Fixing cracks in wood floors. Sealing cracks in a wooden floor - how and how to carry out repairs? The gap between the floor and the wall: everything is fixable

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During the operation of wooden floors, the boards begin to dry out and deform, which leads to the appearance of gaps between them. In most cases, such a defect is not a reason to replace the floors, since it is easy to fix. In this article, we will take a closer look at how cracks in a wooden floor are sealed with different compositions.

Crack sealing

There are quite a few options for filling cracks in a wooden floor.

The most common are the following:

• Glue with sawdust;
• Cement composition;
• putty;
• Paste with paper;
• Cord ;
• silicone sealant.

Let's take a closer look at all these options below.

Glue with sawdust

This method is quite versatile, as it can be used on different parts of the wooden floor.

Work in this case is carried out in the following way:

• First you need to prepare sawdust - pour them into a suitable container and pour boiling water over them. The resulting mass must be mixed until a homogeneous composition is formed. After this, the sawdust must be left for several hours so that they swell.
• Next, add PVA glue to the sawdust and mix until a viscous consistency is formed.
• Then, before covering the cracks in the wooden floor, you need to carefully prepare them - clean them from dust and dirty deposits. If necessary, the space between the boards needs to be slightly expanded so that it can be completely filled with the prepared composition.
• Next, using a small spatula, apply the adhesive to the gap and tamp it inward.

putty

If you don’t want to bother with making putty with your own hands, you can use ready-made wood putty. True, it should be noted that this option is the simplest, however, not always reliable. The fact is that many types of putty crack and crumble quite quickly.

Therefore, when choosing how to putty cracks in a wooden floor, it is better to give preference to an acrylic or latex composition. They dry quickly, have no smell and at the same time do not crack over time.

If putty for wood is chosen as the material, the filling of cracks in the floor is carried out according to the same principle as described above for other mixtures. It can be applied with both a rubber and a metal narrow spatula.

Paste and paper

To create this tool you will need:

• Paste;
• Paper;
• A small amount of copper sulfate, which will protect the floors from insects.

This putty is quite durable, while its price is minimal.

It is performed as follows:

• Paper should be cut into small pieces and filled with water.

• Then you should prepare a paste from flour or starch. To do this, the water must be brought to a boil, and then gradually pour one of the selected ingredients into it. In this case, the mixture must be thoroughly mixed so that there are no lumps in it.
• Next, copper sulfate should be added to the finished and cooled paste in a ratio of 1:10.
• After that, you need to grind the paper with your hands and add it to the paste. The result should be a homogeneous and rather thick consistency-putty.

As in all previous cases, in order to achieve a high-quality result, before sealing cracks in a wooden floor, they must be well prepared, cleaned of any dirt and flaking surfaces. After that, the mixture needs to fill the space between the boards and compact it as best as possible.

Cord termination

This option is good because it allows not only to eliminate the space between the boards, but also to get rid of their unpleasant squeak.

To carry out repairs in this way, you will need the following materials:

• Twine, cord or rope of suitable diameter;
• Sawdust;
• Joiner's glue;
• Wood putty.

The work is done in this order:

• The cord must be moistened with adhesive so that it is lubricated on all sides.
• Then you need to make a mixture of putty, glue and sawdust.
• Next, the rope must be laid in the space between the boards to a depth of several millimeters.
• Then you need to apply the prepared mixture over the cord. Moreover, the putty should rise slightly above the floor, since in the process of drying it will definitely shrink.

If the floors "play" and there is no way to firmly fix them, then it is best to use silicone sealant to seal the cracks in the wooden floor.

The application process is extremely simple:

• The composition is drawn into a syringe.
• Then the tip of the syringe is lowered into the prepared slot and the sealant is squeezed out.

Due to the fact that silicone remains elastic even after drying, such a seal can last quite a long time.

Seal the space between wall and floor

Separately, it should be said about how to remove the cracks in the wooden floor that occur between the boards and walls. It should immediately be said that in the case when the gap is 1-2 cm, then it can not be closed, since it is.

If the distance reaches 5 cm or more, then this space can be closed in two ways:

• With the help of foam;
• Filling the space with mounting foam.

Note!
Before using mounting foam, the surfaces to which it will be applied must be moistened with water from a spray bottle.

Here, perhaps, are all the most common ways to get rid of cracks in a wooden floor.

Conclusion

As we found out, there are a lot of ways to seal cracks in wooden floors, and all the options discussed above are quite effective. Therefore, you should choose based on the condition of the floor and the presence of certain ingredients.

You can find some additional information on this topic from the video in this article.

A pure wood floor has a number of advantages: it is warm, environmentally friendly, durable and aesthetic. Like any coating, a wood floor wears out and deforms over time, cracks and cracks appear in it.

Why close up gaps in the floor

Before proceeding with the elimination of gaps in the floor, it is necessary to find out why these defects arose.

• If the floor is covered with new wood, it has most likely dried out. An annual re-coating may be required, which will have to be carried out for three years.
• If the reason for the cracks in the wooden floor was the active activity of rodents, it is necessary to take measures to eliminate their colonies, otherwise the holes will reappear.
• If the boards are installed incorrectly and vibrate relative to each other, only nailing them to the logs will help.

Attention! Oak and softwood are considered good options for arranging flooring.

It is necessary to get rid of cracks in the floor so that the coating continues to perform its important functions:

• provide the necessary thermal insulation, keep warm in the room, do not let cold air masses through the gaps;
• protect from third-party sounds and noise - the tree conducts sound waves well, so holes in the boards can exacerbate the problem;
• protect the room from the penetration of moisture, the spread of mold and insect pests.

After competently sealing the cracks, the boards will not rub against each other and make unpleasant squeaks.

Attention! The wooden floor needs ventilation in the form of products. If the decision is made to eliminate them, it is necessary to conduct a vent through the room itself.

How and what to close the gaps

When the main risks are identified and the causes of cracks are eliminated, you can proceed directly to the elimination of flaws.

Repair with ready-made wood putty is the easiest option for embedding. Factory putty will free the master from the preparation of complex compositions, help to quickly cope with the work.

Putty is suitable for eliminating small gaps. If the defect area is large, the composition can quickly crack and crumble. Ready-made putty can also be used when it is planned to lay another floor covering on wood.

Work order:

• If necessary, the gaps are expanded with a spatula or a screwdriver to make the solution easier to apply.
• Cracks are cleaned of dust and debris.
• A narrow or rubber spatula captures a certain amount of putty. Then it is applied to the crack, trying to push it as deep as possible.
• After the putty dries, after about 1-2 days, the surface is cleaned and sanded with sandpaper.

Attention! The disadvantage of factory putties is a rather limited color palette, which makes the seams visible to the naked eye.

Sealing the cracks with tow is considered an "old-fashioned" way and also does not require much effort. Tow is traditionally used in plumbing to seal threads and pipe joints. This coarse fiber is a product of the processing of bast crops. It has a high degree of hygroscopicity, strength, wear resistance, and is safe for health.

To seal the cracks in the wooden floor, the tow must be moistened with adhesive. Then the fiber is carefully driven into the gap, trying to fill the entire space. After the glue dries, the floor can be painted in the desired shade.

Tow can be replaced with synthetic rope. It is impregnated with PVA glue and used in the same way. After drying, the remains of the rope can be cut off, and the surface can be painted.

Construction foam for sealing cracks

Foam can be a universal solution for sealing holes in wood flooring. It is used mainly when processing the perimeter of the room - in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe baseboards.

Step by step:

• Skirting boards are carefully removed, trying not to touch the boards on the floor.
• The surface is cleaned of old dirt, sand and dust.
• Styrofoam pieces are placed in large gaps.
• Free space is blown with building foam.
• Wait for the time required for the mixture to solidify, cut off the excess.
• The entire perimeter of the room is puttied, and after the putty dries, the plinths are installed in their original place.

Attention! Use building foam carefully, in minimal quantities, since a large volume of the mixture can raise the floor at the junction with the wall.

sawdust with glue

An inexpensive but effective way to get rid of a crack in a wood floor is to use a mixture of sawdust and glue. The composition can be prepared independently according to a certain algorithm:

• Prepare small sawdust, pour them into a capacious container.
• Pour the sawdust with boiling water until a thick homogeneous mass is formed.
• When sawdust absorb water, swell and cool, add glue. As a basis, you can take ordinary carpentry glue or PVA.
• Stir the mixture thoroughly until smooth.
• Use a spatula to pick up a small amount of the composition and apply to the space between the boards. It is necessary to completely fill the gap, but do not tamp with effort.
• Level the filled mass, remove excess glue.

Such a homemade putty should dry out in 2-3 days. After drying, the surface should be sanded or sanded.

Another option for the adhesive composition is with the addition of cement:

• glue is mixed with warm water in a ratio of 2:15;
• 5 parts of sawdust and cement are added to the mixture;
• the components are mixed, infused for 5-7 minutes.

sealant

The main purpose of sealants is to create a reliable coating that is impervious to moisture. Wood floors are best treated with indoor sealants:

• acrylic- they give a relatively large shrinkage, do not withstand temperature extremes, however, acrylic lends itself well to painting and grinding to a perfectly even state;
• silicone- they are more plastic, resistant to compression and deformation loads, have good adhesion, but are not suitable for further staining.

Work progress:

1. Clean the cracks from dust and dirt, dry if necessary.
2. Provide stable temperature and humidity conditions.
3. Squeeze the sealant into the space between the floorboards.
4. Spread the composition evenly with a spatula, spatula or gloved fingers.
5. Remove excess with a dry cloth.

Sealing compounds do not require special efforts when filling. The gun, with which a portion of the sealant is supplied, creates the necessary pressure and allows you to tightly fill the holes.

Each of the above methods for eliminating cracks in a wooden floor is proven and effective. In order for the result to meet expectations, it is necessary to pre-prepare the surface and carefully follow the application technology.

A wooden floor is beautiful, warm and environmentally friendly, but during operation it can bring a lot of trouble. One of these problems can be gaps. To solve this issue, you need to figure out how it is possible to close the cracks in the wooden floor.

When needed

Sealing cracks in a wooden floor may be needed in various situations, the reason for which is the same - drying out of the boards:

• if the floor creaks;
• when repairing and replacing flooring;
• if the apartment was flooded;
• violation of the technology of laying boards.

Drying of boards is one of the most common causes of cracks.

These are not all options, but the most common. In any case, if a major repair is being carried out for any reason, you will need to fix the gaps in the floor with your own hands.

Ways to eliminate gaps

There are many options to help deal with the problem. The choice depends on the design features of the floor, the available materials and the type of flooring:

• the use of building foam with foam (suitable for eliminating gaps between the wall and the flooring);
• the use of sawdust mixed with an adhesive composition;
• wood putty;
• composition consisting of paste and pieces of paper;
• cord closure;
• driving rails and wedges;
• tow;
• a mixture of epoxy glue with cement;
• thick oil paint with sawdust;
• sheets of plywood (for difficult cases, when there are a lot of gaps in the floor);
• sealing with sealant.

Depending on the complexity of the situation, you can use any of these options. Further details about the technology of the most common methods.

Before starting work with your own hands, you need to clean the surface of the boards from dirt, dust and debris.

You can treat the wood with an antiseptic. This will extend the service life and protect against damage by various microorganisms. After that, you can fill or putty cracks.

Construction foam

Used for the perimeter of the room. Work is carried out in the following order:

• remove skirting boards, clean the surface from dirt and dust;
• if necessary, pieces of foam are placed in the slot;
• fill the gap space with foam;
• wait for the drying time and cut off the excess;
• next you need to putty the surface;
• after the putty dries, install the plinth.

A universal solution for repairing a wooden floor is building foam - it does not retract, does not shrink

sawdust with glue

Suitable for embedding anywhere. Executed in the following order:

A mixture of sawdust with glue should have a consistency similar to thick sour cream

• small sawdust in a convenient container is poured with boiling water and mixed until a homogeneous mass;
• wait for swelling and cooling time, mix;
• add an adhesive composition (PVA or carpentry) to the mixture and mix thoroughly;
• apply the composition to the coating with a spatula and tamp it inward without effort;
• the composition is leveled and excess is removed;
• drying time - 2-3 days;
• after drying, polishing or scraping of the coating is performed.

There is a second option for preparing the composition - with the addition of cement. It is prepared as follows:

• 2 parts of glue are mixed with 15 parts of warm water;
• 5 parts of cement and 5 parts of sawdust are added to the solution;
• the mass is mixed and infused for 5-7 minutes.

Use this composition must be warmed up. The disadvantage is a long time for complete drying due to the presence of cement (about 2 weeks).

Putty

Suitable for small gaps. Best used as a preparatory step before plywood flooring. Disadvantages - fragility, cracking and scattering. Allows you to easily prepare the mixture without complicated operations. The work is carried out in this order:

• prepare a solution and a tool - a narrow rubber spatula;
• putty is applied to the surface of the joints, while it must be pressed into the cracks;
• drying of the composition;
• leveling with the use of means of abrasive processing.

Putty quickly eliminates cracks, but over time again requires repair of the floor

Do-it-yourself putty allows you to quickly get rid of cracks, but soon the repair may again.

Driving rails and wedges

Stages of work:

• preparation of rails narrowed at the bottom and matching the size of the slot;
• processing rails and slots with PVA glue;
• gluing the rail into the slot, hammering with a rubber hammer or a regular one, but through a wooden board;
• if necessary, after the glue has dried with a planer, the protruding part of the wedges and rails is removed;
• leveling the color of the floor with stain or staining.

Floor repair with battens and wedges

Tow patch

The material is treated with an adhesive composition. After that, the tow is tamped into the cracks. After the glue dries, you can paint the floor in one color. The material is made from linen, so it has a high degree of environmental friendliness and safety.

Suitable for wide gaps if the floor is badly damaged and needs to be reinforced. In this case, it is not effective to apply sealing of individual slots. Plywood allows you to carry out work with minimal labor costs.

plywood laying process

Order of execution:

1. If necessary, putty is used as a preparatory stage. You can cover up only individual flaws. Putty will increase the reliability of the repair.
2. Carry out the layout of plywood sheets on the floor, adjust the sheets to the required dimensions.
3. Fastening is carried out on self-tapping screws. In this way, you can quickly close all the existing floor imperfections at once.

sealant

For work, choose compositions based on acrylic or silicone, designed to work with wood. Advantage - no need to prepare complex compositions and ease of application. Sealant packaging usually has a convenient shape and a syringe nozzle, which is easy to fill all the cracks.

The sealant has a convenient shape and a syringe nozzle, which can easily fill all the cracks

It doesn’t matter which method is used to fix the problem, putty, other compounds or materials, you need to follow the technology and carefully prepare the floor surface. This will delay the next overhaul of the floor.

For centuries, people have used wood as flooring in their homes. Of course, modern options made of high-quality materials began to replace wooden floors, but many people even now, contrary to fashion trends, prefer eco-friendly and practical wood products.

However, the wooden floor has its own characteristics, which are associated with the gradual formation of cracks in them. This feature entails a number of unpleasant moments associated with creaking, clogging of these spaces with household dust, and most importantly, the flow of cold air into the home. Therefore, those who decide to make a wooden floor should immediately consider options for how to close up cracks in a wooden floor. Fortunately, over the years, people have learned to eliminate this nuance with the help of various modern methods and materials.

Process features

The formation of gaps between the boards covering the floor is an inevitable process. The more often repairs and rearrangement of furniture take place in the house, the faster the wear of the wooden coating occurs. If you take care of the floor, take care of it, provide optimal temperature conditions in the apartment, try to distribute the load created by the weight of the furniture, then it will last a very long time. With careful use, the tree will dry out, but not much.

Small gaps are easy to close with a simple cosmetic floor repair. in a variety of ways available to almost everyone. Closing up large spaces that have been formed for a long time will be very labor-intensive due to the large amount of work.

There are several options for repairing wooden floors:

• cosmetic(does not require serious interventions in the floor surface, it is performed only on its surface in the area of ​​​​spaces);
• partial(assumes local dismantling of boards);
• global dismantling(replacement of the cover is complete).

Of course, no one wants to change the entire floor. But if we are talking about large gaps, damage to the battens on which the flooring is fixed, then complete dismantling is the ideal solution. With the help of auxiliary tools, old boards are removed, inspected for defects and those that are suitable for reuse are selected.

Boards in which cracks are found are subjected to repair work. If possible, completely damaged floorboards are thrown away, replacing them with new ones. Reinforcing logs are also inspected and dismantled if it is clear that they will not last long (the strength of the log is essential, because it is their condition that determines the reliability of the floor itself).

When all floorboards are repaired and replaced, each floorboard is carefully matched to each other so that there are no gaps or differences in height. If necessary, such defects are smoothed out with a planer.

If the floor is damaged locally, these operations are carried out only in the area that requires replacement of the floorboards.

Reasons for the appearance

Cracks in wood are a natural process in this material. Do not take this issue seriously. The main thing is to understand the reason why changes occurred in the tree that led to the formation of voids and gaps, since repairing the floor can be a waste of time and money if the provoking factor is not eliminated.

The most common cause is drying out of wood. due to low humidity. Despite the fact that it changes seasonally, and in the off-season, when the humidity on the street is quite high due to the large amount of precipitation and the boards are also saturated with moisture, the damaged floorboards, alas, cannot return to their original state, as they are irrevocably deformed.

The problem of humidity can be removed with the help of special humidifiers and the right temperature. indoors, focusing on the installed thermohygrometers.

The optimal humidity range for wood is about 40-50%.

The second reason for the drying of the boards may be due to the initially incorrect laying of the floor covering. Firstly, it depends on the screed: if it is not properly dried, then the residual moisture will be absorbed into the flooring and contribute to its deformation in the future. The screed should dry for at least a month. Its humidity at the time of laying the floor should not exceed more than 3-5%.

The durability of the flooring is affected by the humidity of the plywood placed under the boards.. Before installation, it must be properly dried so as not to transfer excess moisture into the plank floor.

The adhesive that is used when laying wood flooring also contains a large amount of moisture. It easily evaporates from the wood during the drying period only if the floor is not yet varnished. So in order to avoid an unpleasant situation, you need to leave a clean floor for the glue to dry completely for about a week, but only then paint and varnish it.

If a wooden floor is laid in a private house, where the boards are more massive and thick, glue is chosen with a minimum amount of solvents or without them at all, so that a thick layer of wood does not retain excess moisture. Whereas narrow boards (the floor of which can be found in the old "Khrushchev") cope with this task more easily.

The third reason for the formation of cracks in the wooden floor is the type of wood. The most capricious in this regard are materials made of ash, cherry or beech.. They are able to easily give up moisture when the temperature in the room rises and take it away under appropriate conditions. Such fluctuations inevitably lead to a change in the density and geometry of the board. For the middle lane Oak is the most resistant to moisture changes.. Tropical tree species cope very well with this problem.

In any case, if the problem of cracks has arisen, you need to fix it.

It is important that the restoration of the floor (sealing cracks, grinding, varnishing) will be most justified and effective when stable humidity is maintained in the room for a long time.

How and what to troubleshoot?

Depending on the degree of damage to the floor, choose the most optimal way to repair it. The most famous method of redecorating small cracks and cracks in a wooden floor is to fill them with special semi-liquid compounds (building foam, sealants, putty and other multi-component mixtures). They can be made independently or purchased ready-made at a hardware store.

If the tree is severely deformed and wide gaps appear, they can be removed using foam plastics, narrow planks or rope cords. This is a rather laborious method, but more durable than the first. Perhaps the most expensive and time-consuming floor repair is the complete or partial replacement of damaged floorboards.

Semi-liquid formulations

When the floors are still far from being dismantled or the replacement of old boards is not possible, but the gaps already cause a number of inconveniences, special semi-liquid mixtures are used to fill them.

When choosing a filling mixture for floor repair, you need to focus on those compositions that are suitable for woodworking. For sealing small seams silicone sealant can be used. Pigments are added to the composition of this material. Thus, you can choose a sealant that is ideal for the color of the floor. This composition has good adhesive characteristics in relation to wood. Apply it with a staple of rubber or plastic, evenly distributing and leveling the surface with it.

After the mixture hardens, a smooth surface is obtained that does not absorb moisture and does not collapse under the influence of detergents. This, and the advantage that the material of this sealant does not crumble and is not removed from the cracks throughout the entire life of the floor, makes it very competitive.

Acrylic sealants are used similarly to this material.. The only difference is that the closed gaps will have to be painted over, since dyes are not added to this mixture.

Concerning gypsum putties, they are also very popular when repairing a wooden floor mainly due to its low price. Like the previous mixtures, putty is applied with a staple and wait until it dries. Then the application is repeated, since when dried, a large amount of moisture evaporates and the material shrinks.

After the final layer has dried, the surface of the seams must be treated with sandpaper and painted over with the selected paint. The putty material does not polymerize, like the sealants described above, so over time it may crack and the seams will have to be sealed again.

Epoxy putties are considered more practical.. Due to the high degree of adhesion and low shrinkage coefficient, this mixture is widely used to seal cracks and crevices up to 5 cm. After hardening, a very durable composition is formed that does not require re-treatment.

Many craftsmen use self-prepared mixtures.

The most famous option is PVA glue and sawdust.. Also often used are compounds with epoxy resin, cement and pieces of foam or polyurethane foam. After drying, the seams are treated with sandpaper and painted in the color of the floor, then varnished.

Sealing method

When the width of the slots is more than 3 cm, and the boards "walk" among themselves, they resort to the method of sealing the seams.

You can repair the "playing" floor with your own hands:

• To begin with, they clean the cracks from dust (using a vacuum cleaner, brushes), carry out wet cleaning, dry.
• Measure the width and length of the gap.
• A wedge-shaped rail is cut out of a dense wooden profile.
• Carpentry glue is applied to the side surfaces of the manufactured rail, and the space of the gap is also filled with glue, liberally lubricating the surfaces of the parted boards.
• The rail is driven into the gap with a hammer, the protruding glue is wiped off and left for a day.
• After that, the surface is treated with a planer, sanded with sandpaper and covered with paint or varnished the floor.

A rope cord can be used as a masking element. Making repairs to the floor with a rope is easy. This product is ideal for making repairs in wooden log cabins and country houses. Choose a dense polyethylene or tow rope, cut to the desired length (you can use a double rope for deep gaps). Drive the cord tightly into the space between the floorboards.

To make the repaired floor look neat, you can cover the surface of the rope with a thin layer of colored sealant and level it with a staple.

Coating replacement

If in the old dacha the floor is rotten or deteriorated due to moisture, very large gaps have appeared from which it blows, or rodents have “worked”, the above methods are unlikely to work. Of course, you can do without parsing the floor by covering it with plywood sheets, but this option is not always justified, especially when it comes to mice. It is best to re-lay old boards. This will not only get rid of cracks, but also eliminate mouse moves.

To get rid of the old floor, first remove the baseboards, change the damaged logs, inspect the area under the floor for mold and mousehole. If there are traces of mold, the surfaces are treated with special antibacterial and antifungal compounds. Places of penetration of rodents close up with a mixture of cement and broken glass, and then proceed to replace the old coating.

If you want to change the boards locally, you need to pay attention to the joints of the old boards and the newly laid ones (if necessary, they are adjusted with a planer, putty, encrypted with coarse sandpaper).

Squeak Elimination

With careless operation and non-observance of optimal conditions, the wooden floor inevitably begins to deform, creating an unpleasant creak. The easiest way to eliminate annoying sound is to fill the cracked spaces with mounting foam. This option is well suited for cracks under the baseboards, as they are able to hide the uneven surface of the hardened foam. However, this method is short-lived: this material is gradually destroyed during operation, and the floor creaks again.

If the task is to remove the creaky floor forever, then this option is not worth the money spent. It is better to turn to more complex, but reliable methods. You can solve the problem of a creaky floor using the same wedge-shaped rails.

Another interesting and effective option that will allow get rid of floor squeak - installation of metal anchors. This type of product solves the problem only for a wooden floor laid on a concrete base.. This very effective method is very labor-intensive, especially if the scale of the problem surface is impressive.

For work on installing anchors, you will need a drill or puncher, dowels and the anchors themselves. Through the board, through the material of the logs, a hole is made into the concrete base. A dowel is driven in, and the log is reinforced with anchors. It is necessary to take into account the high cost of this method, proportional to the size of the room. When calculating the number of structures, it should be borne in mind that the distance between them should not exceed one meter.

If ordinary nails were originally used when installing the floor, it is possible that the creaking occurs as a result of the friction of the wood against the body of the nail.

In this case, especially if there are a lot of cracks in the floor, you should not skimp and update the old boards, and replace the nails with self-tapping screws that will not make such noise.

Dismantling the floor completely is a laborious process, but removing deformed floorboards and old nailing will not only get rid of the squeak, but also allow you to insulate the room due to the absence of cracks.

Of the simple methods of dealing with creaking floorboards, laying thick sheets of plywood over wood flooring is used. Such a floor will be quiet for a while, but it is not a fact that this problem will not recur after.

Painting

The process of restoring a wooden floor is completed by painting and varnishing it. Before painting, you need to check the condition of the boards again, and if there are cracks, carefully putty them.

When choosing paint for a wooden floor, consider:

• type of wood;
• climatic conditions in the room;
• degree of wear;
• previous coating (if the boards are old).

If we consider floor varnishing, you should know that this option is not suitable if:

• the previous coating of the wooden floor was treated with oil compositions such as drying oil;
• the indoor humidity level will be too high (e.g. outdoor terraces).

There are several types of flooring: water-dispersion paints, oil coatings and wax paints.

Water-based paint is best used if people with allergies or asthma live in the apartment.

The oldest method of treating a wooden floor with oil is considered. This method is distinguished by its economy and safety. Wood oils, refined soy and sunflower bases, as well as synthetic and natural resins are used as bases. Oil and resin have a bactericidal effect and soften the friction of the boards against each other. In addition, an oiled floor does not absorb moisture well (it will not be scary to flood the floor) and does not actively remove it, so cracks will form less often.

After the floor is covered with oil, it is necessary to fix the result with wax. Previously, everywhere in rich noble houses they used wax for rubbing the floor. The waxed floor can be found in the "Stalinka". And now, with the help of wax bases, old, strong, but worn floors are restored to give them a fresh, updated look. Wax compositions are made from an oil base with the addition of beeswax and additional components that increase the elasticity of the composition. A tree treated in this way looks expensive and soundly.

To effectively restore an old wooden floor, before starting such a difficult job, you need to take into account some of the nuances.

Not every putty is suitable for sealing joints in wood in a "stalinka". For example, if cracks in a cedar, beech or chestnut floor are repaired, then acrylic putty cannot be used. When interacting with varnish, nitro solvents can give blue spots on the surface of the boards, therefore, when using such compounds, it is advisable not to varnish the floors. The ideal option would be a colored sealant. With it, you can make simple repairs to small cracks in almost any wood.

If the wooden flooring is badly damaged, but it is not possible to change it, you can cover and strengthen it with plywood sheets, but you should first fill in deep cracks so that they do not blow out later.

Replacing an old wooden floor is not difficult, but it is even easier to use it carefully, then it will last for decades and remain in excellent condition.

How to close the gaps between the boards of the laminate, see below.

During the operation of residential premises in apartments or houses, situations arise when spaces of different sizes and depths are formed between the wall and the floor. There is a need to repair them, but not only because they spoil the appearance of the living space, but also because it is a direct source of drafts, dampness penetration into the rooms, which brings hordes of insects, mold and flexibility.

Therefore, it is extremely important that once such a problem is discovered, it should be fixed immediately. Carrying out the work will not take much effort and time, it involves following several stages:

• Determining the size of the gap - length and depth;
• Based on the scale of future work, the material with which the hole will be sealed is selected.

To seal very small gaps (about 1 cm), you can take mortars of putty, mounting gypsum or cement. Larger gaps (2-5 cm) must be filled with mounting foam. If the damage is much larger (from 5 cm or more), then you need to resort to more serious work and the use of other materials. Below is a consistent technology for eliminating gaps between the wall and the floor of any complexity.

Preparation for work

Sealing such gaps falls into the category of cosmetic repairs. Preparation depends on what decor elements your walls or floor are decorated with. If there is a plinth, it must be removed, the wallpaper removed, the paint layer cleaned and removed, and the whitewash washed off. In the latter case, you need to let the wall dry completely. Remove all dust and dirt that may interfere with the quality fixation of the embedding materials.

If the sealing takes place in a room where you do not plan to carry out a complete repair, then the wallpaper needs to be removed only partially, or try to carefully tear off the strip from the wall so that after the work is completed, glue it back, returning the wall to its original appearance. All surfaces that may get dirt during the repair process must be protected with film, paper and securely fixed - this will avoid additional costs when putting things in order. Such measures will keep the floor and walls from mounting foam, plaster and paint. Paper or newspapers should not be used if there is a lot of water in the workplace - it is useless as a protective material in this case.

The goal is a big gap

Suitable sized pieces of brick, styrofoam, styrofoam, or plastic are ideal for filling the hole. If the parts are large, then they need to be broken or broken - small filling components guarantee that they will lie inside the hole as tightly as possible and carefully fill the cavity. Be careful that when filling the volume of the gap, you do not deform the existing hole and do not expand it.

These materials will help you save expensive mounting foam, which should be poured into the gap after the previous materials. Practice shows that with the use of bricks or other fillers, only one bottle of mounting foam is required to restore even very large damage.

You should not fill it to the eyeballs, because it tends to expand several times. Fill the remaining space by about a third, in very severe cases - by half. If the layer turns out to be very large, then apply it not at once, but in parts, allowing the previous layer to fully expand and harden. This will reduce the risk of overfilling and subsequent foam tatters falling out, and as a result, it will save foam volume.

Target is a medium to small gap

The ideal option for filling such holes would be soft, plastic materials with a high density - tow or construction felt. To prevent such materials from becoming a refuge for pests, they must be thoroughly impregnated with insecticidal substances before filling, formalin most often plays their role.

The material is rolled into small rolls, the diameter of which should be slightly larger than the size of the gap, and applied to the gap. Further, with the help of a small rubber or wooden hammer, the roll is gently but surely hammered into the hollow space of the damage. It is advisable to fill the void with a single piece of material, without small parts, so that unnecessary cavities do not form between them.

If the gap is so small that you can’t physically stuff the tow into it, then a soft spatula and plastic gypsum mortar will come to the rescue. The technology is simple - apply a strip of gypsum to the tip of the spatula and apply to the damage, then gently press. This will allow the mortar to fill the entire cavity and immediately fill the wall surface to minimize preparation for finishing.

To save the surrounding area from dirt, you can use self-adhesive construction fabric (which will not work if you already have wallpaper) or the above methods. After the gap is completely clogged, the formalin dries out - you can decorate the seam.

Gap between baseboard and wall or floor

It usually forms when old walls warp or wooden baseboards dry out. Such an error is repaired very simply - with the help of acrylic sealant, modern stores provide a choice of any colors and shades. The cylinder is installed in a special sealant supply device and applied over the distance between the elements.

Rules for working with mounting foam

Two-thirds of cases still require the active use of mounting foam, even in small quantities. Therefore, it is important to figure out how to use it correctly. The recommendations are:

• Before filling the cavity, its surface must be slightly moistened with ordinary water. To do this, it is advisable to use a mechanical spray gun or a bottle with holes in the lid. This is done to better fix the foam inside the damage.
• When filling it is necessary to remember the ability of the foam to expand. In addition, wetting the surface will only enhance this effect. The foam must be applied carefully, carefully, little by little.
• Ideal working conditions with it are from five to twenty-five degrees Celsius. The cylinder must be heated in water with the appropriate temperature.
• Before use, the container with foam must be thoroughly shaken.
• Work should be carried out only in goggles and gloves - the foam is very caustic, it adheres firmly to all things and objects. In case of accidental contact with clean surfaces, it is recommended to remove the foam only after complete drying, and wipe off the foam that has not yet hardened with a special solvent.
• Hardened foam is removed with a sharp knife.

Finishing the wall after repairing the damage

Remove excess foam so that a small depression remains at the seam. It will be filled with a small layer of putty or gypsum with a spatula and brought to the same level with the wall. After the layer of mortar has dried, there will be no trace of the gap. From above, the wall can be finished in all sorts of ways - attach a plinth, paint, glue wallpaper, tile, plastic, wood, and so on.

Conclusion

Such damage between the floor and walls is desirable to detect and repair before the start of finishing work, so as not to damage the already existing finishing surfaces during work. Thus, the work will be completed faster and at a lower cost. If the sealing takes place in a clean room, then precautions should not be neglected, especially when working with mounting foam.

Video

From the video you will learn in more detail how and with what to close the cracks.