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Now it's buckling up just a little, not bad but it is noticeable when I walk on it. What should I do now? Should I sand it down a little and slap some sealant on it?
Wood buckles from getting wet?!?!?!?!?!?! Nawwwww that can't happen. I'm told only particle board buckles from getting wet. I wonder if the public has been misled. If so then I have been right all along!!!!!!
Sorry I just had to place a plug for myself.....again.
Ok enough sarcasm. Next time people tell me wood is immune to damage when it gets wet while particle board is just junk, I will post the link to your post here if you don't mind.
Your answer depends. Old wood floors were 3/4" thick solid wood in T&G planking. Today most all hardwood floors are engineered hardwood. Nothing wrong with that except you can not sand engineered hardwood because the finished surface is thin, not as thin as veneer but it is too thin to sand. If you do sand it you will quickly sand right through the veneer and to the ugly plys which are unfinishable alternating plys.
Solid hardwoods you can sand all day long or until you sand out the damage, which ever comes first.
The good news is if you can buy replacement planks you can cut out the damaged ones and replace with new. A professional tradesman will be needed for this job as it is no place for a homeowner.
That is odd, our hardwood floors never "buckle". And they get wet all the time, from pets, from walking indoors with wet shoes, and me splashing water on the floor every time I clean the fish tank, etc. etc. I even regularly clean the floor with a wet vac. Our home is over 40 years old though, maybe that has something to do with it, maybe our wood is more durable than what you have? Our wood floors are sealed with water-based polyurethane instead of oil too, which isn't supposed to be as "tough". Honestly, I've never heard of wood floors buckling so easily.
Thinking about it, I'd give it a chance to dry out before sanding it.
Maybe I used the wrong word? I mean the floor is slightly raised. It is bumpy now. I didn't really spill water on it.... I more like kind of flooded it, twice. I let the bathtub overflow. It was bad before but even worse now.
I was thinking maybe I would just sand down the surface of the floor a little by hand and then put sealant on it. I'm looking for a quick way to fix a big mistake.
That still seems strange, unless you left standing water over the area for days. Since it's in front of the bathtub, I suspect it's more of a long-term issue with continual water spraying onto the area and left there. A good hardwood floor just doesn't buckle, or get bumpy after a couple of brief water spills.
I was thinking maybe I would just sand down the surface of the floor a little by hand and then put sealant on it. I'm looking for a quick way to fix a big mistake.
I'm thinking you should tear it out and install tile in your bathroom.
Seriously. Since you make a habit of overflowing the bathtub, you really should have a tile floor in your bathroom.
Wood floors aren't meant for bathrooms. They're not water proof.
Not only will they get ruined, but you risk mold developing between your wood foor and your subfloor.
Maybe I used the wrong word? I mean the floor is slightly raised. It is bumpy now. I didn't really spill water on it.... I more like kind of flooded it, twice. I let the bathtub overflow. It was bad before but even worse now.
I was thinking maybe I would just sand down the surface of the floor a little by hand and then put sealant on it. I'm looking for a quick way to fix a big mistake.
Sheesh, you really have to quit doing that That's way different than just a spill. Like the poster a few posts up said, wood is typically pretty durable-almost any floor would sustain damage from a flood.
You really need to fix whatever is causing the tub to overflow.
The wood floor is in the hallway not the bathroom. I agree, I really have to stop letting the tub overflow. The wood is swelled up some and bumpy. Seems right to me, I've spilled a significant amount of water on it before. I can't rip it out. Can I pick up some sand paper at Wal Mart and sand it down a little? What I'm really looking for here is someone to tell me that yes, I can just sand it down and then slap a little sealant on it. I think the problem is that the floor wasn't sealed well enough.
Go ahead, tell me I can sand it then seal it. Thanks y'all!
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It was bad before but even worse now.
