Is cold bad for hardwood floors?

The most important things to remember when maintaining your hardwood flooring are very simple. Warm, humid days cause your flooring to expand and possibly warp. Cold, dry days leave your floors exposed to shrinking, drying out, and splintering.

Does cold affect hardwood floors?

How Hot and Cold Weather Affect Your Hardwood Floors. As mentioned above, cold weather leads to the air inside your home drying out, which sucks the moisture out of your hardwood floors. Hot weather brings higher levels of humidity because of excess moisture in the air.

Does temperature affect wood floors?

Even though wood floors are made from “dead” trees, the flooring reacts to temperature and humidity changes inside your home as if it were alive. These cold wet days require us heating our homes to make them comfortable, but a by-product of the warmth is reduced humidity in your home.

Is it OK to store hardwood flooring in the garage?

You should really store your hardwood flooring in a controlled environment, never a garage or basement. If the hardwood is being store above 50% humidity it will take in a ton of moisture and expand this will typically happen in the summer months when humidity is at it's highest.

Do wood floors crack in winter?

Cracks & Separations Happen to All Hardwood Floors

In the winter months when the home is heated and the air is dry, wood flooring releases some of its moisture and therefore shrinks. When this happens, thin cracks appear between boards. This is normal and is acceptable.

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How do you protect hardwood floors in the winter?

The best way to prevent harm is to ensure water and rock salt never touches your floor in the first place. You can protect hardwood by placing floor mats both inside and outside the entrances of your home. In addition, you can ask visitors to take their shoes off and place them in a tray near the door.

What happens to hardwood in the winter?

During the winter, when homes are heated and the air is dry, wood flooring loses some of its moisture and contracts or shrinks as a result. It is normal that when relative humidity is lower than recommended, wood plank shrinks, therefore thin gaps can appear between wood planks.

Can you leave hardwood flooring outside?

A safe temperature for hardwood is between 60 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit. Hardwoods should preserve a 6-9% humidity level while the garage should keep humidity between 30-50%.

Can hardwood be left outside?

If you cannot store your hardwood flooring in a warehouse you should at least try to control the temperature and humidity. While it may be OK to leave hardwood flooring outside or in the garage under a tarp for a few days during installation, these conditions are not acceptable for long-term storage.

What causes hardwood floors to pop?

The most common reason for hardwood to make a popping sound, specifically at night, is a change in humidity. The home cools during the transition from day to night and that can impact humidity levels in the home. The popping sound can be especially loud if the fit of the wood is very tight.

Why are my hardwood floors cracking?

If you have cracks in your hardwood floor, the problem is likely to be low humidity and low moisture in the room, causing the wood to dry out. This could happen for a number of reasons, including: open fires, log burners, underfloor heating system running too hot, and also the frequent use of air conditioning units.

Why do floors pop?

Floors That Make a Popping Sound

The sound happens when a plank becomes loose and the nail rubs against the subfloor. If you have access to your floors from underneath, driving screws into the loose planks will usually solve the problem.

What temperature does it need to be to install hardwood floors?

Ideal Temperature & Humidity for Wood Floors

In general, relative humidity in the building should be between 30-50 percent year-round for optimal wood flooring performance. Temperatures should be kept between 60° and 80° Fahrenheit.

What humidity is too low for wood floors?

Humidity lower than 30% also poses a threat, as it can cause permanent damage to your flooring. Take steps now to manage your humidity levels and prevent these issues. Always be prepared when installing hardwood floors and make sure you regularly check the RH in your home to keep your floors from being damaged.

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Can you install hardwood floors in winter?

Hardwood floors can be installed in the winter, but doing so comes with some challenges. Humidity—the level of moisture present in the air—plays a key role in floor installation. If it's extremely humid when your wood floors are installed, it can cause the wood to swell.

How do you store hardwood?

How much extra flooring should I keep?

As a general rule of thumb, you should buy extra laminate flooring that covers around 5% to 15% of the room's floor area. So, if you're installing laminate flooring on a room measuring 10 square feet, you should buy at least 10.5 to 11.5 square feet worth of flooring.

Can hardwood flooring be stored in an attic?

The attic is always dry, but temperature does range considerably over the year. I wouldn't store any wood in an attic. You don't really have to worry about temperature range. What you need to take into account are moisture, ventilation and flat surface.

Where should engineered hardwood floors be stored?

A humidity of 30 to 50% should be keep in the garage for the hardwood to preserve 6-7% of its humidity. A garage foundation can be below the ground level, it can be above or sometimes at the same level with ground. For hardwood storage, a garage whose foundation is below the ground level should be avoided at all.

Is it OK to store laminate flooring in the garage?

Storing Laminate Flooring

Before installation, laminate flooring needs to be stored inside the home, either in the garage in mild climates or preferably the room where it will be installed. This will acclimate the laminate planks to the humidity levels and temperature of the interior of the house.

Is a humidifier necessary for hardwood floors?

A humidifier is necessary for your hardwood floors if you live in an extremely cold or dry environment. You should consider getting a humidifier if the humidity levels in your area and home drop below 35% for large parts of the year. You may need only to run your humidifier during certain seasons.

How do you fix a swollen hardwood floor?

If the floor is swollen from humidity, then you must set up ventilation fans to dry out the room. To speed up the process, a dehumidifier may also be set up in the room to help dry out the flooring and capture the moisture.

How do I keep my hardwood floors from cracking?

If levels are too high, use a dehumidifier or temporarily turn up the air conditioning, either will lower the humidity levels. Humidity levels need to be maintained to avoid creating moisture-type issues with the wood – maintaining proper humidity levels will help the wood in shape to perform its best.