How to Fix Warped Parawood Flooring

[janeyjacks]

I would be grateful for your help here.

When I bought my house I had solid wood flooring fitted on the ground floor. However, it has warped repeatedly. I don't know what has caused it or how to fix it. Here's the info:

Homebase parawood solid wood flooring laid onto concrete floor. We used underlay which said a DPM was not required. It was a new house but had been empty for two years before I moved in.

Boards were laid from back to front of house widthways and ran through from dining room/kitchen to hall.

About six months after fitting the floor started to warp in "waves", with several boards pushing together and rising off the floor along the length of the boards. There are three of four places where the buckling was worse.

I have had the fitter come back and try and sort this three times now. He has tried lifting the problem boards and laying new ones, removing some or all of the tongue to give a bigger expansion gap. But we've now run out of tongue to cut back and it's still happening every few months.

Is the problem likely to be high humidity? If so can I do anything about it? As a last resort is it possible to screw the floor down, or will this just cause it to split? Is this a problem with the flooring that I can take up with the shop?

Grateful for any suggestions please.

 

[AronSearle]

Just googled them, they are 400mm wide?

Is the problem likely to be high humidity?

Get a timber moisture meter and measure the moisture content of the timber, the fitter should have one (but probably doesn't).

Is this a problem with the flooring that I can take up with the shop?

The boards are expanding, whether this is because of "excessive" humidity/moisture, or just seasonal changes can't be determined without knowing the moisture content.

400mm for a board is quite wide, even on an engineered board you have to allow for some seasonal movement, quiz the manufacturer on the movement characteristics of the board.

I assume they are floating, for them to buckle upwards means that when they expand, they can't do so, so buckle up.

Did the floor layer allow for movement around the perimeter of the room, normally 10-15mm. If he did, has this gap closed up (If he didn't hit him with a spare floorboard)

 

[janeyjacks]

Aron - thanks. I will check this out with the guy who fitted them. He didn't leave that large an expansion gap - we did debate this at the time but he said solid wood didn't need one...so in some places there is a 5mm gap and some none at all. There is a gap in the places where the floor is buckling though.

These are the floorboards:

http://www.homebase.co.uk/webapp/wc...ay?langId=110&storeId=10151&partNumber=274567

Yes, and the floor is glued/floating.

Thanks for your help.