Squeaky floors solution

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Kl95
Kl95 Posts: 13 Forumite
in In my home (includes DIY) MoneySaving
We have, in parts of the upstairs, very squeaky floors. They are wooden planks, some of which don't make any creaky noises, but some which creak very loudly. As we are renovating the house, we would like to get this rectified.

To help reduce the squeaking, our builder is suggesting screwing chipboard over the existing floor - with a sheet of membrane laid on top of the existing floor before screwing the chipboard over the floor. Will this solution last for years to come or will the floor start squeaking badly again in the next couple of years?

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  • bris
    bris Posts: 10,548 Forumite
    First Post First Anniversary Name Dropper
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    Squeaking is caused by movement, best thing is to find the boards with this movement and screw them down properly.


    With all the floor coverings lifted it will be easy to find the squeaking boards by stepping your way along the hall. I think your builder is creating work tbh.
  • Ruski
    Ruski Posts: 1,628 Forumite
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    Get rid of your builder - he'll no doubt leave on a horse......

    HTH

    Russ
    Perfection takes time: don't expect miracles in a day :D
  • Furts
    Furts Posts: 4,474 Forumite
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    I appreciate you are renovating but you have not said if the upstairs floor is new, or patched, or original. Which makes it difficult to comment.

    Also you planks - are these simply straight planks or are they tongue and grooved boards, or perhaps chipboard sheets?

    Laying anew floor over the top will mean all your doors will need trimming to suit this. But also chipboard should be glued together and glued down and you have mentioned neither of these. If your builder is not aware of glueing, or is aware but is simply looking to scimp and cut corners then you certainly have an issue with your builder. I cannot comment any further without having more info, but your builder's suggestion has some serious flaws in it.
  • Kl95
    Kl95 Posts: 13 Forumite
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    Furts wrote: »
    I appreciate you are renovating but you have not said if the upstairs floor is new, or patched, or original. Which makes it difficult to comment.

    Also you planks - are these simply straight planks or are they tongue and grooved boards, or perhaps chipboard sheets?

    Laying anew floor over the top will mean all your doors will need trimming to suit this. But also chipboard should be glued together and glued down and you have mentioned neither of these. If your builder is not aware of glueing, or is aware but is simply looking to scimp and cut corners then you certainly have an issue with your builder. I cannot comment any further without having more info, but your builder's suggestion has some serious flaws in it.

    They are straight planks and i believe they are the original flooring
  • Furts
    Furts Posts: 4,474 Forumite
    edited 23 April 2018 at 6:38AM
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    Kl95 wrote: »
    They are straight planks and i believe they are the original flooring

    They need re-fixing and not overlaying. The original floor is probably not level, so the chipboard overlay is likely to creak - unless very carefully installed. But why install it anyway?
  • armchaireconomist
    armchaireconomist Posts: 370 Forumite
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    Pull the covering off and screw the floorboards back into the joists underneath. You'll fix the majority of it, but it will of course never be 100%
  • Kl95
    Kl95 Posts: 13 Forumite
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    OK thanks all, will make sure he screws the floorboards into the joists
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