Levelling Floors and Fixing Water Damage

[benjy_b]

Hello all,

This is my first post, so please be gentle.

I've gone through a number of searches and found various answers to my issue, I'd just like to narrow them down slightly.

Having recently moved into our first property together, my girlfriend and I have started decorating each room to our taste. The property is a bungalow, built in the early 80's by someone who clearly didn't have a plumb line or spirit level! This does nothing for my OCD.

We have completed one guest room to a satisfactory standard. This included removing and relocating a leaking radiator, replacing the damaged floor boards, decorating the entire room, fitting a carpet and furnishing. All done by ourselves, apart from the carpet fitting.

Anyhow, to the issue in hand:

Having removed the carpet and underlay in the second guest room/study, we have noticed there is evidence of damp on the floor boards and more importantly, the floor boards aren't straight.

I'd like to tackle the issue of replacing the damp floorboards and levelling the floor.

Here are some pictures:









You can see the damp patch in the corner of the room, below the studded walls adjoining the hallway and ensuite. I know the damp is coming from a leaking shower cubicle. This will be fixed promptly.

How should I go about replacing the floorboards? Should I cut out and refit or would it be best practice to remove the studded walls and replace the entire floorboards (as I suspect the damage will go into the ensuite and possibly the hall)?

With regards to the un-level floor, could it be poor initial construction or possibly movement? The floor does continue to be un-level into the adjoining ensuite, so this would need addressing as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read through, if I'm required to elaborate any further, please feel free to ask.

Regards,

Ben

 

[Newboy]

The flooring is chipboard and has more than likely swollen as a result of getting wet although the rise and fall to the outside wall looks a little more than I would have expected to see.

If you want to totally replace the flooring (8' x 4' sheets)then it's partition walls out and start again. If you're going down this extreme route then I'd replace the flooring with traditional softwood floorboards.

 

[KenGMac]

benjy_b, Hi and hope your experiences on the board are up to expectations?

It looks as if the leak from the Shower [which I am assuming is in the corner on the other side of the wall to where the wet Chipboard is?] is leaking, the leak may be coming from the seal between the tray and the tiles? or from missing, tile grout on the two surfaces of the enclosure?

If we can see water escape damage in this room [I am sorry to mention] that the damage to the Chip board floor in the adjacent bathroom / shower room will be I hate to say probably worse?

The distinct upward bowing of the Chipboard floor is [as newboy] has alluded to, down to swelling of the water damaged Chipboard.

There is a very high probability that the bottom timber bearer in the Partition wall will also be water damaged and part rotted?.

Have you investigated the possibility of damp / wet chipboard in the hall? which I am assuming is to the right hand side of all the pictures provided???

I have the feeling that the leak has been on-going for some time?

A without prejudice Question??? honest I am not prying, but?

How long have you owned the property? you mention that you "Have recently moved in?"

Do you know how many occupants lived in the property before you purchased it?

Rational behind the above[can be seen as intrusive, apologise now if taken so] questions is that if the last owner was single then the volume of escaping water would be low, then two people move in and the escaping volume of water increases, hugely?

To cut to the chase on the last, if you have owned the property for some time, say over 3 / 6 months then an Insurance claim may be one way to go? why because the potential, and I STRESS potential for removal of a Partition wall, the shower tray. the Shower Screen, any tiles on the floor, the décor on the walls of the Adjacent bathroom / Shower room could be fairly high?

Ken.

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Jeez guys, all a bit extreme! Just cut the offending bit of board out and replace it and add a couple of battens between the existing joists as necessary to support the edges. Take the partition down indeed! WTF!

 

[KenGMac]

freddymercurystwin, Hi

What is known in some quarters as "Bodge it and Scarper"

If the water has escaped to the extent it has forced its way under the partition, after flooding the Chipboard floor in the adjacent bathroom / Shower room then the bathroom / shower room floor could be in a really dodgy condition? even to the extent of part rotted floor joists?

Ken

 

[endecotp]

Look at the floor in the bathroom before you decide what to do. What sort of floor covering does it have?

 

[Doggit]

Ben, you need to take the floor up first before we can advise any further. It may be a simple job or replacing the swollen boards, or the joist may have gone as well. Until we know the extent of the damage, all comments are just speculation. Rip up boards, and then more pics please.

 

[KenGMac]

benjy_b

You posted "This is my first post, so please be gentle."

Bear with the board, you will get useful and informative information from it, it is up to you as to how you use it and hopefully use the information tendered, by everyone?

Ken.

 

[benjy_b]

Hi all,

Thank you for your prompt and informative posts! I shall try and cover most of your questions.

benjy_b, Hi and hope your experiences on the board are up to expectations?

It looks as if the leak from the Shower [which I am assuming is in the corner on the other side of the wall to where the wet Chipboard is?] is leaking, the leak may be coming from the seal between the tray and the tiles? or from missing, tile grout on the two surfaces of the enclosure?

If we can see water escape damage in this room [I am sorry to mention] that the damage to the Chip board floor in the adjacent bathroom / shower room will be I hate to say probably worse?

The distinct upward bowing of the Chipboard floor is [as newboy] has alluded to, down to swelling of the water damaged Chipboard.

There is a very high probability that the bottom timber bearer in the Partition wall will also be water damaged and part rotted?.

Have you investigated the possibility of damp / wet chipboard in the hall? which I am assuming is to the right hand side of all the pictures provided???

I have the feeling that the leak has been on-going for some time?

A without prejudice Question??? honest I am not prying, but?

How long have you owned the property? you mention that you "Have recently moved in?"

Do you know how many occupants lived in the property before you purchased it?

Rational behind the above[can be seen as intrusive, apologise now if taken so] questions is that if the last owner was single then the volume of escaping water would be low, then two people move in and the escaping volume of water increases, hugely?

To cut to the chase on the last, if you have owned the property for some time, say over 3 / 6 months then an Insurance claim may be one way to go? why because the potential, and I STRESS potential for removal of a Partition wall, the shower tray. the Shower Screen, any tiles on the floor, the décor on the walls of the Adjacent bathroom / Shower room could be fairly high?

Ken.

Hi Ken,

Firstly, the board is excellent! It's full of very informative information and first hand experience. I hope to utilise it's experience way into the future of our renovation.

- The leak is indeed coming from the shower tray and the screen, I omitted to notice where a bead of silicone was missing on the lower tray. The shower is coming out tomorrow to gain access to visually check the floor boards underneath.

- I am expecting to find the damage in the bathroom to be worse than in the study.

- My opinion, from my little experience, would be that the floor boards aren't straight due to poor construction (going from other areas of the house). Im happy to investigate further though.

- I do expect to find some damage to the lower timber bearer of the partition, I shall inspect further.

- I have not yet inspected the hall for water damage, I shall do this in the near future (I am expecting to see some though). You are correct, it is to the right of the provided pictures.

- I am unsure as to how long the leak has been present.

- We have been in the property since Oct 2015

- The property was previously habited by a family of four. Two adults, one young adult and one child.

- I don't really like the idea of an insurance claim, however, I may give it some thought if the damage comes back extensive. We are quite fortunate to have a comfortable amount of disposable income and are in no rush to complete the renovation. It's something we intended to take our time with. Mainly, so we can do the work ourselves.

- The ensuite/master bedroom is next on our list for renovation. This has an issue of being VERY cold at the moment (three external walls and two large windows, of which, two glass panels have failed). So, we may address all the issues at once (hence the potential for removing the partitioning walls and "doing it properly").

freddymercurystwin, Hi

What is known in some quarters as "Bodge it and Scarper"

If the water has escaped to the extent it has forced its way under the partition, after flooding the Chipboard floor in the adjacent bathroom / Shower room then the bathroom / shower room floor could be in a really dodgy condition? even to the extent of part rotted floor joists?

Ken

- I agree, I do see this as being a bit of a bodge. We ended up doing this to fix the damaged floor boards in the first guest room. I wasn't really happy about using the method putting a baton against the joist when sliding a floorboard under the partitioning wall (the father-in-law suggested this was the "most cost effective method".)

Look at the floor in the bathroom before you decide what to do. What sort of floor covering does it have?

- The bathroom is currently fitted with lino

Ben, you need to take the floor up first before we can advise any further. It may be a simple job or replacing the swollen boards, or the joist may have gone as well. Until we know the extent of the damage, all comments are just speculation. Rip up boards, and then more pics please.

- I shall be removing the shower and lino floor from the bathroom tomorrow. I shall also look into removing the damaged floor boards. I will post pictures up once I reach this point.

benjy_b

You posted "This is my first post, so please be gentle."

Bear with the board, you will get useful and informative information from it, it is up to you as to how you use it and hopefully use the information tendered, by everyone?

Ken.

So far, I have found the board to be very informative. I'm really looking forward to tapping up the vast experience this community brings together. We certainly have many areas of the property we wish to improve. We're very keen to learn, and between us, quite handy. We like the idea of learning new skills and expanding our knowledge on property renovation.

Thanks again,

Ben

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

I agree, I do see this as being a bit of a bodge.

Its only a bodge if all the timbers are rotten and beyond salvage but Ken and others cannot possibly know that yet so all this talk of ripping the partition down until the extent of the problem has been established is just scaremongering.

 

[benjy_b]

Hi,

Yes, I agree with you. I like to consider all options.

I shall investigate further and post my findings.

 

[benjy_b]

Right then...

I've managed to remove the shower cubicle and tray, isolate the water and lift a "patched" section of floorboard.

To be it looks like a historical leak that hasn't been fixed properly in the past.

I'll let the pictures do the talking:















Back to the bedroom:



Into the hall:







Thanks,

Ben

 

[Doggit]

Thanks for the pictures Ben, but you may need to go a bit further and expose the joist ends to make sure the ends haven't rotted as well. There seems to a gap under the skirting boards in the corner, and that's sometimes indicative of the joists dropping. If they are okay, then you just need P5 chipboard in the shower area, and then whatever you like in the adjoining room

 

[benjy_b]

Thanks for the pictures Ben, but you may need to go a bit further and expose the joist ends to make sure the ends haven't rotted as well. There seems to a gap under the skirting boards in the corner, and that's sometimes indicative of the joists dropping. If they are okay, then you just need P5 chipboard in the shower area, and then whatever you like in the adjoining room

Joist ends? The upper part of the joists, where the floorboard is fastened to? Or the part that's fixed into the wall?

The reason I ask is because all the internal walls are studded walls and the joists run across the full width/length of the property.

 

[benjy_b]

The story continues...

I've spent the day removing the damaged floor boards to gain access to the joists.

Here are the pictures:

Study:









Ensuite:







Floorboards from underneath, prior to removal:







Un-level joists?:








I plan to cut out the remaining damaged floorboards and the majority of the ones affected by the uneven joists. Then I shall replace with new floorboards, any suggestions on the specific material I should use? It looks like I'll be able to do this without removing the partitioned walls (as they don't seem to be damaged).

How would I go about levelling the joists/floor? Use shims to pad the new floorboards? Shave some material off the top of the joists?

Thanks again,

Ben