Wood floor pops in winter

Q: We had engineered oak hardwood glued down to our concrete subfloor in the lower level of our back split. It was done by a flooring company. They said the glue would allow the wood to float. It has been in 3 years and the only problem is that in the winter there are certain parts of the floor that pop when you walk on them.

It is not in all areas and only happens in the winter. During the warmer months I don’t notice any play in the floor. The edges of the strips are not buckling. Are wood floor pops something that we should worry about?

A: If it has been down 3 years without buckling, I wouldn’t start to worry prematurely. It might be that there was a bit of a recession in that spot that makes the noise and there wasn’t a good grab between the adhesive and flooring. I would try to keep the RH in the home between 35-40% in winter.

Leave a Comment