Squeaky Floor
Do you have Squeaky Floorboards that drive you mad?
Well we did too. This is how it was fixed and we have a really solid
floor as well.
If you have tried Talcum
Powder and it failed to fix the problem - and you definitely do not
have a mice infestation, then perhaps you will have to do what we did
and get a good capenter round to fix it. Our problem on the first floor
landing was so severe that when we positioned two or three people at
the worst points and they pressed down in sequence we could actually
play a tune!
The carpets were lifted and we
found 18mm hardboard panels nailed to the joists. Daryl, our carpenter
suggested that that he could replace some of the panels and that other
improvements could be made to the flooring. He mention the word noggin
but at that point I thought a noggin was a measure of alcohol and it
was a bit early in the day so I was about to refuse his offer.!
We left him to it and he set
to work. When the job was completed the squeaks had gone and the
excessive flex and bounce in the flooring was replaced by a very solid
feel.
Daryl took some picture with
his mobile phone and emailed them to me the next day; they give a good
idea of how he went about the job: first taking up a small section:-
We can already see that our
housebuilder cut a few corners, in the image above on the left the
joist just stops without any support. Taking up the adjacent panel
revealed a very similar abandoned joist
First of the Noggins |
Even to my inexpert eye
it is obvious that the floating joist is not going anywhere and is not
doing what a joist is supposed to do.
I was right you know - a
noggin, as well as being a bracing member is a measure of alcoholic
drink, just looked it up and aparently it is another name for a Gill.
Back to fixing our
squeeky floor; the following images show that a good bit of material
was needed to fix the poor support and lack of rigidity. This also gave
more points where the floor panels could be attached. Several of the
floor panels were also replaced as the original material was not
suitable for re-use.
On to the next picture:
No shortage of Noggins here and one of the reasons our new floor now
feels so solid. It is reassuring that we are not going to have one
member of the family suddenly (middle son is the heaviest I think) drop
down a level
|
Some of the squeaking
resulted from the use of low quality nails to hold down the floor
panels. Screws are the correct fixing method for this kind of job, a
screw will remain in place even if the surrounding wood shrinks
slightly, the finished job had no shortage of substantial screws fitted.
After the new bracing
had been fitted it it was possible to fix the floor panels along all
four sides. Some of the original panels had been nailed down on only
two sides only.
The bricks you can see
in this picture are the top of a dividing wall on the level below.
|
Some more
Nogging
|
One of the
problems that has developed over the years is that the lack of adequate
fixings has allowed the joists to twist somewhat.
New
panels fitted
|
The new noggins permit
more fixing points to be used. You can also see that Daryl has marked
the floor with information giving the position of joists for possible
future use, it is also clearly marked in red where pipes and electric
power and telephone cables are installed.
We also purchased some
laminated flooring which Daryl expertly fitted for us.
Altogether an excellent
job, not only have the squeaks gone but there is now a reassuringly
solid feel to the floor.
|
If you live in the UK in or
near Milton Keynes and you need a good carpenter then we can recommend
the gentleman who rescued us from our dreadful squeaking floorboards.
Daryl Sullivan, contact him on tel. 01908 664719
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The
Swiss have an interesting army. Five hundred years without a war.
Pretty impressive. Also pretty lucky for them. Ever see that little
Swiss Army knife they have to fight with? Not much of a weapon there.
Corkscrews. Bottle openers. 'Come on, buddy, let's go. You get past me,
the guy in back of me, he's got a spoon. Back off. I've got the toe
clippers right here.' ~~ Jerry Seinfeld