For questions generally relating to the structure and construction of floors in buildings, including designs, materials, support mechanisms, load-bearing calculations, etc. For questions specifically about the top-layer covering of a floor (tile, carpet, hardwood) see the "flooring" tag.
5
votes
2answers
3k views
How do I level an unlevel floor?
The second floor of my house is not to level. The walls are, everything is straight but the floor has a slight pitch.
I'm about to remove the current glued vinyl tiles and replace it with a regular ...
2
votes
1answer
510 views
How do I pull up sheets of plywood from the floor?
I have ripped up the carpet in the master bedroom and found that between the sheets of plywood there is cold air blowing in because part of the floor is over the garage.
I want to pull up the nailed ...
5
votes
3answers
7k views
How do I use 'surface shims' to level out a sloping floor?
Asked a question about leveling my floor here earlier this week, and one of the options suggested sounded appealing, but didn't contain enough detail for me (a not-too-handy, ...
5
votes
4answers
6k views
Where should I start laying nail down hardwood flooring and how do I make it straight?
I'm planning to install tongue and groove hardwood flooring in my living room, dining room, kithcen, hallway, and powder room. The longest unbroken length of floor runs from the front bay of the house ...
2
votes
1answer
163 views
How do I fix an irregular hole in my heater closet?
The plumbers cut a roughly rectangular hole in the water heater/heater closet floor when fixing the drain pipe for the condensate line. The closet is located in the garage. There are two 2" PVC ...
5
votes
4answers
1k views
How do I make my floors more stable?
My builder did (what seems to me) a cut rate job on my floors.
When I walk around in my house my table and entertainment center (and other such things) shake as I walk past them. (Heaven help me if ...
2
votes
3answers
90 views
Timber Veneer Flooring?
We have existing polished timber floors, it is patchy (different parts of the house are floored with different kinds of timber) it also has a few gaps and holes. We are thinking of laying down some ...
7
votes
2answers
12k views
How can I build a cheap, do-it-yourself dance floor?
I would like to make a cheap DIY dance floor and I attained a roll of 3.5 ft x 6 ft vinyl linoleum for free. Can I use this in making a dance floor? Has anyone built their own cheap DIY and what ...
14
votes
6answers
3k views
How do you reduce floor sound transmission?
How do you reduce the sound transmission through a floor? Using "green glue" between a couple layers of plywood subfloor seems to work well. Are there any other tricks or suggestions?
2
votes
2answers
332 views
How can I drill through a Linoleum floor?
I would like a drill a hole through my dining room floor to run a wire. The floor is carpeted, so I pulled back the carpet in the corner to find an old linoleum floor. I attempted to drill a hole ...
6
votes
4answers
340 views
What is the recommended technique for refinishing hardwood floors
I have old hardwood floors in my home that I'd like to refinish myself. I'm ok with all sorts of manual labor, but I'd like to know the preferred method for refinishing them without damaging my walls ...
6
votes
2answers
425 views
Can I sand bamboo floors?
I have prefinished bamboo floors in the kitchen and they are not in a good shape. I was wondering if i can sand them. Somebody told me that i can't send prefinished floors (oak or bamboo), somebody ...
4
votes
1answer
244 views
Options for Hardwood Floor Scratch and Gouge Repair
I have a 10 month old puppy who recently discovered her (apparent) love for the taste of wood putty. There was a rather large knot hole that had been plugged and finished in our living room floor that ...
4
votes
1answer
243 views
Crack spanning several tiles
I've got several tiles in my dining room that have a diagonal crack running across them. Since it's a pretty straight line across several tiles, I'm guessing it's a foundation issue. The room is at ...
5
votes
2answers
196 views
What do I have to do to prepare my garage floor for paint?
I'd like to paint my garage floor, possibly with textured paint.
What do I have to do in order to get my garage floor, which is currently dirty and somewhat oily, ready for something like an ...
5
votes
3answers
719 views
What can be done to fix a squeak in stairs?
This might be better suited as a community wiki, what do you think?
My parents house has very squeaky stairs. The house is over 100 years old, so it's to be expected. What can be done to fix a squeak ...
