Anything else I can do to fix this squeak?

Submitted by funlol3 t3_zzdhkb in DIY

This floor creak in my bedroom is driving me crazy. It’s two adjacent floorboards that squeak, and it’s only in a small area (I’d say 8 inches or so)

I found the joists and drilled in a couple “squeak no more” screws, when that didn’t work I drilled in a couple more in the area. (4 total). I then filled them in with wood filler.

Here’s a link to what it sounds like now (no improvement). https://imgur.com/a/2T2p7FL

What else can I do? Is the only option removing the floor boards and replacing them?

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LaChanz t1_j2aypkr wrote

Replying to funlol3 (#1,199,227)

Is it actual hard wood or a lvp or laminate? If hardwood, you could drill a couple pilot holes into the squeaky area, put in screws, then plug with wood filler. Then of course you'd have to try to match the color.

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vlouisefed t1_j2az21s wrote

I rented s place a long time ago with a squeaky floor, my father told me to put talcum powder on the floor and rub it in.

It worked, though I had to repeat the process occasionally.

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JonJackjon t1_j2b0dz4 wrote

Can you access the floor from underneath?

I had a similar problem, I was able to drill up from below into a few of the culprit boards.

I had to tap the hardwood floor (from below) and tighten with a #10 machine screw.

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TheFishBanjo t1_j2b3e2v wrote

I've never had much luck with squeaks. You win some, you lose some.

I'll offer this minor variation to your option.

With some patience, you could cut the tongue on those boards and remove them. You'd try to not damage the appearance side if possible. Of course, you need to remove the screws you just put in.

An oscillating (multifunction tool) with the right blade makes this possible. Buy an extra couple of blades since you might encounter the hardwood staples while doing this. If you can tell that you are hitting a nail, bypass it while your blade is good and come back later with your worn blades. (BTW, you can sometimes get a little more use from a blade by filing some notches where the teeth are damaged.) Return any blades you don't use.

Then, you will be looking at the subfloor with some missing flooring. You'd step and push to isolate the squeak. If it disappeared when the boards were removed, good. If not, you identify where the joists are, then get some 3" screws to hold the subfloor to the joists better. At that point, you hope to have no squeak whatsoever.

You'd use construction adhesive to put the boards back and reuse your screws. I'd put wood glue (like Titebond III) where the boards were sawed. A few finish nailing would be good too. Then touch up the cosmetic aspect.

That's my best idea.

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funlol3 OP t1_j2b4kc7 wrote

Replying to TheFishBanjo (#1,200,614)

Thanks! I was thinking about removing the boards and trying that way. Unfortunately, these screw heads all snapped off, so I’d probably destroy the floorboards trying to remove them.

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IrishAviator t1_j2b67ak wrote

I was selling my house and had a few spots where the planks were coming up from the slab. I drilled a few 1/16" inch holes in the areas and injected some gorilla glue (the kind that expands as it dries) inside with a plastic syringe. I put some weights on top while it dried then cleaned it up and stained it so you couldn't even see the holes unless you looked closely. Seemed very solid afterwards.

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TenPoundSledge t1_j2bd4st wrote

Try using the carpet jig that came with the stop squeak screws instead of the bare floor jig. The screws need to pull the sub-floor tight to the joist. If you use the bare floor jig they are pulling on the flooring and will be less effective. Start just outside the squeak zone and put a screw in every three or four inches along the joist. Good luck.

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Fine-Team-4296 t1_j2bv87h wrote

Shim it from underneath. I've a 105yo home and it's worked every time

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JonJackjon t1_j2f26fm wrote

Replying to dhutch01 (#1,217,046)

I don't recall, however at the time I figured I went about 1/2 to 3/4 of the way through the hardwood. As I was drilling (very slowly) my wife was watching the surface for any indication I was too close to the surface.

To get an idea of the thickness I did measure the floor thickness where our hot water baseboard heat went through the floor.

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