Common Laminate & Floating Floor Problems with Corrections

We're here to help, and our fantastic Tech & Install team has delivered once again.  This article explains some problems that may be experienced and how to fix them with laminat & floating floors.

Common Laminate and floating floor problems with corrections
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- Peaking

- Buckling

- Gapping

- Mold and mildew

- Expanding HDF

- Chipped corners

Manufacture defect

-off register

Repairs

Peaking

Peaking refers to a situation in which the laminate floor boards push up against each other and result in high points at the joints. There are a number of reasons why this can happen. The most common cause of peaking is a lack of expansion space between the laminate floor and the walls around the perimeter of the installation, or a lack of expansion space between the laminate floor and laminate moldings. This situation can be easily remedied. Simply follow the peaking board’s perpendicular to the wall or molding, remove the necessary molding- if against the wall, remove the baseboard and cutout a section or enough of the laminate board that meets the wall or molding that will give the floor more space to expand. (Diagram 1 & 2) The peaking will not however dissipate immediately, it maybe necessary to place a weighted object on the peaking areas for a period of time.

Another reason for peaking could be due to the fact that the moldings in the doorways or around the perimeter of the room have been fixed/nailed to the floor, thus preventing the floor from expanding. Remember that a laminate floor is a floating floor and must not be fixed to the sub floor or moldings at any point as this will not allow the floor to expand and contract, as these floors naturally do.

Peaking can also arise due to the fact that a continuous area of flooring is too long in one direction without a center “T” molding expansion joint to relieve the pressure. This will generally happen in areas where the floor runs for over 27’ foot in any direction – this number differs per manufacturer.

Buckling or Warping

Buckling or warping is almost always as a result of moisture and/ or water damage. Laminate flooring is affected by water in a number of ways. High moisture content in the air can sometimes lead to buckling or warping. Excessive water on the surface of the floor can also lead to buckling or warping. For this reason, it is important never to wet mop a laminate floor. The most common cause of edge-warping or buckling is water or dampness rising from the subfloor in conjunction with the lack of a sufficient moisture barrier.

Buckling or warping can also be as a result of an inferior product construction. Laminate floor surfaces are laminated under extremely high pressure. For this reason, it is necessary to have a balancing layer on the bottom of the boards. This layer is made up of a rigid material that equalizes the pressure exerted form above.

Gapping

Gapping is not common with laminate flooring. Gapping is a situation in which the laminate flooring boards tend to pull away from one another resulting in gaps between the boards. This situation will occur if the temperature drops to a point way below what is considered normal (60°-80°). For this reason, it is very important to acclimatize your flooring to the room temperature and conditions of the room in which the laminate is to be installed, before installation.

Mold and Mildew

Issues concerning mold and mildew are gaining increased attention from both residential and commercial property owners as well as the public at large. In virtually all situations if there is a mold issue, there is an excessive moisture issue. In order to prevent, control, or eradicate mold and mildew, one must first identify, evaluate, and eliminate the source of excessive moisture.

Prior to removing an existing flooring or installing a new floor or repairing an existing laminate floor, if there are visible indications of mold or mildew or the presence of a strong musty odor in the area where flooring is to be removed or installed, the source of the problem should be identified and corrected.

Expanding High Density Fiber Board (HDF)

The core (middle section) of a laminate floor plank is made from HDF. Most laminate cores however are treated with water repellent chemicals. If your flooring is water damaged, your only remedy is to replace the affected boards.

Chipped Corners

Excessive chipping on corners can be as a result of any of the following:

a) Wrong methods of installation used. Use care when using a tapping block and mallets to install floating floors. Often poor installation can result in marks, indentations and chipping.

b) Cleaning the floor with a vacuum cleaner-beater bar attachment.

c) Poor handling

Off register a manufacturing defect

Off register is a situation in which the flooring pattern on one flooring board does not match up the pattern on the connecting board. Manufacturers do allow for a variance. This situation however almost never occurs, and in the event it does, just replace with extra materials on hand.

Repairs

Although very durable, it is normal to find minor scratches as result of daily wear and tear. Fortunately, this situation is easily remedied with the aid of a laminate floor repair kit, available at your local home centers. These kits may include acrylic or latex putty, wax pencils or crayons and are color coded to match the floor. Take a plank of flooring with you for color matching.

For more serious damage, it might be necessary to replace the damaged boards. The introduction of glueless laminate flooring has resulted in a floor that is both easy to install and repair. For this, you will need additional laminate flooring.

To replace boards that are situated close to walls or moldings, follow these steps:

1. Start by removing the baseboard or molding. Do this carefully so as not to damage the molding.

2. Remove the boards starting from the molding until the damaged board is accessible.

3. Replace the damaged board and then the rest of the boards you removed, by clicking them back in place.

4. Replace the molding.

The process of repairing a laminate floorboard closer to the center of the room is more detailed and time consuming. The process involves removing the damaged board utilizing a saw or router, then replacing the board utilizing a sufficient water resistant adhesive. Contact a professional installer or follow these steps.

1) Mark the damaged board 1-1/2” from ends and side. Drill 3/16” holes at corners of marked area.

2) Cut along lines between the drilled holes and remove the center section. Then cut remaining piece in the center on both sides and remove.

3) Prepare a replacement board by cutting and removing the factory tongue along the long and short end of the board. The figure below represents the two common types of locking systems available.

4) Apply a resinous (PVA) adhesive to the cut edges and replace the board by aligning the groove on the replacement board with the tongue of the abutting board, and snap back into place.

5) Make sure all edges are even on either side of the joints. Utilize a heavy object to apply pressure for at least 24 hours. Make sure the weight is evenly distributed across the new piece.

Prevention is better than cure. Place floor mats at door entrances in order to reduce the amount of sand tracked into the house. It is a good idea to place felt pads under furniture legs, as this will prevent scratching caused by dragging the furniture across the floor. Also, keep large pets' nails groomed.

 

Comments

[Lumber Liquidators]

Hi Kristin! Unfortunately mold does not discriminate. If the conditions under either type of floor are "right," (moisture, temperature, etc.) mold can grow. However, if you follow the install instructions and take the proper precautions, you should be fine. Hope this helps!

[Kristin]

I would like to have either laminate flooring or engineered hardwood flooring in my living room, dining room, and family room. I don't have a pet, but I have teen age children. At first I wanted to have hardwood floor, but I am thinking of getting laminate floor now just because I don't want to deal with dents and scratches and fading. We are rough on floors.
However, possibility of getting mold growing underneath floated laminate floor worries me a bit because my son is allergic to mold. Could mold grow underneath laminate floor more than hardwood? Any information would be much appreciated.

[Lumber Liquidators]

Hello Jim,

Thank you for your business with Lumber Liquidators. From what you are describing the issue may lie with the plank in the previous row and not the ones that you are trying to install on the current row. I would suggest unlocking the previous row and replacing the plank in the previous row that won’t allow then new plank in the current row to lock. You can also take a small flat head screw driver and run it into the groove to clean up any trash that you may not be able to see. As a last resort, to get a difficult plank to fit tightly you may shave off the raised lip on the groove with a rasp or sharp wood chisel. Once that raised lip is removed you should be able to slide the two planks together without lifting them at an angle, but in order to keep them locked together you will need to apply a PVA carpenter wood glue into the locking system. You can use our Lumber Liquidators floating floor adhesive for this use. Apply blue painters tape to the face of the two planks to hold them together until the glue cures.

Hope this helps!

[Jim Marsh]

Hello, I am installing Charimsa flooring and I have almost completed the room. Everything has been going fine except I have now come to a plank that I can not get lock down. I have tried using different planks, check for debris still can't figured it out. Any suggestions?

Thanks,

Jim

[Lumber Liquidators]

Since I can't see the floor, I'm not sure what's causing the peaking, but you can use a toe kick saw to cut close to walls and cabinets. Also, rental companies typically rent toe kick saws for around $30 per day. Thanks for your inquiry!

[Shwana]

Thanks for the detailed directions, I am having an issue with peeking and can see that the solution is to cut the ends of the flooring back where they meet the wall like in figures 1 and 2 above. What kind of saw can do this? It is so close to the baseboards and it is not practical to pull up the boards and saw them as it's in the middle of the room and on the end of the boards not the sides. THANKS!!!

[Lumber Liquidators]

Unfortunately as all floating floor products are not to be installed under fixed cabinetry there is not much that can be done other than taking up and reinstalling the floor.

A helpful tools to cut the flooring up to the cabinet base would be a toe kick saw that can be found at most rental shops.

[Bob]

Most clearly informative site I have found for the common laminate flooring problems and corrections. Thank you.

[Gloria Holland]

We installed a floating floor and then had our kitchen cabinets installed afterwards. 2 years now and we see gaps in the flooring and also the pieces are pulling "away" from each other. This is happening all over the room. Not just in one area. When we walk on the floors we can feel the pieces that are "popping" up and no longer level with the floor. What can we do besides pull up the entire floor. I hate it.

[CNC Routers For Sale]

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[Lumber Liquidators]

The best way to transition from a ¾” height is to use a threshold molding. the thresholds we carry will only transition to a ¾” floor but the front leg of the molding is only about 5/16” so it would leave a gap. In the past, our installers have gone to local ceramic distributers such as Dal-Tile, which sells larger, unfinished transitions and then he can stain them to match.
Another alternative is to contact a local lumber company that will sometimes carry these in stock or can mill them on site. These are typically not very expensive.
Below is from our website and it shows how the threshold would be used. In your case you would turn the t-hold around.

http://server.iad.liveperson.net/hc/s-13045352/cmd/kbresource/kb-4409157928603560990/view_document!PAGETYPE?sq=Transitions%2b&sf=101113&sg=1&st=394944&documentid=233217&action=view

[Chuck]

I have new tile installed in entry of the house but it is 3/4" taller than the wood floor. Is there a solution minis starting over?

Thanks, Chuck

[Charles Owens]

This is wonderful flooring for any HT room. It will bounce of the sounds beautifully.

[Parquet Flottant]

What a detailed blog! I am so much surprised with the different categories of floating flooring.

[Theater Seats]

I really love the wooden floor. It adds so much character! I like it when homeowners use something that has been used previous or refinish an existing piece to get more use out of it.

[Lumber Liquidators]

Thanks for taking the time out your busy day to write us. This is a common situation with all wood products. Wood is similar to a sponge. When you dip the sponge in water it will absorb that moisture and expand. When you squeeze out the moisture in the sponge and dry it out it will shrink. This is what’s going on with your laminate flooring. The gaps close in the summer because the humidity level/ moisture in your home is higher in the summer. The gaps re-appear in the winter because your humidity level/moisture is much lower in your home due to heat being on. What is happening is what we call in the flooring industry “seasonal gapping”. My best advice would be to keep your climate consistent from summer to winter. Purchase a low cost hygrometer to keep track of your indoor humidity and temperature levels. When the gaps close in the summer write down the temperature and humidity at the time they closed. Try to keep your home at these levels to help prevent the shrinkage during the winter. Some customers use a humidifier in the winter to keep humidity levels up to normal which usually around 40%.

Please feel free to call our Tech and Install department if you have any other questions. (800)-366-4204

[Karen Manson]

I love my laminate flooring. It was installed late December/early January 2011. There are several areas where the ends of the boards are gapping in the winter. Then with summer they went back together and looked fine. Now during these winter months are gapping again. Is this a result of installation or the flooring itself? If I have this repaired now while it is gapping and then summer comes, will it buckle up?

[Rugs Cheap Gemma]

I've had so much problems with my floor peaking and at some point I almost had to replace nearly 1/3 of everything. Glad this explained alot about what happened! Thanks for posting.

[Hrast Parket]

Great post. I recently had problems with my oak wooden floor and your explanations helped me a lot.