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We bought a fixer upper and have ripped up the carpeting in the dining room. It's been ripped up for over a month with just the subfloor showing because of all the dog pee that the previous owners' dogs did on the carpet. It was disgusting. We wanted to air it out...is there such a thing for subfloors? Well, there are stains on the subfloor all over. It also looked like they kept watering a plant and it kept overflowing onto the carpet. The subfloors seem like they are structurally sound, but I'm afraid the stains and smell will linger.
We are putting in hardwood floors in that room within the next few weeks and want to know if we should replace the subfloor.
Any thoughts or suggestions?
If it's structurally sound, you don't need to replace it. What you can do is replace the panels with the heaviest stains to remove the possibility of smells coming back. That's what we did when we changed the carpet after buying our house. Our subfloor happened to be particleboard so it really absorbed the stains, including some breakdown of the particleboard. We replaced it with plywood and will remainder of non-stained particleboard when we put in a hardwood floor sometime in the distant future.
There are products that remove pet urine odor by bacteria that eat the urine. *Caution- when they work there is a period of a few days when the stench is strong* You could try one of those or just add a non-permeable barrier to prevent the smells from migrating upward. Either will be a lot less expensive than replacing the subfloor.
Location: Visitation between Wal-Mart & Home Depot
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Quote:
Originally Posted by summers19
When should you replace your subfloor?
We bought a fixer upper and have ripped up the carpeting in the dining room. It's been ripped up for over a month with just the subfloor showing because of all the dog pee that the previous owners' dogs did on the carpet. It was disgusting. We wanted to air it out...is there such a thing for subfloors? Well, there are stains on the subfloor all over. It also looked like they kept watering a plant and it kept overflowing onto the carpet. The subfloors seem like they are structurally sound, but I'm afraid the stains and smell will linger.
We are putting in hardwood floors in that room within the next few weeks and want to know if we should replace the subfloor.
Any thoughts or suggestions?
It will never be cheaper or easier to replace the subfloor if you are so inclined and this probably falls within easy reach of the DIY domain, even for a novice.
Try this:
Scrub the subfloor with a solution of white vinegar (10%) and water (90%). SCRUB IT! Don't just swab it around. Let that dry overnight, then apply 2 coats of KILZ (A primer/odor killer that you can buy at any hardware store, paint store, etc.)
Air the house out, then close it up and leave it for 24-48 hours. If the odor is gone, you're good to go. If not, then replace the stained/smelly subfloor sections, and you're still good to go.
If the first suggestion doesn't work, you're only out a few bucks and a little time and elbow grease. If it does, you've saved a nice chunk of money.
"The subfloors seem like they are structurally sound, but I'm afraid the stains and smell will linger."
The stains won't make any difference since they will be covered up. Is the smell lingering now? If so the odor killing techniques set out above are a good plan - with replacement as a last resort. If you don't smell anything now, it may well have "aired out" and you're good to go.
Yes, I think they've aired out some. We've had the plywood bare for over two months.
Some places squeak. Can I just nail those areas down more to get rid of the squeaking?
Yes, I think they've aired out some. We've had the plywood bare for over two months.
Some places squeak. Can I just nail those areas down more to get rid of the squeaking?
NOOOoooo! No nails..! Drywall screws.
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