Dry Air Hardwood Floor

Your hardwood floor during the dry season.

Dry air hardwood floor.

Customers begin to notice gaps between boards and the phone calls begin. Acclimation arizona is dry. Engineered wood floors in dry climates. Summer ventilation tends to add moisture to flooring.

We have to find ways to successfully install wood floors in a dry climate. Beyond what is necessary for human health and safety more is not better. When the moisture in the wood floors is sucked out due to the dry climate the boards can start to shrink and cup and leave your floors looking terrible. Cupped flooring looks bad but it s almost always reversible.

During the winter even the most carefully installed wood floors tend to dry out and shrink. Hot air rises so using a heater may involve having to heat an entire room before it starts to dry out a floor. Hardwood flooring dryness problems. Warm air holds more moisture than cold air so heating a wet surface will cause it to dry faster.

This makes us relatively stable compared to other areas of the country that can range from. Check for mold and rotting one of the biggest concerns with water damage and hardwood flooring is the potential for mold and rotting of the wood a problem that can t always be seen immediately. Additionally using fans and dehumidifiers is often necessary to dry out the hardwood floor thoroughly after the wet vac has done its job. For example if the air in the room is quite dry as it can become during the winter or because of air conditioning in the summer and or there is moisture trapped under the floor from a spill or even residual condensation your floor will be at risk of cupping.

While too much moisture can be detrimental to wood flooring the complete lack of moisture may be just as bad. The floor behaves that way because of wood s relationship with moisture in the air there s no accounting for how the customers behave although educating them about gaps. An effective step in reducing floor issues is to reduce ventilation and air infiltration as much as possible. As with any climate really making sure that your floors are acclimated to your indoor climate is the key to extending the life of your hardwood floors.

Wood shrinks and expands in accordance. During the winter when homes are heated and the air is dry wood flooring loses some of its moisture and contracts or shrinks as a result. Winter ventilation tends to dry flooring. Place it in the center of the room and leave it on for at least 24 hours.

We do experience humidity but it happens during our hottest time of the year when hvac units are running nonstop pulling moisture from our air. While the wood flooring appears dry water could have penetrated throughout the plank as you can t remove it with the wet vacuum. This can take a long time and is not the most efficient use of energy. Using heat drying to dry a floor can be tricky.

Outside air is not the friend of wood flooring.