Richard Tramill wrote:
I bought a new house in 2004 and have had trouble with the floors creaking and
popping. The builder came no less than 4 times during the 1st year to make
repairs. 4yrs later i’m still having the same trouble only worse. I know this
can’t be normal. What do I need to do?
Richard, As long as I can remember pops & squeaks have been a problem with wood framed floors. If the builder came that many times there have probably been a combination of repairs made consisting of blocking, screws, nails & shims. The majority of the pops & squeaks have always seemed to be where the screws or nails either missed or only partially made it into the joist. Other causes of pops & squeaks can can be uneven girder intersections, the bottom wall plate on top of the sub-floor, & the bridging. In your case I would recommend going back to square one, meaning, remove the previous attempts at repair (chances are they have become another source of squeaks) If you house is only 4 years old the vinyl installed was most likely a loose lay that can be laid over one side at a time to get to those areas of the floor & where there is carpet it will need to be pulled back so that you can go through & screw down the entire floor. A huge back & time saver are the drive systems that are about 3 ft long & drill powered & make sure you have a professional cut & seam the carpet back together. I know it’s a lot of work, but it sounds like it has come to that point & hopefully you are not going to tell me you have wood & tile floors.
Archive for the ‘Ask a Home Inspector’ Category
Squeaky Floors
Wednesday, February 20th, 2008Help With A Dead Outlet
Monday, February 11th, 2008Mike S says,
I just moved into a house & one outlet didn’t work. I used my tester & none of the lights came on. It’s not a switched outlet & it looks like it is hooked up right (black & white wires going to the right places)
So everyone knows what the right places are for the black & white wires are, black goes to the brass terminal & white to the silver, B to B may be easier to remember.
More than likely the problem is going to be the first connection upstream. Pull the nearest likely outlets (with the circuit turned off)- the ones to the left & right as well as the outlets on the other side of the wall. The connections that seem to go bad the most are the ones inserted into the back of the outlet instead of wrapped around the screw & a lot of times when people strip the wires they will use one of the smaller sizes on the stripper & then when the wires are twisted together with pliers one of the wires will break at this point & can be hidden by the wire nut.
How To Improve Crawlspace Insulation
Sunday, February 10th, 2008Dean S asks,
I have R-19 batt insulation between the floor joists in my crawlspace. Is there anything else I can do, like installing rigid foam over tha batts, to keep out the cold?
It is usually better to spend your money insulating the crawlspace walls, sills, & rim joist. You can use either rigid foam or spray-in foam. This approach quickly & effectively insulates & air-seals the entire crawlspace. It is also important to have a vapor retarder installed on the ground of the crawlspace & remember to open the foundation vents in the warmer months & close them again when in colder weather. There is also the option of going with an encapsulated crawlspace system, but we’ll save that for another time.
Ungrounded Ground-Fault Receptacles
Friday, February 8th, 2008John L asks,
“Is there any benefit to installing a GFCI outlet to an older circuit that has no ground wire?”
A GFCI (ground-fault circuit interrupter) reduces the risk of electrocution by constantly measuring & comparing the current coming in on the hot wire with the current going out on the neutral. Any difference in the current means that electricity is flowing back to the source on some path other than the neutral wire. That other path may be through your body to the ground, & that is what a GFCI is designed to prevent.
A GFCI works as well without an equipment grounding conductor (ground) as far as preventing electrocution, But beware of using computers or other electronics on this ungrounded circuit, however. GFCI will protect people from shock, but will not protect equipment from lightning/ spike damage even with a surge protector & electronics also use the ground to dissipate static charge.
Any outlets downstream of an ungrounded GFCI outlets that have ground slots should also be labeled “no equipment ground”.
Is a Rabbit Under My Deck A Problem?
Monday, February 4th, 2008K-IntheHouse Says:
February 4th, 2008 at 2:09 pm Welcome to blogging! I am a fairly new home owner (<1 year) and have bookmarked your site as I often have questions circling my head about various things in my home and now I have a place to air those!
At the moment though, I just have one question.. after it snows, I see a rabbit trail going under my deck. Should I be worried and consider it a pest or listen to my wife and leave the poor little things alone? 
It sounds like he may be going under the deck just to find an area that is clear of snow, so unless he is chewing on something he shouldn’t be chewing on (not normally a problem with rabbits) or you need a lucky rabbit’s foot, I would, as we say in the south, leave em be.
How to Clean Out Paint In Drains?
Sunday, February 3rd, 2008homemom3 had the below question
I’m constantly having to use a broom stick to fix my sink. (not properly draining) Why? Is it possible the landlord poured excess paint before we moved in and if so how do I clean that out? (there was paint in other drains)
To check the drain for paint just remove the trap below the sink to check for debris, the trap is the elbow below the sink that always holds water in order to keep the sewer gases “trapped” & prevent them from coming back into the home.
What Causes A Laminate Floor To Bow In Spots As Temperature Changes?
Sunday, February 3rd, 2008Today Thor Schrock asked a very good question. He wants to know what causes a laminate floor to bow in spots as temperature changes. A laminate floor bowing with temperature changes is an indication of inadequate clearances at the perimeter which does not leave enough room for expansion. I hope this helps answer your question. Thanks for visiting my site and I invite you to come back anytime.
Ask A Home Inspector!
Sunday, February 3rd, 2008Hello everyone. I want to introduce a new section to my website at Clarksville Home Inspection called, Ask a Home Inspector. This special section of my web site where I take questions from the general public and answer them live! If you are a home owner, renter or have questions related to your home, feel free contact me with your question and I will answer it live on Ask A Home Inspector.
