Why Gap Hardwood Flooring

Failing to keep boards straight when working.

Why gap hardwood flooring.

Not only are they an eyesore they can also collect dirt and dust. They weren t there in the summer solid 3 4 hardwoods will expand and contract with seasonal changes in moisture. The problem is magnified when the boards were not tightly laid in the first place. Gaps in hardwood floors can be a huge visual annoyance.

Thankfully for most hardwood floors the answer is no. With older tongue and groove hardwood or even wide plank floors gaps inevitably develop between the boards mostly because the wood shrinks over time as it dries out and loses moisture content. Water logged wood will first swell then shrink as it dries out. Another exacerbating condition is water damage.

The total expansion possible is a direct resultant of how many boards there are. Wood fillers are also not meant for use with large gaps. Hardwood gaps are generally caused by one of a few installation errors. It will get pushed out as the wood expands with moisture.

If you do discover that your hardwood floor is beginning to gap in spots it s important that you take care of it sooner rather than later. During winter months complaints usually start trickling in. The larger the room the larger the gap must be. There is a very simple explanation for why some months of the year you see gaps in your floor and other months you don t.

For normal gaps no repairs are needed. 10098557 don t delay fixing hardwood floor gaps. Why you should avoid putty fillers. The best times to repair hardwood floors are april and october.

Gapping in engineered hardwood can be due to many factors including but not limited to the material s manufacturing changes in humidity and the type and quality of the installation. For larger gaps that don t close up call in a professional contractor who can repair floors properly. Yes it can still have gaps. Over time however the putty hardens chips and flakes.

Engineered hardwood flooring is designed to minimize gaps due to expansion and contraction of the wood. Hardwood floor gaps cracks. The gap between the hardwood flooring and any obstruction should be a minimum of 5 8 inch and 3 4 inch is actually better as shown in figure 2. Failing to install the first board perfectly straight in a hardwood flooring installation.

Adding filler is not a good idea. Why do we have gaps. This is because the hardwood flooring expansion occurs on each board. This leaves your floor looking even worse and requiring you to dig out the old putty and replace it.

Putty fillers were once a mainstay of hardwood floor repair. Improperly acclimating the hardwoods prior to installation. Often it s a floor owner concerned with new hardwood floors separating or gapping. Jasper hardwood canadian silver maple collection in montebello gray sku.