seperation to the plywood. The first week of December, I re-installed the 2-1/4″ hardwood flooring. It is tavern grade flooring so there was a few very, very, very small gaps on the end of a few of the boards where the factory cut was not perfect but overall the floor was installed very tight. I now see several joints widening. Most are of the business card thickness that you talk about, others are wider, some maybe 3 or 4 cards wide. The puzzling part to me is none of the rest of the floor that was installed a couple of years ago seperate like this. (This floor was installed in April which would be a more humid time than December in my area). I stacked the new floor up in an adjoining bedroom for several days before I installed it to “season” it to my house. I did not spread it out, but stacked the 10 boxes up 3wide and 3tall with the 10th box stacked on top. Is it possible that the floor couldnt get air to it to allow the humidity to get out of the wood before I installed it? I am getting ready to install flooring in another adjoining room and wondered what I should do to make sure the cracks do not appear in that room as they have in my dining area. For the record, I do have a heat pump which I know sucks most of the moisture out of a house in the winter.

]]> By: Bill http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/2009/11/gaps-in-hardwood-floor/comment-page-1/#comment-5333 Bill Wed, 27 Jul 2011 03:04:38 +0000 http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/?p=407#comment-5333 Terra - You should not have gaps in a newly installed floor no matter the season. And you are correct that any gaps that show now will only increase in the winter when the relative humidity goes down and the moisture content of the floor goes down, too. But you may not have actual gaps in your floors. Most prefinished floors have a beveled edge. These can be fairly large or quite small. The small ones are called micro-grooves. The reason these are there is because it is impossible for a prefinished wood flooring manufacturer to make each plank exactly the same thickness. There will always be some manufacturing tolerance. Very high end prefinished floors can use the micro-groove because they mill their flooring slowly and they can maintain better tolerances. Less expensive flooring will have a large groove because the mill the wood faster. The faster the wood is milled, the more variation in thickness there will be from piece to piece. Unfinished floors vary in thickness, too. But because they are sanded after they are installed, these variations are sanded out and the floor ends up smooth. Check to see if your floors have an actual gap or if you are simply seeing the tiny groove and the planks are actually tight together. Chances are they are tight together. It would actually be quite difficult to install wood flooring with a gap due to the way the wood is nailed (stapled) in place with nail gun that shoots the fastener in at an angle. The action of nailing the wood down causes the gap to close. But if you do have actual gaps, the floor might have had much too high a moisture content when it was installed and it has already shrunken some. If that is the case, the flooring was improperly installed and should be replaced. Terra – You should not have gaps in a newly installed floor no matter the season. And you are correct that any gaps that show now will only increase in the winter when the relative humidity goes down and the moisture content of the floor goes down, too. But you may not have actual gaps in your floors. Most prefinished floors have a beveled edge. These can be fairly large or quite small. The small ones are called micro-grooves. The reason these are there is because it is impossible for a prefinished wood flooring manufacturer to make each plank exactly the same thickness. There will always be some manufacturing tolerance. Very high end prefinished floors can use the micro-groove because they mill their flooring slowly and they can maintain better tolerances. Less expensive flooring will have a large groove because the mill the wood faster. The faster the wood is milled, the more variation in thickness there will be from piece to piece. Unfinished floors vary in thickness, too. But because they are sanded after they are installed, these variations are sanded out and the floor ends up smooth.

Check to see if your floors have an actual gap or if you are simply seeing the tiny groove and the planks are actually tight together. Chances are they are tight together. It would actually be quite difficult to install wood flooring with a gap due to the way the wood is nailed (stapled) in place with nail gun that shoots the fastener in at an angle. The action of nailing the wood down causes the gap to close. But if you do have actual gaps, the floor might have had much too high a moisture content when it was installed and it has already shrunken some. If that is the case, the flooring was improperly installed and should be replaced.

]]> By: Terra http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/2009/11/gaps-in-hardwood-floor/comment-page-1/#comment-5331 Terra Wed, 27 Jul 2011 01:15:24 +0000 http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/?p=407#comment-5331 Bill, I'm in the process of having my first home built. Pre-finished hardwood floors were just put down and I want to make sure that the gaps are normal before it's too late to have fixed. I have been reading the previous posts and the expansion in the summer, contraction in the winter makes complete sense to me. I'm just concerned that if I already have cracks in the floor during the summer it's going to get a lot worse in the winter. I'm very new to this process and don't want to fuss/worry over every little thing; however, I don't want to be taken advantage of either. Does this sound normal? Thanks! Terra Bill,

I’m in the process of having my first home built. Pre-finished hardwood floors were just put down and I want to make sure that the gaps are normal before it’s too late to have fixed. I have been reading the previous posts and the expansion in the summer, contraction in the winter makes complete sense to me. I’m just concerned that if I already have cracks in the floor during the summer it’s going to get a lot worse in the winter. I’m very new to this process and don’t want to fuss/worry over every little thing; however, I don’t want to be taken advantage of either. Does this sound normal?

Thanks!

Terra

]]> By: Bill http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/2009/11/gaps-in-hardwood-floor/comment-page-1/#comment-5314 Bill Wed, 25 May 2011 12:26:11 +0000 http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/?p=407#comment-5314 Kyle - Shims may be difficult to install since 1/8" is a pretty small size to cut a piece of wood. Fillers may be a better option. I would suggest seeking the advice of an experienced flooring installer. He/she may have some clever solution for the problem. Kyle – Shims may be difficult to install since 1/8″ is a pretty small size to cut a piece of wood. Fillers may be a better option. I would suggest seeking the advice of an experienced flooring installer. He/she may have some clever solution for the problem.

]]> By: Kyle http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/2009/11/gaps-in-hardwood-floor/comment-page-1/#comment-5311 Kyle Mon, 16 May 2011 22:02:34 +0000 http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/?p=407#comment-5311 Bill, We bought a new towhouse in 2006 and are trying to put it on the market. We have 2 1/4" hardwood and over the past few years huge gaps have developed at the ends of the boards. It looks like it is the result of a crack in the underlying concrete slab that runs the length of the house. Now we have a gap in almost every strip that averages about an 1/8" and at some spots almost a 1/4". Are shims a possible solution or is reinstalling our only good option? Bill,

We bought a new towhouse in 2006 and are trying to put it on the market. We have 2 1/4″ hardwood and over the past few years huge gaps have developed at the ends of the boards. It looks like it is the result of a crack in the underlying concrete slab that runs the length of the house. Now we have a gap in almost every strip that averages about an 1/8″ and at some spots almost a 1/4″. Are shims a possible solution or is reinstalling our only good option?

]]> By: Bill http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/2009/11/gaps-in-hardwood-floor/comment-page-1/#comment-5308 Bill Sat, 30 Apr 2011 13:56:57 +0000 http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/?p=407#comment-5308 Sandy - Sorry to be slow in responding. I use steam type humidifiers all the time. They work the best. <a href="http://www.aprilaire.com/" rel="nofollow">AprilAire</a> is another good brand. Regarding the control of them and the aspect of running them run independently from the furnace, my concern would be the potential for building up moisture within the ductwork and promoting the growth of mold. But this is beyond my expertise. So I have referred your question to my heating, air conditioning, and indoor air quality consultant for an expert answer. I'll post it just as soon as he gets back to me. Sandy – Sorry to be slow in responding. I use steam type humidifiers all the time. They work the best. AprilAire is another good brand. Regarding the control of them and the aspect of running them run independently from the furnace, my concern would be the potential for building up moisture within the ductwork and promoting the growth of mold. But this is beyond my expertise. So I have referred your question to my heating, air conditioning, and indoor air quality consultant for an expert answer. I’ll post it just as soon as he gets back to me.

]]> By: Bill http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/2009/11/gaps-in-hardwood-floor/comment-page-1/#comment-5298 Bill Thu, 28 Apr 2011 21:00:05 +0000 http://www.designingyourperfecthouse.com/blog/?p=407#comment-5298 Nicole - I have never seen wood flooring shrink lengthwise like that, especially engineered wood flooring. My hunch is the engineered flooring was poorly manufactured and the plywood composition of the flooring was not the proper moisture content when the flooring was manufactured. But that's just a guess. It also sounds like the wood flooring was installed when the humidity was very high and your heated and air conditioned house has allowed it to dry. And if the concrete slab below the flooring was not sealed and there is no moisture barrier between the concrete and the wood, the concrete slab may be acting like a sponge and continuing to draw more moisture out of the wood and shrinking it even more. Now the question is what to do about it. Have you tested the moisture content of the wood? There may be no permanent cure other than replacing the flooring. But before doing that, you might try wood fillers. They will not be perfect, but they may make the gaps less noticable and help prevent particles from settling into the gaps. Once the filler is in place, you may be able to apply a coat of polyurethane and cross your fingers that it all stays together and looks okay. Nicole – I have never seen wood flooring shrink lengthwise like that, especially engineered wood flooring. My hunch is the engineered flooring was poorly manufactured and the plywood composition of the flooring was not the proper moisture content when the flooring was manufactured. But that’s just a guess. It also sounds like the wood flooring was installed when the humidity was very high and your heated and air conditioned house has allowed it to dry. And if the concrete slab below the flooring was not sealed and there is no moisture barrier between the concrete and the wood, the concrete slab may be acting like a sponge and continuing to draw more moisture out of the wood and shrinking it even more. Now the question is what to do about it. Have you tested the moisture content of the wood? There may be no permanent cure other than replacing the flooring. But before doing that, you might try wood fillers. They will not be perfect, but they may make the gaps less noticable and help prevent particles from settling into the gaps. Once the filler is in place, you may be able to apply a coat of polyurethane and cross your fingers that it all stays together and looks okay.

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