Rotten Floorboards Advice

laurathree

Hi all,

We live in a ground floor maisonette, c.1930s. We have a problem with our floorboards - originally thought the laminate tongue and groove was the problem as it started to give in the hallway, but on investigation it turns out its the floorboards underneath. There is laminate throughout the flat that all matches (capped off at the doorway thresholds to each room), but this damage is in the hallway - a narrow long corridor running through the length of the flat. The damage appears to be just adjacent to the bathroom/ kitchen, in a neat 1-1.5sqm block of the hallway.

Few questions:

1) Cause of the rot: Damp. It's on the floor immediately next to the bathroom - we had a recent leak but that was fairly minor. Prior to that bathroom hadn't been done since c.1980s. The tiles only went about 1ft above the bath, seals had gone on taps, and there was no shower - only one of the rubber hoses that you fasten to the taps.The rot is in the hallway, but backs onto the tap end of the bath. Does that seem like a plausible cause?

2) Insurance: Looks like they won't cover repairs - they think its historic damage that has happened over time (i.e. mainly not when we have lived here). However, Insurance Company has been the insurance company for that time period - they are mandated by the freeholder of our maisonette. Is there any way I can dispute this with them?

3) Repairs: For an area c. 1-1.5sqm, is it feasible for me to replace the rotten boards myself? We have a laminate company lined up to take up the floor and then come back and re-lay it when the floor boards are done. I am quite handy, have jigsaw & good tools, etc.

4) Extent: How likely is it that our floorboards throughout the flat are knackered, and it's a timebomb?! Evidence currently pointing to damage just around bathroom, but as our laminate is foil-backed, the damp surveyor said the only way to know would be to lift all the floors, which obviously no one wants to do...

Thanks all!

Laura

bluesnake

1) rot normally takes time - recent leak is doubtful. Check for other leaks while the floor is up. check for condensation. Insulate the pipes too while the floor is up.

3) I would not put laminate down now, but let it air out for a while, possibly months. After a few movement clicks of laminate, it no longer clicks (worn out). They may have to put laminate down in the same order as they pick it up - giant jigsaw puzzle and lots of extra work.

You want the ground to dry out and air. I would look for air bricks around the property on the bottom of the outer walls, as they should be more than one, and the should be clean of debris and unblocked. the air should be able to flow from one part of the building to the other brick. Perhaps the floor had room air vents in the floor and the previous owners covered it up?

If you have had major building work done in your area, the water table may have risen and you may need to dig a hole and a sump pump?

4. I would put Ply down instead as it is cheaper than floorboards which you will anyway cover with imitation floor boards - personally I'd go for the real flooring now. You have to pull part of the flooring up and look.

There will probably be someone much clever than me coming along who will ask how high are the bottom of the joists to the ground, what the gap clearance?

Chanes

1. Your guess for the cause of the rot is a fair one.

2. We moved into a house where the toilet had been leaking from the cistern pipe. It had been going on since the previous owners had it fitted as part of a new bathroom and it caused two thousand pounds of damage. The insurance company sent an assessor and paid out (Shiela's Wheels from claim to money in the bank= seven days)

3. You can't estimate the scope of repair until you lift the floor and re-laying the laminate could be a trauma on its own as previously mentioned. Worth a go, I guess.

4. See 3.

5. Good luck! It's a miserable thing to find water damage.

FreeBear

laurathree wrote: »

3) Repairs: For an area c. 1-1.5sqm, is it feasible for me to replace the rotten boards myself?

You could replace the rotten boards yourself. I'd recommend visiting local building salvage yards to find floorboards of a similar age. If you can't find any reclaimed boards, you may need to get some new timber planed to size - Modern boards are often noticeably thinner than old ones.

However, as the boards are rotten, you will need to take a close look at the joists - Chances are, some of these will have also rotted and will need replacing. If that is the case, you may well need to pull up even more boards to gain access. Any new joists will probably benefit from being treated with a preservative before installation.

Old houses are fun.... and a money pit.

EconomicsGirl

I'm not an expert on this but this can happen when there's insufficient airbricks or airbricks in the wrong place. Maybe worth you getting builders out for a quote as they may well be able to see the problem. It may cost £50 or so for them to do an investigation but would stop it happening repeatedly.

Whether insurance will pay out will depend on cause and what's covered in your insurance. Airbricks in wrong place wouldn't be covered.