Help me make a flat & silent floor.

August 2, 2009 12:07 AM

Can I fix the buckling laminate in my new apartment without ripping up the whole damn floor?

I just moved into an older apartment that has laminate flooring on a concrete slab. It is very humid here, much higher than RH 75%- There is no mold or warping or rotting that I can see, only swelling that I think is causing the problem.

There is one long bubble down the hallway to the bathroom that seems wasn't cut short enough to allow for swelling at the threshold nor the at the walls-- so there is pressure in both directions. There is another sizable bubble in the middle of the floor of a 12' x 18' room where the laminate runs parallel to the 12' wall and the pressure seems to flow in the direction of the grain. So that bubble moves around a bit, buckling up where the laminate "clicks" together.

When the laminate snaps back to the concrete underneath, it makes and incredibly loud annoying "pop" at every footstep, resonating through the whole apartment.

I am comfortable removing the base boards and cutting these down to size, but I am afraid I will have to remove the whole damn floor. What nightmares should I expect to encounter on the way to my flat floor? I have no scraps or leftovers, so if I damage a piece or mis-cut, will I have a hard time trying to find a suitable match to replace it? Should I just learn to live with the bubbles instead?

All suggestions welcome.

posted by at the crossroads to home & garden (9 comments total)

Your use of the word "apartment" makes me think there's a landlord involved. If so, the landlord should be the one to hire someone to come and take care of this - it's her property and is an issue that will continue whether you are the tenant or not. Call the landlord and ask to have this repaired.

Of course, if you own this place... well... yeah, I have no advice for you, then.
posted by LOLAttorney2009 at 1:24 AM on August 2

To clarify--- there is no landlord to call and ask to have the repairs done.
I am the one to fix it or leave it. I want to fix it.
posted by at the crossroads at 3:52 AM on August 2

I know much less about laminate than I do about solid wood flooring, but I think you need more information about how the floor was installed. I'd remove enough baseboard to see whether there's an expansion gap (as you guessed, there should be one), and remove a piece of flooring to see whether the installers put a vapor barrier under the flooring (again, they should have). If the flooring has any brand markings on the bottom, that might help you find the manufacturer's installation instructions and/or a tech assistance phone number where someone can talk you through options.
posted by jon1270 at 4:34 AM on August 2

Modern laminate holds together with tongue-in-groove edges, and might be redone easily. The older style uses metal clips that hook into grooves underneath and is more difficult to take apart without damage. If you can take one piece out--inside a cupboard or someplace not noticeable--you'll at least know what you're up against.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 6:14 AM on August 2

I should qualify: both have tongue-in-groove, but the modern variety has an eccentric tongue that hooks and holds when the flooring is hinged flat. The metal clips on the older variety can't be removed without a lot of careful prying underneath.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 6:17 AM on August 2

For a floor that's too wide (i.e. no expansion gap along the length of the boards) it should be a pretty simple job to lift the last row of boards and rip the boards to a narrower width. This can be done with a jigsaw with an appropriate blade for laminate. The biggest hassle in this instance is likely to be the removal of whatever is covering the expansion gap (beading or skirting).
For a floor that's too long, things are a little more difficult. In the narrow hallway, you could probably get away with trimming the edges in situ either with a chisel (I did this just last week), or with a dremel-style tool. For the larger room, this is likely to be impractical. The options are to lift the whole floor and trim the boards one by one, or to use a circular saw set to the appropriate cut depth to cut the laminate in situ. You'll need to find a saw that will let you get close enough to the wall if you go down the in situ route, as you don't want to leave too large a gap.
If you end up lifting the whole floor, trim and stack the boards row-by-row in the order they were lifted. This will make it a very quick and easy job to re-lay the floor when you've finished cutting the boards. (Assuming that it's modern laminate as described by wgp above)
posted by Jakey at 6:42 AM on August 2 [1 favorite]

Good advice by Jakey about stacking the boards in order. The pattern on the boards repeats (there are only maybe a dozen variations), so it looks obvious when two identical boards are put side by side. Have a look at the patterns before you take the floor apart, and see if this occurs.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 9:55 AM on August 2

You've gotten good advice about trimming the laminate. I would just add a word of caution about the humidity. If you are hovering around 80% or higher you are definitely in a mold danger zone. As jon1270 already mentioned, check that there is at least a vapor barrier under the floor and sill seals under any wood walls sitting directly on the concrete.

In the long term you will want to address the humidity, but exactly what that entails is dependent on a lot of significant circumstances. In the meantime keep an eye out for any danger signs. Definitely take a look at the backside of the laminate when you pull it up.
posted by meinvt at 11:49 AM on August 2 [1 favorite]

Success! Thanks everyone for your sound advice.

I'm sure it has swelled since it was installed, but this floor was hammered in there as tight as can be, no expansion gap whatsoever. I ran the dremel along the walls and chiseled out the groove. Now the floor lays flat and silent. It only took a couple hours and there was no need to remove the planks one by one to re-cut. I did pry up one board, and there is a vapor barrier beneath and no obvious signs of mold, so that's good too. Thanks again.
posted by at the crossroads at 2:40 PM on August 4