How To Prevent Squeaky Floors

When you are in the process of selecting the flooring of your home, the last thing on your mind is how improper care will lead to squeaky floors. More likely than not, your focus will revolve around the type of flooring you want installed in the desired area within your residential or commercial property.

Preventative maintenance is a thought, but it’s usually an afterthought. For example, if you install hardwood flooring, you’re more concerned with the width, grain and finish over how the floorboards will react if they come in contact with water.

In fact, there are a number of ways you can get squeaky floors in your home. The best way to avoid this situation is to be aware of potential problems.

The Environment

The overall environment within a space can significantly affect the flooring. In certain conditions, floors can be malleable. During winter, the cold weather causes hardwood floors to shrink and contract, resulting in a creaking floor. Meanwhile, the summer affects your hardwood as well. During the warm months, the wood expands as it absorbs the humidity in the air. This causes the floors to contract and expand with the weather fluctuations. As this continues to happen, overtime, the floors floor’s fasteners will come loose – which leads to squeaky floors. The best way to combat that is by keeping a consistent temperament within any given space; and monitor said temperature so your flooring remains intact and squeak-free.

Another element within the environment to consider is choosing the appropriate flooring type for a space. While it may be tempting to install hardwood flooring in the kitchen or the garage, you need to account for external and internal factors. For example, the cold would quickly affect the flooring in the garage – and maintaining the right temperature in that space would be quite difficult. On the other hand, moisture is inevitable in a space like the kitchen. No matter how hard you try to keep a consistent temperature, using the space to cook meals will throw the balance.

Foot Traffic

Any space with a large number of people using the flooring is bound to undergo some wear and tear overtime. This can either result in chips and scratches, as well as discolouration. In areas that will be used the most, it would be ideal to protect the flooring with carpet flooring.

Whether you want to cover the entire space or section it out accordingly, that is up to you. However, adding a ‘cushion’ layer will minimize the damage to your flooring, which can help prevent squeaky floors.

Cleaning & Maintenance

Another great way to avoid loud floorboards is by ensuring proper cleanliness. Sweeping only works if there is absolutely no space between the floorboards, so if you have hardwood floors with gaps in between, make sure to vacuum in there. By vacuuming, you avoid dust and dirt accumulation which will either scratch the surface, or only pile up under your floorboards and damage your flooring, or both.

Either way, you will be decreasing the longevity of your flooring without proper care and maintenance. While cleaning is important regardless of the type of flooring you have, surface coatings are a great way to extend the lifespan of your flooring apart using that tactic.

If you find yourself encountering a squeaky floor situation, or are thinking about replacing your current floors but are not sure which floor type works best for your space – contact our team at Flooring Liquidators. We have decades of experience under our belts and carry high quality selection of flooring options, from hardwood floors, to laminate, to carpet and much more. Simply book an appointment to visit any of our 14 locations in Southern Ontario, or give us a call at 1 (866) 473-7222 for more information.