Buckling and Cupping Floors

Most people when they are looking at buying a home have several things they want; a large closet, double sinks in the master bath, a bonus room and hardwood floors. After you have your dream home wouldn't you like to make sure that your home is in peak condition? After awhile many homeowners begin to notice those once beautiful hardwood floors have begun to cup and buckle. This is because hardwood floors are hygroscopic; meaning that they absorbs moisture from the air. This is one of the main reasons why you should never wet mop your wood floors.

Moisture isn’t absorbed just from the top of your floors, but also from underneath. Even if water never touches the top of the flooring the relative humidity, caused by moisture under the home, of the floors could be well over 70%. It is important, especially after periods of heavy rain, to check on your crawlspace to see if the ground is wet or has standing water.

The solution to this problem is to encapsulate the crawl space. This involves using a polyethylene vapor barrier to cut off the crawlspace from outside air and moisture. Combined with a dehumidifier and any other solutions the crawlspace may need this will ensure that floor buckling and cupping is not an issue from moisture underneath the home. If the issue is too severe the use of SmartJacks may be another solution to compliment the encapsulation.

Remember that it is always a good idea to check your crawlspace once a month for any moisture problems. The sooner you take care of these problems they better.