I need to know how to fix this crack in my wood flooring In the picture, you can see that the crack is raised slightly
We have a new puppy and after his last accident, I sprayed Nature's Miracle Enzymatic Cleaner and let it sit overnight instead of wiping it after I sprayed it. I'm not sure if that's what caused this, but that's the only thing I can remember occurring in that specific spot.
Any ideas on what I can do?
For reference: I cross-posted this to /r/homeimprovement
The Seattle townhouse my parents briefly owned was certainly an interesting place to live. We packed our belongings through the front door in August and were out soon after. I remember being pretty ticked off that we had to move again, it was our third new house in two years.
The first day we moved in, Mom and Dad seemed so excited. They owned a few galleries and as such had a lot of fun hanging all the different art on the walls. I guess all the crown molding and vintage fireplaces were enough to get them to look the other way when it came to deeper problems. It was drafty and cold. The years of rainstorms battering the walls gave the place a terrible smell of mildew. The road beside the house was a pretty busy thoroughfare, meaning you could hear cars passing at every hour of the night.
“Look, Michael! Isn’t this room just perfect for you?” Mom said as she slid my box through the door. It was barely big enough to be called a bedroom.
"I guess." I sniffed. "I don't see why Hannah got the bigger room."
"Well, she's younger and has more toys than you. I'm sure you can underst...."
Mom was cut off by a scratching noise coming suddenly from over our heads. We both stared at the ceiling and followed the sound with our eyes as it seemed to go in circles, until settling in the center of the room.
"Oh great, I think we have rats up there. I'll tell your father so he can start setting traps." She ruffled my hair. "Have fun setting up. I'm gonna go start dinner."
Mom barely made it through the doorway before being bowled over by Hannah, who was carrying one of her stuffed animals. "Mikey, I can't decide where to put Green Bear! Can you come help me?"
I wanted to tell her to shove off but thought better of it and turned to follow her out of the room.
The scratching noises started up again. Hannah looked up with a confused expression as they seemed to be mimicking our movements. "What's that? Is there a...a monster in the attic?"
"No, peas-for-brains, it's just some mice. Dad will take care of them soon."
Hannah gulped. "I don't like those noises. I hope Dad goes up there tonight."
As we walked into her room, I paused to look up at the door to the attic on the hallway ceiling, the chain to pull the ladder down swinging ominously.
I remember my dad remarking on that, saying how it was odd, and further proof of the draft in the old house.
He pulled the chain down and the ladder unfolded, opening up to welcome him into the darkness above. Taking confident
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As I learn more about the DIY world, I recently learned my Mom's house has really inefficient. First thing that probably needs to be addressed is the minimal (or lack of) insulation between the 2nd floor at the attic. She doesn't believe there is any - maybe theres an inch or two of old blown-in if we're lucky?
I want to be able to make her situation better. The house is old - built around 1940 - and the attic is just wooden floorboards. I'm trying to decide what options are available...
The easiest thing I could consider would be to do blown insulation under the floorboards - the attic is currently used for storage and there is a LOT of stuff right now. I'm thinking maybe you can pull up a couple boards across the length of the attic and blow in some insulation?
The depth of the flooring is probably only ~6 inches, so not a lot... but it would be something...
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I feel like the long term idea would be to move everything to one half of attic, pull up the floor boards, add some more wood on top of the current floor support (to create like 8-12" of space for insulation), put in a ton of sheet insulation, then reinstall the floorboards so there is still a floor usable for storage. Then repeat on the other side.
Pretty new to insulation and projects this intensive.... any advice would be helpful!
A couple of weeks ago, I spilled a cup of water in my rented condo unit. Basically, I was draining the filter in the wssher-dryer and experienced a spill. The amount of water was no more than a cup.
I wiped it up quickly, but a few days later, I noticed that three of the floorboards wherein the spill took place were buckling upwards. It is also worth mentioning that the floorboards are about two feet by two feet in size, if not smaller, and they occupy the space in front of the washer-dryer and washroom entrance.
Also, I live in Toronto, Canada, and it is the winter time. It is quite cold here now.
With that said, through some online research, I ended up buying a small dehumidifier, I placed it over the floorboards, and I had it running for four days straight, plus I had a 50-pound kettlebell on top of the floorboards for four days straight. After all of that, the buckling is still there.
Will my floorboards go back to normal eventually, when the weather changes, and/or given enough time? What else can I do?
Photograph: http://imgur.com/gallery/gAzi5GM.
I’ve been thinking about pouring something over the top but I need something that can seep in there to hold it all in place... is there a thin caulk I could use? Hot glue?
Going to sleep and left the light on? Tough
Left the door open? Oh well
Need to work at your desk? Climb onto your chair from your bed or strategically plan your route ahead of time in order to avoid the creaky bits
Need to tidy up? Kneel on your bed and lean over to pick the things up. You can occasionally move to your wardrobe but you need to stay still once your there
If your siblings come into talk to you, you're gonna be the one in trouble
If you go into your siblings room, you're still going to be the one in trouble
If your mother sees your room when it's messy, hahah your mother now hates you for a week and if it's messy enough, congratulations, you're homeless.
For the first 6 you might be lucky enough not to get yelled at but you'll deal with her being passive aggressive be for the entire day instead.
Dear mum,
You’re the reason I know which floorboard creak and how to walk on my toes to avoid making a sound.
You’re the reason I can be fast asleep but wake up from someone touching my door handle.
You’re the reason I wake up whenever I hear my fiancée open her door.
You’re the reason I hold my breath when grabbing a drink.
You’re the reason I have BED and feel like I need to scarf down my food as quick as possible.
You’re the reason I’m so so ashamed of being hungry.
You’re the reason I bypass anger and frustration and go straight to crying.
You’re the reason I can’t have females yelling at me.
But most importantly:
You’re the reason I moved away. To a different country.
You’re the reason I have a great life now because my one goal in life is to be happy, not because of you, but in spite of you.
Sincerely, Fuck you.
EDITED TO ADD: holy shit this blew up way more than I expected. My heart bleeds for those of you who have experienced the same as me. Know that your trauma is valid and that you’re loved beyond words by your internet family.
