The Layers of Flooring

1/24/2022 (Permalink)

The different layers of flooring in your home or business can play an important factor in the drying process.

If your house is affected by a water loss, if the damage is substantial, it might require your flooring to be removed. When we start removing flooring , we will want to remove everything down to the subfloor to speed up drying. In some older homes we find that there is more then one layer to get down to the subfloor because new flooring had been installed over the old one instead of having the old flooring removed, in one instance we removed 5 layers of flooring. This can be problematic for several reasons: 

• One common issue is squeaks. Any movement in any layer can cause this issue, and the more layers, the more potential for this to happen.  
• Another common issue is floor height. When additional layers are added, this can cause doors not to close and trim to look short. Maybe a fridge that will no longer slide under that cabinet, or a stove that you can no longer make flush with the countertop. 

• When you nail or glue a new floor over the existing one it makes your new floor only as strong as the old one. If your old flooring fails, the new flooring will also be quick to follow.  
• Lastly if a water loss happens the restoration process can be lengtheir and more expensive.  

If your home or business experiences a water loss the best thing to do is act fast, the quicker you can get someone out to start the extraction and drying process the less severe the damage. The water damage process starts immediately and can quickly turn into a bigger problem, give SERVPRO of Northeast Wichita a call as we are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year (316) 684-6700.