What is the best filler/sealant/adhesive/glue to fix squeaking floorboards?

shiphen

Hello

What is the best filler/sealant/adhesive/glue to fix squeaking floorboards?

Screws & nails are not an option because it is for a rental property and so there is no option of ripping up the floorboards to see where any gas/water/electrity lines are. The floorboards are either painted or varnished.

It needs to:
A. Be slightly flexible to allow for expansion/contraction of wooden floorboards
B. To minimise the visual impact it needs to be wood-coloured/semi-transparent when dry
C. In order to get deep it needs to flow well into cracks
D. It mustn't shrink much when it dries
E. It is going between PAINTED floor boards (yes, nuts - don't ask!) so it shouldn't dissolve paint & varnish finishes.

I have tried "Gorilla Wood Glue", which seems to bond very strongly albeit only after 24 hours. It also dribbles (albeit v slowly) deep into the cracks which in some ways is helpful. BUT it dissolves the paintwork and varnish in a matter of seconds if it lies on the surface of the floorboards.

Any thoughts?

Cheers

J

Doozergirl

It's simply not going to work, so I wouldn't bother.

They need to be screwed down or even more work done.

Grenage

As above, you'll go made trying to resolve it by your suggested means. It needs to be a proper mechanical fixing; anything else is a waste of your time.

shiphen

Doozergirl wrote: »

It's simply not going to work, so I wouldn't bother.

They need to be screwed down or even more work done.

Incorrect. I have already glued down the worst-offending planks with great success. The floor is now VERY MUCH less squeaky. But the glue I am using (Gorilla Wood Glue) is rather solid and insufficiently compressible to cope with season expansion/contraction of the wood if I did the same thing to all of the floorboards. Gorilla Wood Glue also dribbles very slowly, for a very long time. And then, when it dries it contracts massively. This all makes it terrible for filling in gaps.

Like I say, screwing down is simply NOT an option as I rent the property and any screws would be visible from above and would ruin the look of the paintwork. I do not have any of the correct shade of pain in any case. Moreover it has a special tough, abrasion-resistant lacquer finish over the top which is an expensive professional job to replace.

Furthermore nails would run the risk of damaging any water-pipes, electrical wiring and/or gas, which could be catastrophic.

Furthermore, either way I do still need to fill the gaps in the floorboards. But like I say it does need to be something flexible.

Silvertabby

Have you tried rubbing talc into the grooves? That'll only work if the squeaking is caused by the sides of the planks rubbing together, rather than whatever is under the flooring.

shiphen

Silvertabby wrote: »

Have you tried rubbing talc into the grooves? That'll only work if the squeaking is caused by the sides of the planks rubbing together, rather than whatever is under the flooring.

I agree that would be worth a try, but I also want to fill the large gaps between boards. My gluing of the worst offender has worked surprisingly, but the glue is too rigid to apply in bulk to all the floorboards.

Jojomissy

Have you spoke to the landlord about what you have been doing to the floorboards? What have they suggested?

I would not be happy to find a tenant was using gorilla glue in between floorboards, what if access is needed?