10 Most Common Hardwood Floor Issues
Hardwood floors can make your house feel more elegant and raise its value. Hardwood is not only beautiful, durable, and natural, but also versatile. You can choose from a variety of colours, grains, and patterns. Despite these advantages, a few issues may arise both during and after installation.
Humidity and temperature both have a big impact on hardwood flooring. Replacement and installation can be costly, so it is important that you become familiar with the most common issues to avoid them.
1. Wear and Tear
While wood floors are normally finished with a protective layer to survive daily traffic, pet scratching, and other actions, this outer surface will ultimately fade, subjecting your floor to damage.
Wear and tear is part of the natural cycle. To extend the life of your floors, you may use protective padding for the furniture or remove your shoes at the entrance. To keep its distinctive gloss and colour, wood also needs routine upkeep and recoating.
2. Scratches and Dents
This issue is common among hardwood floors with a high-gloss finish. The surface is more susceptible to dings, scratches, dents, and other defects as the protective coating ages and fades. Although all hardwood floors eventually lose their lustre, these may be an indication of hardwood floor finish problems if the problem arises just within a few years after installation. Reasons for this might be that the finish was applied too quickly, the floor wasn't completely sanded, or it wasn't properly maintained.
3. Excessive Moisture
Water is the primary enemy of wood, any build-up of moisture on or under hardwood floors might eventually lead to issues. Water damage can be caused by appliance leaks, condensation, groundwater penetration, and even moisture from a partially wet concrete subfloor. The site's topography may also be preventing rain and runoff from flowing resulting in moisture-related issues. Recent floods or even spills that aren't immediately and thoroughly cleaned up might potentially be an issue.
4. Stains
Wood floors can have some stain resistance due to the coat and finish, but they are by no means impervious. If left standing for too long without being addressed, spills and mishaps leave a trace.
Floor cleaners are an easy way to get rid of surface stains, but they can't get rid of stains that have penetrated the finish itself. Stains that seep through the finish and reach the wood fibres, such as water and pet pee, are the most challenging to remove. It is best to replace the severely stained floorboards.
5. Peeling
The coatings on wood floors might peel off if there is grime or chemical left on the floor or in the finish. Before applying a finish, floors must be thoroughly prepared and cleaned. For instance, over-sanding the surface will make it too smooth for the finish to stick. Peeling can also be caused by placing finishes that are incompatible with the wood type, putting a coat over a damp surface, or not cleaning well enough in between applications. It is best to sand a floor down to bare wood and restart the finishing process to repair a peeling floor.
6. Buckling
Floor buckling is the most severe impact of moisture on hardwood floor. This happens when the floor is bulging upwards from the subfloor. The most common cause of floor buckling is prolonged flooding, although poor fastening and installation can also sometimes be a culprit. For instance, if the boards were set up too closely together, they wouldn't have any space to expand under humid conditions.
7. Cupping and Crowning
When the centre width of wooden planks is not even with their edges, they may either cup or crown, causing damage to the flooring. It happens when hardwood floors continually swell and contract as a result of shifting humidity levels. You may even notice that the hardwood floor moves up and down. Wooden boards are crowning if their middle width is greater than their edges. It is a sign that the humidity inside your home is higher than the humidity outside. Cupping occurs when the central width is smaller than that of the edges, forming a U-shape. This indicates that the internal humidity is lower than that of the floor level below (like the basement).
8. Cracks and Fractures
The last thing you would want to find in your hardwood floors is cracks and fractures. It often occurs when a board was heavily nailed during installation. On rare occasions, it could be a manufacturing error. Some types of wood are more prone to cracking. The wood may break if the drying process in the kiln is rushed. Fortunately, cracks can frequently be filled in with wood filler, coloured marker, and finish.
9. Sun Fading
Hardwood floors are photosensitive, which means they are particularly sensitive to ultraviolet light exposure. The main result of sun exposure is irregular and uneven discolouration. Depending on the sort of light they are exposed to, wood can become either darker or lighter in colour. Additionally, some types of wood may be more photosensitive than others.
To prevent this, you must speak with design professionals about the wood species and inquire as to how its colour may change in the future. Consider how much light is present in the space while making your hardwood purchase. Choose less photosensitive wood for areas with lots of sunshine.
10. Uneven Gaps
While there will always be gaps between the boards, very large gaps not only affect the appearance of the floor as a whole but also raise alarms. Abnormal gaps can be a sign of bad hardwood floor installation.
Wood floors are susceptible to movement, so if the hardwood floor is not lining up, it may indicate that they were not installed correctly. Humidity affects wood as well. It expands when it’s wet and contracts when dry. As a result, gaps could appear wider during certain seasons than others.
With the right acclimation, installation, and care, these hardwood flooring issues are easy to prevent. Fortunately, the advantages of hardwood considerably exceed the disadvantages.
Get quality hardwood flooring in Toronto from a source you can trust! Contact TEAM Hardwood Floor at (416) 879-8266 today.