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How To Repair Warped Hardwood Floors

Nothing is worse than walking across a wood floor and having it cause a stumble.

Even though the change in the flooring is subtle, it is there and it can cause an injury.

Take a look at the floor and you will see that the boards have actually risen or sunk just a little bit instead of being flat.

This means that you’ve got a warped floor.

Knowing how to repair warped wood floors first means being able to scope out the size of the problem that exists.

Wood naturally expands and contracts over time with changing environmental conditions and this can cause nails and glue to work their way loose.

You might just need to take down some loose boards.

On the other hand, you might also need to have a professional contractor come in to fix the problem.

 

1. You’ve Got a Small Wood Warp

Many small rises in the floor can be solved by warping the floor back into place.

Get the wood wet and then place a heavy object on top of it.

Make sure you walk around the heavy object in the middle of the floor while you’re doing this.

In the span of a few days, the floor will likely become flat once again and you won’t have had to do anything.

If there’s a squeak in the board when pressure is placed on it, then this may mean that the nails holding it down or the glue have worked their way loose.

After straightening out the board, tack it down with a nail or some glue and you’ll have solved the problem.

If your wood floor is cupped instead of crowned: If you have a dip instead of a rise, then a latex wood filler of the same color can help to solve your flooring issue.

Apply it where the cupping has happened and allow it to dry.

Then sand down the wood filler until it is flush with your current flooring. Paint or stain as needed to match.

2. You’ve Got a Large Wood Warp

Sometimes entire sections of a wood floor will begin to warp.

If there is more than just one board affected, then it is often easier to just replaced the boards that have warped rather than try to flatten them out.

Take up the affected boards and replace it with the same flooring that has been cut to size.

You’ll then need to secure the repair, paint it, or stain it so that a uniform look can be achieved.

If you have gaps in your flooring after replacing the warped wood: Use a latex floor filler if you have a gap left in your repair that is 0.25 inches or less wide.

This spreads easily along the floor and must be applied before you sand it.

Gaps that are larger than 0.25 inches need epoxy wood filler. Apply that after the finish coat.

 

3. You’ve Got a Massive Wood Warp

Sometimes the entire wood floor has become uneven.

This can happen because of the natural aging process, water damage, or not taking care of the floor over time.

There might also be a problem with the subfloor that is causing the warpage in your hardwood floor.

To fix this kind of problem, the entire floor will need to be taken up to determine where the damage might be.

A good DIY’er can take up an entire wood floor and put down a new one if the subfloor is intact.

If there is damage to the subfloor, however, a bonded flooring contractor is probably a better solution.

You may need to have the joists inspected and there may be other issues involved, including the home shifting, that may be causing the whole floor to warp.

Always remember this one tip: Whether you can classify your wood warp as small, large, or massive, it is always important to identify the source of the warp to make sure that the same thing doesn’t happen again.

Being proactive about fixing the problem will help to give the hardwood floor a longer, better life so that you don’t have to stumble every again because the flat floor wasn’t as flat as it should be.

Many floors need to be sanded and refinished after a repair.

If this has happened several times already to a floor, then additional cracking may occur.

Not every wood floor is suitable for a repair and refinish.

If you are unsure of the damage the floor has sustained, then knowing how to repair a warped wood floor might mean finding the lowest quality bid from a local contractor.

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