Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I have a 1960's block construction ranch, super solid house. The problem is that there are quite a few squeaky spots in the original hardwood floors, which cover most of the house. I can access from beneath via a half basement and crawl space. The subfloor looks to be 1x4 or 1x5 tongue and groove planking perpendicular to the hardwood and the dimensional 2x10 joists below. Unfortunately, the HVAC vents running through the basement block access to the subfloor over what seems like a majority of the squeaky spots - maybe that's not a coincidence. Hardwood was refinished when we moved in about four years ago. Any suggestions? I'm not looking to go crazy and start removing vents, it's not that big of an inconvenience, but while I have time it would be a nice thing to address.
The traditional repair when there is access from below is to buy a box of screws that will reach the center of the hardwood through the subfloor, take box, screw gun and a spare battery into the underspace, and have an assistant move from squeak to squeak. Up and down to find the center of the squeak and let the downstairs guy find it, then stand on it (a larger person is recommended here, not a 50-pound kid) while a few screws are run into the area. Test, find new squeak center, repeat.
Big squeaks can often be eliminated with one scattering of screws.
It very well could not be a coincidence that the floor squeaks near the ducts. If there are any air leaks or poor insulation it can cause the flooring to expand or contract differently in those areas. That would be worth looking into while you're down there.
They also make a screw that you install through the flooring that snaps off below the surface of the floor when you screw it in. Just google it. That way you can work from the top instead of crawling around in the crawl space.
They also make a screw that you install through the flooring that snaps off below the surface of the floor when you screw it in. Just google it. That way you can work from the top instead of crawling around in the crawl space.
If it's old hardwood, I wouldn't mar it that way, not even with a try-to-match-it plug.
The other approach is just that, countersink screws and plug them. But working from underneath is a short-term PITA with big payoff.
I've been told that Squeak-No-More works great, but haven't gotten around to trying it myself yet. The person who recommended it to me vouched for how easy and quick it was to fix the squeaks.
I think you have to determine if it's the hardwood, the subfloor, or the joists.
I've seen squeaky hardwoods fixed with talc powder (least evasive) to drilling plug holes for countersunk screws and then covered with wood plugs sanded smooth and level with the floor and stained to match (most evasive without removal).
But I've also had floors that where so squeaky that the best/easiest course of action was to go through the entire floor area with a finish nailer and then refinish the floors.
When you mentioned "ducts"- are they actual ducts? Or are the "ducts" actually the floor joist cavities capped with sheetmetal?
Last edited by K'ledgeBldr; 05-24-2020 at 02:13 PM..
They are actual ducts - I don't know what happened to the pictures i posted that showed them. From below, there really seems to be no space at all between the joists and the subfloor, so my guess is that the issue is between the hardwood and the subfloor.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
