Why Do My Floorboards Creak?
Creaking floors can become incredibly frustrating for homeowners, with even the smallest movement causing nasty sounds to emerge from below. Plus, these noises can point to more serious issues with your floor, ensuring people worry when they wander through their space. Fortunately, creaking floors rarely signal a significant structural problem, but that doesn’t mean you should simply hope for the best when it occurs.
Instead, take action to confirm your home’s structure is sound while enjoying the peace you always imagined. But what causes your floors to creak in the first place? As this racket can quickly worsen, understanding the reasons for your problem means you’ll have a better chance of addressing it with little hassle.
To get you up to speed with the causes of creaking floors, we’ve delved into the major reasons for this issue below. From poor-quality installations and subfloor issues to changes in humidity, there’s no shortage of explanations for why your floors can become annoyingly noisy. However, with expert help from a team of experienced professionals, solving your problem and levelling up the quiet pleasure of your home is never far away.
6 Reasons Why Your Floors Creak
Tired of your floorboards creaking? Ranging from the simple to the complex, these are six of the most common causes of the noise coming from your house. Get to know the signs of each one and take action to resolve them as soon as possible.
- Detached Floorboards
Your floorboards should be tightly secured to the subfloor beneath. However, as time goes on, there’s a good chance yours will become loose, especially if they’re in high-traffic areas of the home or the original installation has left something to be desired. As your floorboards shift in position and grind against each other, every step can lead to frustrating creaks. Fastening these back into place is the best way to fix detached floorboards.
- Separated Floor Structure
If the components of your floor separate from each other, irritating squeaks and creaks are often the result. With the top layer, underlay, subfloor and joists needing to be tightly connected, gaps that appear between them can mean there are large spaces in your floor where flexing can occur. This movement is never good for silent floors, with each step rubbing the loose components together. Plugging these gaps with shims is a simple way to reduce this noisy movement.
- Climatic Changes
One of the most confounding issues for homeowners is when their floors only creak at a certain time of year. In many cases, this is caused by changes in temperature and humidity, where floors naturally expand and constrict depending on the climate. With a high-quality installation leaving the ideal amount of room for expansion gaps, sometimes this job isn’t completed properly. Instead, you might need to add more nails or lubricate the floorboards to resolve any loud problems.
- Inferior Underlay
Creaks don’t just come from the floorboards or the subfloor, the underlay chosen for your home can also lead to bothersome noise. If it’s fitted incorrectly, it can create problematic gaps between the floor and the subfloor, with each step resulting in another groan. Issues may also arise if the wrong type of underlay has been used for your flooring material. Unfortunately, addressing this problem usually means pulling up parts of your floor.
- Everyday Wear
Every type of flooring material has a different lifespan. Plus, reaching this expected age depends on whether it was installed properly in the first place. With every day wear and tear causing your flooring to degrade over time, sometimes creaky floors are just a symptom of the floor reaching a ripe old age. For example, solid hardwood flooring should last at least 30 years while laminate might survive for 20 years. Keep this in mind when choosing the right fix for the job.
- Incorrect Installation
Many of the issues associated with creaking floors are because of poor-quality installation. While there’s not much you can do about this if you move in years after the fact, if you’re installing a new floor, opting for a reputable flooring specialist is the best way forward. This way, you can ideally avoid some of the most common problems, such as the wrong underlay being used for the job or insufficient expansion gaps being left to account for temperature changes.
How Squeaky Floors’ Experts Can Help
Looking to fix your creaky floors? Our highly experienced team is ready to transform your space from somewhere incredibly frustrating into a tranquil haven. Supported by our qualified and insured experts, we offer an extensive variety of building skills perfect for eliminating noise from your carpeted and hardwood floors.
Founded in 2013, our wealth of experience means we can quickly diagnose the problem and develop a detailed plan to fix it. From detached floorboards to gaps between your joists and the subfloor, we work with the highest quality materials to address your home’s concerns and ensure you benefit from a top-notch outcome.
Chat with the Squeaky Floor Experts Today
Don’t put up with your floorboards making a racket. Instead, contact our expert team to discover how we can fix your home’s creaking and squeaking issues. Operating across Melbourne and Sydney, our specialised crew is ready to tackle even the most complex jobs.
Thanks to our superior skills and unmatched knowledge, we’re best prepared to address the full range of creaking floor concerns. Plus, we offer exceptional customer service and attention to detail. Get in touch today for an obligation-free quote.