Squeaky Floors: Causes & Solutions

Squeaky floors are frustrating! Unless you're the parent of a teenager, a squeaking hardwood floor is a nuisance. Once a floor starts to voice its opinion about being stepped on, it’s unlikely to stop unless persuaded to do so.

In older homes, the presence of squeaky floors is simply a part of the charm and comes with the territory. But in new construction homes, squeaking hardwood floors can become a frustrating situation with every participant in the construction process blaming another person.

There is, however, one core cause of a squeaky floor: movement. It’s pretty rare for a wood floor to squeak on its own. In order for the floor to squeak, it requires some impetus to move and a place to move to. This is usually the act of being stepped on.

Movement is the Cause of Squeaks

Movement can be caused by a number of factors:

• Seasonal Movement: In northern climates, when the outside climate becomes very cold, homes heat the air inside, creating very dry conditions. The wood floors will shrink, causing tension in the fasteners, which can pull. Once the humidity normalizes, the floors will expand back but be loosely held in the subfloor, leading to squeaks.
• Subfloor Out of Level: Voids under the wood floor allow movement, which can create squeaks. Eliminating voids will prevent movement and squeaks.
• Residue on the Subfloor: Drywall mud, adhesive, or unseated fasteners can leave parts of your floor suspended in the air, creating squeaks.
• Joists Out of Level: Settling, heaving beams, and high/low subfloor seams can all cause issues.
• Spacing Between Subfloor and Joists: Voids here can cause movement and squeaks. To eliminate them, glue and nail the subfloor to the joists carefully.
• Inadequate Fastener Size or Frequency: Small or too few fasteners won't hold the floor properly, leading to looseness and squeaks.
• Over-Seating of Fasteners: Over-seating can push wood material out of the bottom, creating a void between the flooring and subfloor.
• Poor-Quality Subfloor: Subfloors degraded by water or rain can fail to hold fasteners as well as higher-quality materials.
• Too High-Quality Subfloor: OSBs with too high resin content can be too hard, leading to brittle, weak fastener holds.

What’s Missing from This List?

You might have noticed one view is absent: “Manufacturer defect.” That’s because manufacturer defects rarely cause squeaks in hardwood floors. Squeaks might be a symptom of a larger issue, but they’re not typically due to manufacturing problems.

Solutions for Squeaky Floors

Some potential fixes include:

• Squeak No More: This method uses top-screwing boards but countersinks the screws.
• Squeak Ender: This product fills voids between subfloor and flooring joists.
• Lubricants: Talcum powder, graphite, and WD-40 can reduce friction and temporarily stop squeaks.
• Screws from Underneath: Securing the flooring to the subfloor in problem areas can help fix squeaks.
• Hollow Spot Repair: Drilling a hole in the flooring and filling the void with epoxy is another option.