How to Stop Creaky Wood Floors
Creaking, squeaking wood floors can really grate on you after awhile. If your wood floor is creaking in specific spots, it means the boards have loosened a tiny bit, and are rubbing against the nails them hold them down, or against other boards, when weight is applied. It isn't generally a structural problem, but that doesn't make it any less annoying. Solve the problem by tightening down the boards. Do it systematically, over the whole floor, rather than just the spot you've initially noticed, so you don't have to keep doing it again. Does this Spark an idea?
Things You'll Need
- Piece of white chalk
- Drill with pilot bit
- Screwdriver bit
- Thin wood screws, about 1-1/2 inches long
- Wax-based wood filler (same shade as the floor)
- Wood shim
Instructions
-
-
1
Walk the floor slowly from one end of the room to the other, in advancing rows, listening for areas that creak when you stand on them. Make a small X with your chalk at each point where you hear squeaking.
-
2
Move from chalk mark to chalk mark, drilling pilot holes straight down at the center of each one, using the drill with the pilot bit installed.
-
-
3
Move from pilot hole to pilot hole, sinking wood screws into each hole, using the drill with the screwdriver bit installed. Install the screws so the heads are sunk slightly below the surface of the wood.
-
4
Walk the floor again, listening for creaks. Drill additional pilot holes and sink screws wherever your hear them.
-
5
Use your thumb to press a small piece of wax-based wood filler on top of each screw hole, filling it completely and letting it mound up out of the hole. Run the flat edge of a wood shim over the hole, in the direction of the grain, to even it out with the rest of the floor.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Wear protective eye goggles when using your drill.
