Hardwood floors are aesthetically pleasing and enhance the décor of any house. Keeping them well maintained can be quite challenging and when plank floors or tongue and groove hardwood become old they develop gaps. Many issues arise because of the gaps as these become dirt magnets and cleaning them is not simple. When these boards’ cups and curl they can cause falls or trip hazards. Depending on Hardwood Flooring Utah company is the only solution to deal with old wood flooring.
When these floorboards are installed on the joists directly, gaps make a room feel drafty. So, when the airflow comes up from the crawlspace or basement the heating system has to work hard to pump heat and it is quite expensive. The developing issue also arises when one tries to fit the nickel on any of the gapped floorboards. You need a wood floor crack repair service at this time. Let’s see why these gaps develop?
Why do the gaps develop in the floorboards?
For wood flooring Gapping is a very common issue because wood shrinks with time. The problem arises because in the first place boards were not laid correctly initially when they were installed. Secondly, water causes a lot of damage to these floors. Firstly, the wood will swell and then they shrink. Finally, the wood dries out.
Just like a furnace room, solid wood flooring that has excess heat below can develop gaps because of dry heat.
Can you fill the gaps?
You need to keep in mind that due to seasonal humidity changes wood contracts and expands. In the winter season you may not notice the gaps, but when the weather is humid one should leave the gaps as it is because if you fill cracks in hardwood floors at that time it will create problems because the wood will expand and contract again. In some cases, the boards can buckle if there is no room left for them to expand. This is the natural tendency of wood and you should fill them during the humid season.
Wood strips to fill the gaps:
Use a table saw to rip out the strips of the floorboards that are spare and if you cannot get the matching boards then choose the boards of the same species.
First, you need to measure the length and width of each gap and then with the table saw rip the cut strips in the desired measurements, but use safety when using the table saw. Take the wood glue and apply it on the side of each strip. Now tap it in the gape gently with the hammer and let the glue dry. Then you can sand down the high spots in the strips. Do not damage the surrounding boards. Now stain the rest of the strips that match with the rest of the floor.
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