Humid conditions in your home or business premises can play havoc with your hardwood flooring, causing warping and significant changes to the size and shape of your wood. A reliable hardwood flooring installation company will always advise you on the best type of wood for each individual room, but as a general rule of thumb it’s worth remembering that real wood is best kept out of wet, humid places and laminate is a better option in such areas. Hardwood flooring is an investment that you want to protect so it is important to understand the impact that humidity can have.
At different times of year the humidity in your home or place of work will vary. For example in winter you will find that the humidity is less as central heating and gas or electric fires dry out the air. When this happens it is usual for wooden floor panels to shrink and contract. This will lead to small gaps appearing between the boards. If you have a hardwood floor you should be prepared for this and not be too alarmed.
When its summer time and the humidity rises the opposite will happen to your wooden floor. At this time of year the boards will expand and warp. Now a certain amount of humidity won’t do too much harm but if the humidity level rises to above 65% then you could find that the wooden panels expand so much that they crack and cup. To avoid this happening you need to ensure that you have a dehumidifier installed prior to the floor being installed to remove the humidity from the room.
If there is too much humidity in the air the boards may cup – this is where the edges of the boards rise and the middle sinks. This can be reversed with a humidifier but unfortunately if the cupping leads to boards cracking then you will have to have these boards replaced which can be a costly business. Buying a humidifier will be more cost effective than continuously replacing your hardwood wooden floor boards.
Now if this has left you wondering if you have too much humidity in your home or business premises and you are unsure of what to do we will be able to assist. We can tell you if there is a lot of humidity present and advise you on the best course of action before installing a new floor.