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.
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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
home - submit
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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
