Why Is Some Hardwood Flooring Rippled

While i m sure it got a bit damp as it does in the summer in indiana i don t think that s the cause of the problem.

Why is some hardwood flooring rippled.

I think that there is some issue with the. They have a wavy like appearance and you can feel the waves with your hands. Otherwise the floor machine will simply follow the contour ripples and probably make them even more pronounced. Buckling occurs when the wood flooring actually pulls up from the subfloor lifting several inches in one or more places.

I noticed the waves on hardwood floor probably a month or so after installation. They re beautiful and smooth to the touch but there are many ripples cutting perpendicular to the boards that can be seen when light skips off the floor at a low angle. Floor buckling is the most extreme reaction to moisture in a hardwood floor. Rippling after sanding is normally caused by a drum sander that doesn t work properly.

Fortunately this is not a common occurrence. Your question sounds like you are referring to the flat surface of the planks rippling. It re appeared the second time probably because once these ripples are in the floor you would have to initially sand on a bit of an angle to flatten the floor and remove them. Hardwood floors with significant movement or noises could be the result of several factors.

Floor buckling happens most often after a floor has been flooded for an extended period of time. All the hardwood floors in my 1927 bungalow were refinished with 3 coats of oil based polyurethane this week. The ripples are often not noticeable until the first coat of finish is applied. Hardwood floor is designed to stand all sorts of moisture from high humidity to low humidity.

My hickory 4 inch board floors were installed in december 2005 in a brand new home the boards are not laying completely flat. The light reflected by the. Read about troubleshooting the causes of rippled floors. The floor is completely smooth but visually there appear to be ribbons in the finish.

After work completed we noticed areas of visual rippling i e. It sounds like it is caused by humidity but allowed to happen because of a poor finish and a lack of sealant. Many homeowners like this approach because they can save material that otherwise would go to the landfill.