Hello!
I have a small question/concern regarding our floor in the house (typical 70s house, built in 75, one level with a basement).
The issue is that you can see the floor has "sunk" between the floor joists specifically in one part of the house (you can actually see the "tops" of the joists in the floor/carpet with the naked eye in some places)... and now I'm wondering why this has happened?
Is it because the house has "sunk" over the years? Or has the house twisted in some way? Poor construction quality? Or is it due to something entirely different? (some damage I'm not aware of?)
For example, you can hear a creaking/cracking sound in a completely different room when you walk on certain spots (and I assume it's the "continuation" of the joist in the floor that causes some movement... which makes either the joist creak a bit... or the panels above the joist)...
The plan is to tear up part of the floor when the weather allows and reinforce the joists a bit (kind of like "blocking" to straighten everything for better load-bearing...) and then add some insulation (it's very noisy to the basement!) and new panels + floor... does this sound like a good idea? Or should we approach it differently?
Best regards, Sandra
I have a small question/concern regarding our floor in the house (typical 70s house, built in 75, one level with a basement).
The issue is that you can see the floor has "sunk" between the floor joists specifically in one part of the house (you can actually see the "tops" of the joists in the floor/carpet with the naked eye in some places)... and now I'm wondering why this has happened?
Is it because the house has "sunk" over the years? Or has the house twisted in some way? Poor construction quality? Or is it due to something entirely different? (some damage I'm not aware of?)
For example, you can hear a creaking/cracking sound in a completely different room when you walk on certain spots (and I assume it's the "continuation" of the joist in the floor that causes some movement... which makes either the joist creak a bit... or the panels above the joist)...
The plan is to tear up part of the floor when the weather allows and reinforce the joists a bit (kind of like "blocking" to straighten everything for better load-bearing...) and then add some insulation (it's very noisy to the basement!) and new panels + floor... does this sound like a good idea? Or should we approach it differently?
Best regards, Sandra
Sounds strange that the floor has sunk between the joists. If you tear up the floors, you should cross-brace the floor beams, not just sister them.
Hello!verktygsgurun said:
What does cross-brace mean then? Is it when you nail like two pieces of wood in a cross on each side of an existing beam? (or how should I put it)... like the "angry carpenter" did this week in his show (they had a problem with the floor/ceiling wobbling when someone walked on the upper floor).
Perhaps I should mention that there aren't any big holes, but it slopes down maybe 1-2 cm between each main beam in the floor (where it is the worst... but it makes it possible to see in some places that the floor is a bit wavy).
What causes that? weird building standards? house that has shifted? could it be due to moisture that has dried in the wood? (there was a roof leak a few years ago, but it's a new roof now, etc.).
Best regards, Sandra
Hello!
We have exactly the same problem and don't really know how to solve it. My idea is to remove the plastic mat and parquet. Tear away the chipboard (this is probably a very energy-demanding job, since the boards are both screwed and glued).
Does anyone have a good tip on how to remove screwed and glued chipboard???
Then I thought about reinforcing the joists with new 220x45 beams. But as I said, I don't know if this is the best/easiest solution for this problem. Any advice is warmly welcomed...
Here is a picture of the slope, which is getting worse and worse...
/G
We have exactly the same problem and don't really know how to solve it. My idea is to remove the plastic mat and parquet. Tear away the chipboard (this is probably a very energy-demanding job, since the boards are both screwed and glued).
Does anyone have a good tip on how to remove screwed and glued chipboard???
Then I thought about reinforcing the joists with new 220x45 beams. But as I said, I don't know if this is the best/easiest solution for this problem. Any advice is warmly welcomed...
Here is a picture of the slope, which is getting worse and worse...
/G
We have the same problem. Myresjöhus from 1977. During the construction of the bathroom in the basement, I noticed that every third joist is 220x45. But the two in between are 220x33. The floor is framed at cc40 and sure enough, the floor "sags" in waves with 120cm between the peaks. Miserable when laying laminate... Unfortunately, there's not much to be done with simple means. If you want to shore it up, it might be easier to tear down the basement ceiling and work from below.
Maybe you can jack up the floor and attach flat iron to the weak joists?
Maybe you can jack up the floor and attach flat iron to the weak joists?
Hello Go4it and elajens
Nice to find some people with the same problem (though it's unfortunate to have these problems!!).. but no one else seems to understand my issue.. (many problems with 70s houses but not many that highlight this specific problem).
I've also experimented a bit with our level (a larger one though).. and it looks roughly like in "Go4its" picture.. no large dents.. but enough to be annoying! (especially in the kitchen where the counters/cabinets have shifted!)
I must say your post "elajens" would explain a lot.. it sounds very logical that we would have a similar building structure.. since it's about 120 cm between each top.. (which felt illogical when just thinking that it "sags" between the joists.. = very few joists haha).. but if there's a slightly weaker one between each.. that explains a lot..
I read the building papers for the house a few months ago but didn't look closely.. now I will dig them out again and specifically check the size of the joists (lucky enough to have all the original plans and building descriptions for the house)..
The idea of working from underneath is something we've considered.. and if it turns out that only every other joist needs to be "supported".. it would be perfect to work from underneath... perfect to have some kind of "jack" that can stand on the slab and "lift" the slope while working with that particular joist..
Hmm.. it's worth considering this..
Feel free to share good tips.. or just thoughts on how you plan to do it etc..
Would be fun to keep up with your "renovations" ..
Thanks for the responses both of you!
Best wishes, Sandra
Nice to find some people with the same problem (though it's unfortunate to have these problems!!).. but no one else seems to understand my issue.. (many problems with 70s houses but not many that highlight this specific problem).
I've also experimented a bit with our level (a larger one though).. and it looks roughly like in "Go4its" picture.. no large dents.. but enough to be annoying! (especially in the kitchen where the counters/cabinets have shifted!)
I must say your post "elajens" would explain a lot.. it sounds very logical that we would have a similar building structure.. since it's about 120 cm between each top.. (which felt illogical when just thinking that it "sags" between the joists.. = very few joists haha).. but if there's a slightly weaker one between each.. that explains a lot..
I read the building papers for the house a few months ago but didn't look closely.. now I will dig them out again and specifically check the size of the joists (lucky enough to have all the original plans and building descriptions for the house)..
The idea of working from underneath is something we've considered.. and if it turns out that only every other joist needs to be "supported".. it would be perfect to work from underneath... perfect to have some kind of "jack" that can stand on the slab and "lift" the slope while working with that particular joist..
Hmm.. it's worth considering this..
Feel free to share good tips.. or just thoughts on how you plan to do it etc..
Would be fun to keep up with your "renovations" ..
Thanks for the responses both of you!
Best wishes, Sandra
elajens:
None of the more well-known brands (more locally), I know the builder himself has built all the houses just on our part of the street. I'll try to find the papers on the house (the moving boxes are not completely out of the way yet haha.. I've been searching for two evenings!)
What I remember was that I had never heard of them (the company, that is)
Best regards, Sandra
None of the more well-known brands (more locally), I know the builder himself has built all the houses just on our part of the street. I'll try to find the papers on the house (the moving boxes are not completely out of the way yet haha.. I've been searching for two evenings!)
What I remember was that I had never heard of them (the company, that is)
Best regards, Sandra
elajens:
Would also like to mention that for us, the issue is "the same" throughout the house... but at the same time, we are not too bothered by it in the bedrooms (sometimes it creaks if you step on a specific spot... meaning it creaks in another room...) but on the other hand, in the living room, kitchen, and hallway... you can see the waves and you feel it when you walk (I am quite sensitive... not everyone notices it, but I get "sea legs")
We recently (a few months ago) installed laminate flooring in two of the smaller bedrooms and carpeting in the large bedroom... no problems so far.
Best regards, Sandra
Would also like to mention that for us, the issue is "the same" throughout the house... but at the same time, we are not too bothered by it in the bedrooms (sometimes it creaks if you step on a specific spot... meaning it creaks in another room...) but on the other hand, in the living room, kitchen, and hallway... you can see the waves and you feel it when you walk (I am quite sensitive... not everyone notices it, but I get "sea legs")
We recently (a few months ago) installed laminate flooring in two of the smaller bedrooms and carpeting in the large bedroom... no problems so far.
Best regards, Sandra
Found the construction papers we received, but they didn't make us much wiser! Many things were specified but far from everything...
There are more of us who have looked at the papers and yes... it's very unclear indeed! We interpreted it as if there are no more beams in the floor joists than those at 120 cm apart... but that sounds a bit bizarre??
As soon as the weather improves and it's possible to have doors and windows open without freezing to death, we'll start tearing a bit into the ceiling in the basement (which seems to be the safest option to get the information we're seeking!)..
Best regards, Sandra
There are more of us who have looked at the papers and yes... it's very unclear indeed! We interpreted it as if there are no more beams in the floor joists than those at 120 cm apart... but that sounds a bit bizarre??
As soon as the weather improves and it's possible to have doors and windows open without freezing to death, we'll start tearing a bit into the ceiling in the basement (which seems to be the safest option to get the information we're seeking!)..
Best regards, Sandra