Squeaky floors
OK,,,new to the site and haven't had time to adequately explore everything yet. My question may have already been answered. We bought the house we are presently in AFTER the subfloor had been laid. Of course they nailed it off instead of screwing and it's safe to say they saved money on the amount of nails used. Now we've got the squeaky floor syndrome every winter when the humidity drops. Now I could wait until the humidity goes back up and the floors quiet back down, but I'm looking for some of the most effective, and least destructive to the carpet, vinyl,etc., ways to pulling the subfloor down tight again. I've seen the clips that you can buy from the DYI catalogues, but they can get expensive when talking about the number of squeaks that we have. I've toyed with a few other ideas, but I'd like to hear what you, guys, have found most effective. I'd like to do this only once. Thanks for the input. Mike
When we first moved into our house, there was a squeaky floor (under carpeting) outside the main bathroom on the second floor of the house, right off the stairs. In the past three years, I've noticed squeakiness/softness in floors in the master bath, the bathroom, and the living room (downstairs). Question 1: Is there any easy way to eliminate the squeaks, short of replacing the subfloor? Question 2: If what I suspect is the case in the bathrooms and water has gotten in underneath the vinyl tile floors, what do I do if it looks like the subfloor is rotten in the bathrooms? Thanks! - S
Does anyone know the best way to get rid of squeaky floors? My floors on the second level are squeaky, in every room. the floors are carpeted as well. I have read about some nail kit that can help but the nails will go through the carpet. Has anyone used this product or have any better solutions? Thanks for you help. SAZ
The ONLY way to get rid of squeaky floors (that is, the only way that works) requires a tape measure, a drill, a utility knife, some construction adhesive and a box of three-inch deck screws. A ketchup dispenser full of cornstarch might be helpful too. (No, I haven't gone nuts. Follow along.) First, determine where your floor joists are, their spacing, and which way they run. Find one and squirt a line of cornstarch along the floor. You use cornstarch here instead of chalk because your vacuum will pick it up, and chalk tends to stay where you put it. Now go along the cornstarch line and cut little slits in the carpet; the slits should follow the grain of the carpet. Peel back the carpet and run a deck screw into the joist. Move down the line a couple of feet and repeat the slit & screw thing. When all the slit & screw operations have been completed, put a little dab of construction adhesive under each side of the slit and glue the carpet back into place. Floors squeak because they're rubbing against the nails. This will solve your problem. -- --jmowreader
I have a wood floor - red oak, 60 years old - that squeaks. A lot. I can get to some of it from underneath but not most of it. What is the best way to get it to stop squeaking? Screws from the underside makes the most sense to me, but that isn't an option everywhere. Is there some sort of product or tool or something out there that I don't know about for this? Any advice would be appreciated. John