Old floors on the other hand are likely to have gaps both along the lengths of the boards as well as at the ends due to the years and years of expansion and contraction the floor will have faced.
How to hide gaps in hardwood floors.
Failing to install the first board perfectly straight in a hardwood flooring installation.
However staining can be a bit tricky for the first timers.
How to fill gaps in prefinished hardwood floors.
Repairing permanent floor cracks photo credit.
Hardwood gaps are generally caused by one of a few installation errors.
The problem is magnified when the boards were not tightly laid in the first place.
Here you should know the right way on how to use stainable wood filler as well as applying stain following to that.
See before and after pics in video to help you visualize the difference.
Gaps in hardwood floors can be a huge visual annoyance.
While humidity may affect your hardwood floor permanent cracking is also a possible issue.
Through this concealing hack you can easily hide the fact that there was ever damage in this filled area.
Try to avoid gaps in the first place.
Another exacerbating condition is water damage.
Expansion and contractions causes hardwood floor gaps.
Hardwood takes on and loses moisture as the temperatures and the humidity rises and falls.
It may take years for gaps to show up in your hardwood floors.
Not only are they an eyesore they can also collect dirt and dust.
Avoiding hardwood floor gaps.
Whether your floors are newly installed or you ve had hardwood floors for years you can use humidifiers to reduce the likelihood of gaps.
See how to make your own wood filler and fix hardwood floor gaps.
Water logged wood will first swell then shrink as it dries out.
With older tongue and groove hardwood or even wide plank floors gaps inevitably develop between the boards mostly because the wood shrinks over time as it dries out and loses moisture content.
Gaps in wood floors not only look unsightly they can be the cause of drafts and energy inefficiency.
Have the installer perform a humidity level test because either very high or very low humidity can cause bowing splitting and warping.
Improperly acclimating the hardwoods prior to installation.
Discussing how to fix gaps in hardwood floors with wood filler.
Some finishes may also help reduce the risk of your hardwood floor drying.
Failing to keep boards straight when working.
In cases where the gaps aren t repaired by increasing the humidity levels you will need to fill these cracks.
Before installing hardwood floors it is important to acclimate the product to your home.