Seeking guidance on solutions for creaking old floor...
*Renovating a 1920s single floor apartment on the 5th floor.
*No access to ceiling beneath flooring in question - there are supposedly 2 separate layers of cement between each floor in the building.
*Existing red oak floor. Floor made up of 6 12" long x 2" wide boards laid as parquet (6 side-by-side boards parallel with side wall, followed by 6 side-by-side boards perpendicular with side wall, etc.).
*Floor Professional shot a few hundred screws into floor to help eliminate creaking. Did improve situation (creaking stopped in many places), but creaking still present and pronounced in multiple discrete locations. Main issue appears to be that there is hollow space between joists (I am a novice here - I am trying to refer to subfloor boards that support the main visible oak flooring) - so shooting screws in these locations accomplishes nothing.
*Floor generally flat throughout, although it is clearly not 100% (there are some gentle small peaks and valleys)
*As ripping up subfloor is not an option due to timing (told it would add 30 days to project due to consequent delays it would create in other parts of renovation) and cost, Floor Professional suggests laying new white oak plank floor atop old red oak floor. In particular, he suggests using long 5" wide 3/4" thick white oak planks. He believes that by screwing down this new floor atop the old, and gluing, we should eliminate creaking. Rationale - (1) human weight will be distributed over larger new boards, (2) new floor supported by old wood flooring which runs 50% parrellel and 50% perpendicular to new planks (3) any remaining creaking will now be muffled by a new 3/4" layer of oak.
*As new 7 1/2" base moldings are already in place, existing shoe would be removed and reattached 3/4" higher (base moldings would now be lower @ 6 3/4" high). Unclear yet how we would deal with plinths (which have no shoe).
Questions:
(1) Does anyone think this could/will work?
(2) Has anyone ever done this successfully?
(3) How would you level new floor over old slightly uneven floor? Will screwing in/gluing new floor alone solve issue? Or do we need something to level old floor first?
(4) Gut feel - how great do you think risk is of installing new floor and then weeks later creaking returning?
THANK YOU!!!
Best,
Steve
*Renovating a 1920s single floor apartment on the 5th floor.
*No access to ceiling beneath flooring in question - there are supposedly 2 separate layers of cement between each floor in the building.
*Existing red oak floor. Floor made up of 6 12" long x 2" wide boards laid as parquet (6 side-by-side boards parallel with side wall, followed by 6 side-by-side boards perpendicular with side wall, etc.).
*Floor Professional shot a few hundred screws into floor to help eliminate creaking. Did improve situation (creaking stopped in many places), but creaking still present and pronounced in multiple discrete locations. Main issue appears to be that there is hollow space between joists (I am a novice here - I am trying to refer to subfloor boards that support the main visible oak flooring) - so shooting screws in these locations accomplishes nothing.
*Floor generally flat throughout, although it is clearly not 100% (there are some gentle small peaks and valleys)
*As ripping up subfloor is not an option due to timing (told it would add 30 days to project due to consequent delays it would create in other parts of renovation) and cost, Floor Professional suggests laying new white oak plank floor atop old red oak floor. In particular, he suggests using long 5" wide 3/4" thick white oak planks. He believes that by screwing down this new floor atop the old, and gluing, we should eliminate creaking. Rationale - (1) human weight will be distributed over larger new boards, (2) new floor supported by old wood flooring which runs 50% parrellel and 50% perpendicular to new planks (3) any remaining creaking will now be muffled by a new 3/4" layer of oak.
*As new 7 1/2" base moldings are already in place, existing shoe would be removed and reattached 3/4" higher (base moldings would now be lower @ 6 3/4" high). Unclear yet how we would deal with plinths (which have no shoe).
Questions:
(1) Does anyone think this could/will work?
(2) Has anyone ever done this successfully?
(3) How would you level new floor over old slightly uneven floor? Will screwing in/gluing new floor alone solve issue? Or do we need something to level old floor first?
(4) Gut feel - how great do you think risk is of installing new floor and then weeks later creaking returning?
THANK YOU!!!
Best,
Steve
