Squeaky hardwood floor suggestions....

[TheBEast]

So I've got hardwood floors in my house and they squeak like no ones business. I don't have real good access to the sub-floor in the basement to try and work something that way. There isn't a lot of visible spaces between the flooring......Anybody have any ideas??

I'm pretty sure the route cause is a sub-floor that isn't secured all that well to the floor joices and could probably be solved by securing it from underneath better, but want to see if anyone has and other ideas before I go tearing up my basement ceiling to get to things.

 

[Mildcat]

Could you drive some finish nails in and then hide it with colored putty? Other than that the only thing I can think of is earplugs. :wink:

 

[TheBEast]

Could you drive some finish nails in and then hide it with colored putty? Other than that the only thing I can think of is earplugs. :wink:

As it is my 15 month old sleeps with a sound machine and we've got one in our room too.....

 

[Marc]

Try placing a cinder block on the area that squeaks.




There's no "and then." Just leave the cinder block there. Not only will it hold the floor down, no one will step there to make it squeak. Problem solved.

I should have my own newspaper or This Old House column, don't you think?

 

[ComeBackMudPuddles]

As it is my 15 month old sleeps with a sound machine and we've got one in our room too.....

because of the floor squeaking? who walks around while you guys sleep? sleepwalking problems?

 

[Grassi21]

Try placing a cinder block on the area that squeaks.




There's no "and then." Just leave the cinder block there. Not only will it hold the floor down, no one will step there to make it squeak. Problem solved.

I should have my own newspaper or This Old House column, don't you think?

Why use blocks? Just strategically place a few girthy rounds of oak and the problem is solved.

 

[TheBEast]

Try placing a cinder block on the area that squeaks.




There's no "and then." Just leave the cinder block there. Not only will it hold the floor down, no one will step there to make it squeak. Problem solved.

I should have my own newspaper or This Old House column, don't you think?

Except my house would be full of cinder blocks!!

 

[TheBEast]

because of the floor squeaking? who walks around while you guys sleep? sleepwalking problems?

We have a one story range that has thin walls so with my daughter going to sleep around 8, my wife around 10 or 11 and me around midnight it's easier to have the sound machine than to tip toe around, afraid to wake the baby (keeps my wife happy that way)........my wife got used to the dehumidifier noise this winter and the window fan the summer before, so now with neither of those going she feels she needs background noise......whatever, small price to pay. She's a lite sleeper.....me on the other hand will sleep through just about anything. And chop a cord of wood in the mean time.

 

[SkiDork]

is there any way to rub something like baby powder into the seams where the squeaks are? Just thinking off the top of my head...

 

[ComeBackMudPuddles]

We have a one story range that has thin walls so with my daughter going to sleep around 8, my wife around 10 or 11 and me around midnight it's easier to have the sound machine than to tip toe around, afraid to wake the baby (keeps my wife happy that way)........my wife got used to the dehumidifier noise this winter and the window fan the summer before, so now with neither of those going she feels she needs background noise......whatever, small price to pay. She's a lite sleeper.....me on the other hand will sleep through just about anything. And chop a cord of wood in the mean time.

my wife and i visited my parents one summer with a very cranky and colicy six-month old that had difficulty sleeping. despite their house being sound-amplified, instead of sound-proofed, no one in the family would make any effort to be a little quiet, resulting in much crying (and much anger directed at me from the wife).

we brought along a sound machine the next time we visited and it worked like a charm. one of the greatest investments i've made.

 

[wa-loaf]

If you can get to the subfloor in the basement you can put screws in from below where your squeak is into the hardwoods. Just make sure they are not too long. May or may not work. Often the squeak will just move to another area ...

 

[TheBEast]

If you can get to the subfloor in the basement you can put screws in from below where your squeak is into the hardwoods. Just make sure they are not too long. May or may not work. Often the squeak will just move to another area ...

I'm thinking if I really want to do it right, this is what I've got to do. I've got 4-5 spots right around the bathroom that do it, that really need to be fixed. Then if that works, move on to other parts of the house. Going to be a downside to trying to sell the house in 3-5 years if all the floor squeak!!

 

[Glenn]

Going to be a downside to trying to sell the house in 3-5 years if all the floor squeak!!

Nah! It just adds character! :wink:

 

[mondeo]

I'm gonna go with putting in a second floor, supported by an air bag on top of the squeeky floor. Spread out the load.

 

[mondeo]

Try placing a cinder block on the area that squeaks.




There's no "and then." Just leave the cinder block there. Not only will it hold the floor down, no one will step there to make it squeak. Problem solved.

I should have my own newspaper or This Old House column, don't you think?

The late night "Oh sh**"s that would follow from stubbed toes would probably outweigh the reduction in squeeking.

 

[Marc]

The late night "Oh sh**"s that would follow from stubbed toes would probably outweigh the reduction in squeeking.

Hmm.... glow in the dark cinderblocks. Lighting the way to the bathroom.

 

[drjeff]

squeaky floor = good security system

Especially when your kids become teenagers

 

[TheBEast]

Especially when your kids become teenagers

I hope to be out of this house by the time she starts school!! Next house will be another story!

 

[Mildcat]

Hmm.... glow in the dark cinderblocks. Lighting the way to the bathroom.

You should Patent these ideas before you post them on a public forum. :idea:

 

[JimG.]

Nah! It just adds character! :wink:

I know you're kidding, but we have hardwood floors and we like the creaks...we're used to it.