How to properly level wood floors. How to level wood floors. Installation of plywood on tape logs

Having completed all the work correctly, you can be sure that the wooden floor will become perfectly smooth, various irregularities will disappear, and will not affect the quality of the new coating.

How to determine the condition of a wooden floor in a house

Before laying laminate, parquet or linoleum, you should assess the condition of the wood floor and level it.

Before leveling the surface, the floor should be cleaned from the remnants of concrete coating, dust, etc., it is also necessary to eliminate all cracks and holes. This will help prevent material leakage and premature wear of the coating.

Alignment and adjustment can be done in any of these ways:

• Looping
• Self-leveling mixture
• Plywood
• Glue and sawdust

Only after analyzing the condition of the boards, you can choose the appropriate option. First of all, the boards should be examined for a predisposition to rot and the presence of insects. The main enemies of wood are insects, which lay eggs in it, while destroying the organic structure of the material.

Moreover, insects, reproducing, can destroy a tree in a few years, turning it into crumbling dust. Boards should be treated with a special solution to get rid of bark beetles.

It is worth noting that the floor made of wood does not have to be damaged, it is possible that the boards simply "led". In such situations, the floor in the house remains strong, free of insects and rot, but with some irregularities. You can install laminate flooring, but it will not last long.

How to level a wooden floor?

Looping is the best option if the boards are "led". This option is only possible if the floor is horizontal. The advantage of scraping is that such a procedure not only flattens, but also emphasizes the structure of the tree, refreshing the cut.

The disadvantages of this method can be called the laboriousness of the process, the expensive rent of the cycler.

It is necessary to cycle in a protective mask or respirator, overalls and headphones that will protect you from loud noise.

This processing includes the following steps:

• driving nails a couple of millimeters below floor level
• protection of furniture from dust
• processing by apparatus
• putty (with the help of acrylic putty of the desired color, large cracks should be hidden)
• final processing with a scraper

It is best to start from the far corner of the room. After the end of the last stage, dust should be collected with a vacuum cleaner and treated with a special solution. The floor is now ready, it can be varnished or laminated.

Leveling the wooden floor in the house

Plywood is used for leveling. Using it will allow you to correct small defects and significant horizontal deviations.

The following stages of plywood adjustment are provided:

• markings are made on the walls (a laser level is used)
• self-tapping screws are used to make "beacons"
• lags are attached with glue (plywood or timber is suitable)
• plywood sheets are placed (plywood is sawn into 4 parts)
• during the final laying, the plywood is fixed to the joists with countersunk screws

After completing the work, carefully inspect the attached plywood. Any damage and delamination of the material will lead to problems during the installation of laminate or any other covering.

The following nuances should be considered here:

• In order for the chipboard to "get used" to the humidity of the room in which it will be located, bring the sheets into the room for several days
• Cables and communications can be hidden under plywood sheets
• Plywood can be used as a topcoat or as a base for laminate, linoleum or carpet.
• If you have installed lags, then the level can be increased to 10 cm

How else can you align

To level the boards, you can install plywood directly to the floor. The support in this case will be the "waves" of the boards and the highest points of the differences.

Correct plywood alignment:

• Ideally, if the width of the boards is 10-12 cm.Then you will need a plywood board of about 10 mm
• Otherwise, you need to purchase plywood with a thickness of more than 10 mm

If the room has high humidity, then regular plywood will not work. For leveling the boards, you should choose a moisture-resistant material.

Plywood sheets are attached directly to the floor with self-tapping screws. Seal the joints with acrylic sealant.

Correction with glue and sawdust

The most commonly used method of leveling before laying the laminate is the use of sawdust and glue (putty method). The initial components are inexpensive, and the putty itself, after hardening, becomes strong, resistant to external influences. The mixture is prepared from sawdust and glue.

Leveling steps:

• installation of slats on the level
• filling the space between the slats with sawdust (each layer is poured only after the previous one has completely dried)
• checking the surface with a level
• laying the laminate after complete drying

Most often, this mixture dries up in two days. It should be noted that for some coatings, sawdust and glue putty is not reliable enough, so it is better to put plywood or other suitable material on top.

Self-leveling mixture - a universal tool for adjusting the floor

In situations where defects need to be corrected not in order to varnish it, but to lay another floor covering, self-leveling mixture is one of the most convenient and practical ways. After processing, the floor will acquire a perfectly smooth surface, and all flaws and cracks are eliminated.

Despite its name, leveling the flooring with a self-leveling compound is a very complex process. Also, this method is one of the expensive ones.

Mortars of this class consist of polymeric materials, which contributes to almost instantaneous leveling and smoothing of the new coating.

Before proceeding with the leveling process, you must carefully prepare the surface. Pour in carefully and quickly.

The main phases of gender adjustment in this way:

• movable boards are fixed, nail heads are driven in
• the surface is cleaned
• primed
• the walls are prepared, the level is determined
• lined with a special reinforced mesh (construction mesh is used for fixing) - this will allow you to extend the service life of the coating
• the mortar is poured onto the reinforced floor and processed with a spiked rubber roller
• leveled with a smooth special brush
• the surface is dried

When using this method, it is worth remembering that the floor level will rise. This factor should be taken into account, especially if the laminate is to be laid on it later.

Leveling a wooden floor with a cement screed

Experienced experts are of the opinion that if the wooden floor is strong enough or is initially laid for subsequent leveling, a cement floor screed can be used.

This method will make a rough surface with large drops almost perfectly flat.

In order to level the old wooden floor with cement, you must:

• the surface of the wooden floor is covered with a waterproofing compound
• after the layer has dried, lay a plastic wrap or roofing material. It will be correct to do it with an overlap
• the level measures the new surface
• lighthouses are laid out
• then the cement mixture is prepared

Alignment in this case will not be difficult: the cement mortar is applied to the beacons, then alignment is carried out towards the door with metal slats.

The next layer of self-leveling compound will be easy to apply.

However, there is a risk of breaking the base boards with a heavy cement mixture. In this case, you will have to remove the cover and refill the floor. Use further layers of foam or expanded clay.

Providing ventilation

Regardless of the leveling method, it is necessary to provide for the ventilation of the floor boards in advance. This will allow you to prevent the appearance of mold, mildew and various pests on the surface.

Previously, for these purposes, a hole was drilled on the surface, into which a decorative lattice was reinforced.

Alternatively, ventilate to the wall and install a decorative grill there.

If you notice something like this during alignment, do not rush to cover it up or cover it.

Leveling the floor without tearing the boards: how to choose the profitable method

Before you start leveling the floor, you need to decide which of the proposed options will be relevant and beneficial for you. This is determined based on the following criteria:

• Leveling capability
• The need to level the wood flooring
• Relatively low cost of good quality material
• Labor intensity of repair work

Leveling the wooden floor will make the log house reliable, durable and of high quality. After processing the wood in any of these ways, the floor will not bend, and the surface will be smooth and free of cracks.

It is useful, before performing all the manipulations, to watch a video describing all the stages and nuances of leveling wooden floors without breaking the board.

All the work can, of course, be done independently. If you have weighed all the pros and cons, then you can come to the conclusion that a specialist will do it both faster and better. In this case, the YouDo service will come to your aid, offering the services of professionals with extensive experience.

Ordering services from specialists

The leveling of wooden floors is assessed based on several criteria:

• Do I need to dismantle the boards
• Application of floor insulation
• The presence of another waterproofing layer
• Material cost for leveling

When planning a major overhaul in a house or apartment, there are many different aspects to consider. And the installation of new flooring is one of the central issues that needs to be addressed. In order to install new flooring in an old house or apartment with wooden floors, it is often necessary to completely dismantle them. But sometimes it is not at all necessary to do this, you can level the wooden floor, and then put laminate, tile or linoleum on it. Modern advances in building technology make it easy to do the leveling of a wooden floor with your own hands.

Wood is a material that requires regular maintenance, but over time it still warps, cracks, dries up and sags. In order for the wooden floor to look perfect, it is leveled, after which any floor covering is applied. Leveling will remove any unevenness in the wood base that could negatively affect the new flooring. This applies to both hard surfaces (laminate, tiles, parquet) and soft surfaces (linoleum, carpet). To prevent this from happening, and the new flooring is of high quality and durable, the wooden floor can be leveled in one of the following ways:

• scraping the floor;
• use self-leveling mixtures;
• using a putty based on PVA glue;
• align with plywood sheets.

Scraping the wood floor

This method of leveling a wooden floor is the simplest, but at the same time, labor-intensive and effective. Scraping the floor should be used if it is planned to use paints and varnishes as a floor covering.

The floor can be looped manually or using a special looping machine. In the first case, you will have to scrape out the entire surface using a manual cycle, remove various irregularities. This approach is terribly time consuming and cumbersome. In order to carry out all the work with minimal effort, you should use a looping machine. A significant disadvantage of scraping is the presence of a huge amount of dust.

How to level a wooden floor with a scraper:

- during scraping, a lot of dust is produced, therefore, the respiratory tract, hands, eyes, objects and surfaces should be protected from dust;

- remove any metal objects from the floor, use a doboiner and a hammer to sink all the heads of the nails into the wood, otherwise the knives can be damaged during scraping;

- we start scraping from any corner and, moving with a snake, remove the top layer of the wooden covering;

- after the first layer has been removed in the entire room, it is necessary to carry out a small cleaning and fill up all cracks and cracks with putty;

- after waiting for the putty to dry completely, you can continue to scrape the floor;

Important! The leveling of the wooden floor under the paintwork can be considered complete when the surface is perfectly flat and without gaps. Hard-to-reach places and skirting boards will have to be scraped manually with a corner cycle.

- after cycling, the room must be thoroughly vacuumed;

- before applying varnish or paint, the surface of the wooden floor must be wiped with a lint-free cloth soaked in white spirit.

Leveling with self-leveling mixture

Leveling the wooden floor with a self-leveling mixture: the base should not have large gaps and cracks

Pouring a concrete screed has always been a success with builders as an easy and affordable way to level the floor. But in houses with wooden floors, this was unacceptable due to the large mass of concrete that had to be used. Thanks to modern technology, this problem has been solved. Self-leveling mixtures allow you to level the wooden floor under linoleum, laminate or tiles. After drying, the cement-adhesive composition will create an even, durable and sufficiently elastic coating with a low weight due to a layer of up to 20 mm. To do this, you need to do the following:

- we completely clean the floor surface from the old floor covering;

- we sink the protruding heads of the nails, remove any metal objects;

- using a grinder or a scraper, partially remove the top layer;

- all creaking and springy boards are fixed to the logs with self-tapping screws;

- thoroughly vacuum and remove dust and dirt from the floor;

- putty all cracks and cracks, let dry completely;

Important! It is necessary to make a surface without wide gaps and cracks, otherwise the solution will go "nowhere".

- we impregnate the wooden floor with a deep penetration primer with moisture-protective properties, if it seems a little, you can lay a waterproofing membrane;

- the joints of the walls and the floor are glued with an overlap on the floor and walls, using double-sided tape, and on it we glue the waterproofing membrane in the form of a strip;

- on the walls we mark the level to which the self-leveling mixture will be poured;

Important! The minimum pouring thickness is indicated by the manufacturer on the packaging. Beacons can be used as a level mark.

Self-leveling mixture pouring scheme: insulating layers

- we fix a wooden plank near the door, the thickness of which corresponds to the fill level;

- we lay a reinforcing mesh on the floor surface and fix it to the floor using self-tapping screws or staples;

Now that the wooden floor is ready, you can start pouring the mixture:

- add the mixture to a container with water and knead with a drill and a mixing nozzle;

Important! The mixture should be homogeneous and without lumps, prepared strictly according to the instructions.

We get rid of bubbles in the self-leveling mixture with a rubber roller

- the resulting mixture is poured onto the prepared surface and, using a special rubber roller with spikes, we get rid of small bubbles;

- level the surface using a large spatula or rubber squeegee as a rule;

- now it remains to wait until the mixture is completely dry and prepare it for laying the floor covering.

Important! Drying the self-leveling mixture must be carried out strictly in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions.

Leveling a wooden floor with a PVA putty

This alignment method is one of the most unusual and innovative. The putty is a mixture of wood sawdust and PVA glue, which, after hardening, becomes quite strong and difficult to process. And due to the availability and low cost of the initial components, this putty is economically viable. In fact, this putty resembles the well-known chipboard board, with the difference that it is impossible to soften the board and fill all the irregularities with it. The use of a PVA-based putty allows you to level the wooden floor under the laminate or linoleum. You can use it to level the wooden floor as follows:

- we clean the floor from the old coating and skin;

- we fix the bending and creaking boards to the logs with self-tapping screws;

- we stuff wooden slats on the floor as beacons with a step of 35-50 cm.

Important! To get a flat surface, all the slats must be in the same plane, for leveling we use a level.

- we prepare a putty from PVA glue and wood sawdust, knead to the consistency of thick sour cream.

Important! In order for the putty to dry gradually and not crack, the sawdust should be slightly moistened and squeezed.

- using a spatula, fill the space between the slats with putty;

Important! The putty must be applied intermittently, in several layers, since after drying it gives a slight shrinkage.

- after the last layer of putty has been applied, level the floor plane using the rule and, if necessary, add the putty;

- we wait for complete drying (about 2 days) and lay the floor covering.

Important! The disadvantage of PVA-based putty and sawdust is its insufficient strength for some floor coverings. To increase the strength, it is recommended to lay sheets of plywood, chipboard or drywall.

How to level a wood floor with plywood

You can also use plywood to level the wood floor. Compliance with the technology will allow you to create a perfectly flat and durable floor. This method is usually chosen when it is necessary to level the wooden floor under linoleum or carpet. To obtain the best quality plywood base, a 4/4 grade or larger sheet should be used, the thickness should be at least 12 mm. Leveling a wooden floor with plywood is as follows:

- remove the old coating;

- we install beacons from self-tapping screws. To do this, we screw them to the required height using a screwdriver all over the floor. We begin to screw in the corners, and form a square with sides of 20-30 cm;

- align the height of the screws on the horizon using a level;

Lags should form a grid of squares 35 * 35 cm

- we lay the logs with a step of 30-35 cm. For the logs themselves, we use plywood strips or blocks of various thicknesses;

- we fasten the logs to the floor with self-tapping screws or glue, if the logs sag a little, we put pieces of plywood or bars under them;

Important! The lags should be level with the horizon and firmly secured. The result should be a dense grid of logs in the form of squares with sides of 30-35 cm.

- we lay out the plywood sheets and adjust them in such a way that the joints of the sheets fall on the logs;

Important! So that you don't have to trim whole sheets of plywood, you can first spread them out on a bare floor and outline the borders of the sheet with a pencil. Then lay the logs according to these marks so that the plywood joints fall on the log.

Leveling the wooden floor with plywood: fix the plywood sheets on the joists

- we fix the plywood to the logs using self-tapping screws with countersunk heads;

Important! In order for the heads of the screws not to push through the plywood, a sweep is made on the sheet with a drill.

- before laying the flooring, you should walk over the surface of the plywood with a sander, especially at the joints of the sheets;

Important! For durability, plywood can be varnished and covered with flooring. If laminate is laid, then a cork or polyethylene foam is placed on the plywood as a backing.

Modern building materials make it possible to level the wooden floor efficiently and quickly enough without partial or complete replacement. Anyone who knows how to handle a tool and who knows a little about the construction business can do this. The main thing is to adhere to the technology and perform all stages of work with high quality. When leveling the wooden floor in one way or another, you should remember that at the end of the work, the floor height will rise by a couple of centimeters, and you will have to cut the lower part of the door.

Wood flooring is popular with many home and apartment owners. The tree symbolizes warmth and reliability. A wooden floor is really warm and reliable, of course, if it is built correctly. But, unfortunately, wood is not the most durable material and defects may appear in some parts. The question "how to level a wooden floor" should not at all lead you into a stupor. With minimal technical skills, you should be able to handle this procedure.

The finish of a wooden floor can be anything: laminate, parquet, linoleum and even tiles. But the concept of "wooden floor" includes an intermediate building structure made of wood, which is located on the interfloor ceiling and is closed from above with a finishing floor covering. In this case, the material for the manufacture of interfloor floors can be any: floors made of wooden beams, concrete slabs, or any other options.

Accordingly, the process of leveling a wooden floor depends on what is the specific composition of this structure. So, consider the options for leveling the floor with wooden elements.

Why is the floor leveled?

Let's make a small digression. The construction or renovation process called “leveling” can be roughly divided into two large blocks.

1. Works aimed at bringing the wooden floor to a horizontal state. They are designed so that furniture in your premises does not fall, and the doors do not open spontaneously.
2. Works aimed at bringing the floor surface to a level state. Pits and bumps not only reduce the aesthetic appeal of your interior, but can damage the finish floor. So, if you lay a laminate on an area with a fossa and a tubercle, then with a heavy load on this area, the laminate board may burst or the seams between the elements of the flooring may break.

Floor leveling methods

Consider how you can level the floor surface.

Leveling the floor with a plane

The traditional, but most labor-intensive, method is to dismantle the floorboards and surface them with a plane. It takes a lot of sweat to get the job done.

First, the floorboards are usually nailed and difficult to remove.

Secondly, it is also not so easy to process the surface with a plane. This is a rather tedious job and requires good carpentry skills.

Leveling the surface of a wooden floor with a sander

It is easier and more expedient to process the surface of a wooden floor with a sander. This is quite expensive equipment and it is more profitable to rent this device or simply order the provision of such a service.

Step 1

Thoroughly clean the floor, sweep and vacuum the surface.

Step 2

Examine the floor surface. Any screw or nail caps you find must be sunk in to avoid damaging the sander roller.

Step 3

Grind the floor surface with a sander. This process will bring a huge amount of wood dust into the room, so you will have to protect other rooms from it and think about how to remove it. A good solution would be to use a sander with a dust extraction hose attached. This way you can minimize indoor pollution.

Step 4

After processing the surface of the wooden floor, it is necessary to inspect it for cracks and pits. Such surface imperfections can be corrected with acrylic wood filler. Apply a small amount of putty to the hole or crevices and work over with a putty knife.

Also, cracks between wooden planks on the floor can be repaired with a compound prepared from a mixture of wood varnish, acrylic putty and sawdust. The advantage of this method is to obtain a color and texture that matches the type of natural wood flooring.

Leveling the wooden floor with slabs

In addition to "stripping the wood floor", its surface can be leveled by creating an additional layer of coverage. For such a coating, sheets of thick plywood, particle boards or other similar products of the woodworking industry are used.

Unfortunately, in this way it will not be possible to level the horizontal level of the floor with its significant difference. However, the flooring of wood-based panels on the base, free from large "relief violations" may well create a good basis for the installation of finishing floor coverings.

The very installation of a layer of wood-based panels on a finished base does not cause any particular problems. The boards are cut to size and fixed to a wooden base with countersunk self-tapping screws. The gaps between the slabs can be sealed with woodwork filler.

We level the wooden floor with a self-leveling mixture

It will be impractical to place a classic screed on a wooden floor. It has a significant weight, its overlap may simply not withstand. But you can use a self-leveling mixture, which is intended for finishing leveling. The maximum layer thickness of such a mixture does not exceed two centimeters, so if there is a greater height difference on your wooden floor, then it makes no sense to use such a mixture.

Technology for leveling a wooden floor with a self-leveling mixture

1. Clean and sand your wood flooring.
2. Apply a primer coat to the surface. It is advisable to use formulations with deep penetration and protection from moisture.
3. Lay a layer of waterproofing film on top of the wood flooring. It is recommended to use thick strips and to tape overlapped strips to double-sided tape.
4. Check the places of possible leaks especially carefully. Fasten a wooden plank in the doorway to prevent the mixture from spreading.
5. Lay a reinforcing mesh on the polyethylene surface, fix its position with brackets or plastic ties.
6. Mix the self-leveling mixture in a container. Pour the dry mixture into the water in a thin stream, constantly stirring the composition with an electric drill attachment.
7. Apply the prepared mixture to the surface and smooth with a spiked roller, expelling air bubbles from its thickness. You need to work with a roller in specialized shoes, which are also equipped with spiked soles.

1. The drying time of the mixture depends on its composition. It may need to be spilled with water during ripening to prevent cracking. The room is not ventilated during this period.

Leveling the floor with the installation of a lag

And now let's figure out how to level the floor, which can no longer be brought back to normal by cosmetic methods.

Step 1

We carry out dismantling of the existing structure of the wooden floor. We get to the overlap. This method of installing floors can also be used when building a new house or when carrying out repairs in a new building.

Step 2

We clean the floor from debris and dust.

Step 3

We calculate the necessary materials for the construction of a flat wooden floor. Please note that raising the floor level after installing a wooden floor on joists can prevent old doors from opening and closing.

Step 4

Repair of a wooden floor involves not only leveling it, but also insulation. These processes can and should be combined. Check the condition of the floor, the joints between it and the walls. If cracks are found, they must be sealed using a cement-sand mortar or polyurethane foam.

Step5

A vapor barrier layer can also be placed on the floor surface. The easiest way is to use ordinary polyethylene with a density of 150 microns. Its sheets are laid with an overlap of 10 centimeters and going up the walls to the upper level of the future final floor.

Step 6

We lay logs on the floor, for example, non-planed boards with a thickness of more than 4 centimeters. We fasten the boards to the floor using anchor bolts (distance between bolts 30 cm).

Step 7

During installation, carefully check the installation level of the lag. You can use a regular building level, but it is better to use a laser level. This device is placed on a floor and projects a red laser beam onto the walls. After adjustment, the projected beam is positioned strictly horizontally on the wall.

Thermal insulation of a wooden floor

Step 9

A finishing floor on a base made of wooden logs can be laid using various building materials: wooden boards, plywood or chipboard sheets and other products of the woodworking industry.

When laying boards, it is better to use grooved structures that have a special lock for fixing the boards to each other. To fit such boards, a wooden mallet is used, which must be tapped on the long end of the board being placed. When using grooved boards with locks, they do not need to be fastened to the logs.

The upper finishing floor made of plywood sheets or other wooden boards must be attached to the logs using countersunk screws. When placing such plates, be sure to take into account the degree of their thermal expansion.

Different building materials behave differently when the temperature rises, so when installing slabs with a high degree of expansion between them and the walls, it is necessary to leave blockages.

You can see detailed instructions for leveling a wooden floor in the given video tutorial.

If indoors uneven wood floor, it becomes inconvenient to live in it. Boards creak, bend or, conversely, stick out, diverge, forming cracks.

The aesthetics of the room is violated, a traumatic situation is created. On such a floor, it is easy to fall and damage yourself. To avoid serious trouble and improve the condition of the home, uneven floors are leveled. They do it in different ways.

Dry methods

An uneven wooden floor must be leveled if the height difference is more than 5 cm. This uneven floor is visible to the naked eye. The surface may slope in any direction. In another case, the boards are unevenly arranged, in waves: one protrudes, the other sinks, bends. There are several options for eliminating unevenness in the floor using a dry method.

Installation of minilag from bars (tape support)

Tape support is one of the most reliable methods for leveling uneven wood floors. The method is used for height differences from 3 to 10 cm. The timber serves as a lining under the boardwalk. It should be of different thicknesses in order to be evenly spaced in the direction of increasing slope. For ease of installation, craftsmen use pieces of plywood rather than wood.

To install the minilags correctly, a preliminary calculation is carried out and the readings are checked with a meter level. The distance between them corresponds to the thickness of the sheets made from wood waste.

It is not recommended to lay sheets that are too thick to level an uneven wooden floor:

• they are heavy and inconvenient for do-it-yourself installation;
• create additional load on the floor and base.

Beams of different sections and sheet products are screwed to the wooden base of the floor with self-tapping screws. The fasteners should be of different lengths as the distance to the boards varies. Minilags are fixed across and along the boards. It is important to mark the sheets as accurately as possible according to the points of drilling holes.

Installation of leveling point supports (scabs)

If indoors uneven wood floor, you can eliminate the defect and align it with the help of point supports, which are called cobs. They are installed under sheet products in the form of a grid. In this case, cells are obtained, the dimensions of which are determined by the thickness of the sheets.

Such dimensions of the cells will not allow sagging in subsequent operation.

Since the support "posts" are located pointwise, they make a careful marking on the sheets and screw in self-tapping screws at the points. Additionally, the sheets are fixed to the very base of the floor, choosing longer fasteners.

Methods for leveling uneven wooden floors without screed are highly effective. After leveling work, the surface acquires an ideal shape and holds the topcoat well. 8-10 cm - a difference in height, at which it is better to dismantle the old floor and lay a new base with the replacement of the lag.

Wet screed method

For minor irregularities (up to 3mm), the wooden floor can be covered with acrylic filler or sealant. Before work, the boards are primed to protect the wood and ensure better adhesion with the leveling compound. The composition is applied in a thin layer, distributing evenly over the pre-made marks on the walls, along the lighthouses.

It is important to know: the thickness of the layer determines the amount of time it takes to dry. To prevent the putty from cracking over time, PVA glue is added to it. After the mixture has dried, the surface is sanded.

If uneven wood floor has a slope of more than 3 mm, is used. This is not quite the right way for a wooden base. The screed creates a significant load on the base and floors. It is most possible when the boards are laid on concrete or brick posts, reinforced concrete supports. The need for it arises, for example, when using tiles as a topcoat.

To level an uneven wooden floor using the "wet" method, use dry mixtures with components that provide the screed with elasticity and special strength. These include various plasticizers and synthetic fillers.

1. Before applying the leveling compound, check the wood floors for ventilation. If it is not there, then holes are drilled in certain places on the surface, and decorative grilles are installed over the topcoat.
2. The boards are covered with plastic wrap, which performs the function of waterproofing. The tree is afraid of water. And with a wet screed, a dry mixture is diluted with this liquid.
3. The leveling compound is poured in portions onto the surface and evenly distributed using a special rule. You can work gradually, filling in small areas.
4. After the screed has dried, it is sanded and primed.

A wet screed on a wooden base is rarely made. The main reason is the incompatibility between the wood and the leveling compound. Wood is mobile, and the cement mixture is static, so it can crack and crumble over time.

When choosing a method for leveling an uneven wooden floor, they are guided by the specific conditions of the room. It is important that in subsequent operation the surface does not deform, and the finish coat does not deteriorate.

Comfortable living in a house depends on many conditions. These include the quality of the finish and the general condition of the surfaces, including the leveling of uneven wood floors.

Plank floor leveling.

Some old houses from the times of Stalin's and Khrushchev's buildings still have rough wooden floors. Over time, the floorboards rot, loosen and begin to creak. And during the repair, in order to tear off the defects of the old uneven floor, a new coating is used in the form of a laminate or linolem.

But before laying a new floor, it is recommended to align the sub-floor with sheet material. You can do this procedure yourself without involving construction specialists and at minimal cost. For leveling the floor, it is best to use plywood, as the fiberboard sheets will eventually take the shape of an uneven floor and waves will appear again. Plywood is indispensable for the material used to level old wood floors.

It has a relatively low weight, is strong enough, resistant to stress and water, well polished, and has no unpleasant odor. The material does not change its properties with changes in temperature and humidity.

In order to carry out the procedure for leveling a wooden floor, it is necessary to prepare tools and materials that will be needed in the process.

• plywood sheets;
• roll insulation;
• screwdriver and self-tapping screws;
• jigsaw;

Preparation for leveling the wooden floor in the apartment

• Initially, it is necessary to check the status of the communications that are laid under the floor, since after the completion of the work, there will be no free access to them.
• Next, you need to get rid of various irregularities that are very characteristic of a wooden floor.
• Fasten and, if necessary, replace old, rotten, creaky boards.
• As additional insulation, if the floor is initially cold, you can use a roll of mineral wool insulation.

Prepared sheets of plywood are laid on the floor and in order to assess the strength and reliability of the coating, you should walk on it. In the course of such tests, additional defects may come to light that can be corrected at the moment without dismantling the floor. If it is found that the floor is sagging, then it is necessary to additionally put pieces of fiberboard in these places.

The most optimal and reliable fastening of plywood sheets will be fastening with self-tapping screws, which at the initial stage of fastening do not need to be driven in to the end. In places where plywood sags, fastening is unacceptable. After fixing the sheets, you need to carefully walk through the made flooring again.

This is necessary in order to check how firmly and correctly the sheets fit together. If the result of the check is satisfactory and pleased, then all the screws will be driven to the end, tightly drowning the cap in the tree.

After fixing the sheet material, the caps of the screws and the seams are putty with acrylic sealant. The advantage of such a putty is that even if the boards and sheets bend a little, the sealant, due to its high plasticity, will not collapse and spill out.

After finishing the installation of plywood sheets, you can start laying another linoleum or laminate flooring.

Leveling an uneven wooden floor - video

Views count: 10 148

Do-it-yourself floor insulation - concrete and wood floors
Wooden floors in Khrushchev - repair and restoration
How to lay linoleum on wood floors GVL (gypsum fiber sheets) on wooden floors How to make wooden floors in a private house

The flooring, made of wood, pleases the owners exactly until such time as problems such as creaking, sinking, decaying, etc. appear. In any of these cases, a complete one is required. But if your problem lies in unevenness, then you will learn how to level without tearing the boards, and get an excellent result in the end!

Why is coverage leveling required?

Leveling is done in order to prepare the floor for the topcoat and to solve the following problems:

• Strengthen the base.
• Make the surface even and horizontal.
• Distribute the loads acting on the floor.
• Provide soundproofing, thermal insulation and waterproofing.
• Disguise communication systems.
• Create a base to anchor the final coating.

Based on functional tasks, any floor leveling actions must meet certain requirements:

• Provide maximum mechanical strength around the entire perimeter.
• Be resistant to any kind of exploitation.

Selection of materials and method

How to level a wooden floor without ripping off the boards, and what is meant by unevenness?

• Height differences in different parts of the room.
• Chipped paint.
• Deepening.
• Deformation of all or some of the boards.

If the boards are pressed close to each other, do not creak, the logs and floorboards are dry, have been treated with an antiseptic solution, you can start leveling.

Do not know without tearing off old boards? Various technologies for performing work are known:

• Grinder.
• Putty.
• Laying sheet material.
• Screed.

It is impossible to eliminate the unevenness of the flooring using roll (linoleum, laminate, PVC boards, carpet) or tile material.

In order to correctly determine how to level a wooden floor without tearing off the boards, it is necessary to establish the degree of unevenness. Minor flaws (up to 3 mm) can be removed with a grinder or using an acrylic filler. Elastic putty is able to withstand temporary uneven loads that occur when walking. Using this method, the floor can be prepared for the final coating. In other cases, laying of the sheet cover is required.

For the base under it is best to use moisture-resistant plywood; more economical options are also suitable - chipboard and OSB.

When choosing sheet material, great attention should be paid to its thickness, it can be from 8 to 24 mm. The greater the thickness, the higher the rigidity and the greater the gap between the lags. It is much more difficult to mount thick sheets, besides, the load on the base increases. The maximum thickness can be used exclusively on reinforced concrete slabs, in other cases thinner sheets should be selected.

So, in the end we get:

• For flaws up to 1 mm, scraping is used.
• 2-3 mm - putty;
• The difference is up to 10 cm - laying out the sheet on the logs.

Cycling

The device for scraping is allowed to be used strictly for horizontally located boards. It is not necessary to purchase equipment, for one-time use, as a rule, it is rented.

How to level a wooden floor, without tearing the boards, under linoleum? Stages of work:

1. Provide personal protection (respirator, ear plugs, etc.).
2. Removal of equipment and furniture from the premises.
3. Insulation of other rooms (during operation, very fine dust is formed, which easily seeps into the smallest cracks).
4. Removing nails. With the help of a bumper, it is necessary to drive in all the nail heads below the field level by 2 mm.
5. Working with a grinder. The movement starts from a distant corner of the room to the opposite one, then a 180-degree turn and movement in the opposite direction. Then continue in the same way.
6. Clean the surface from the formed dust, and seal large gaps with wood-colored putty.
7. After complete drying, repeat the cycle.
8. Cover the even floor with varnish and cover the final coating (linoleum, laminate, etc.).

Wood floor putty

In this case, an acrylic sealant or a final sealant is used. With a height difference of 3 mm, it is recommended to straighten the floor with a putty on PVA glue. This is done so that the composition does not crack even in the event of a floor deflection. Despite the fact that the acrylic composition has good plasticity, with a layer of 3 mm it can be disturbed. Only small areas of the floor are leveled with putty. After the composition has dried, the topcoat is laid.

Important! This leveling method is suitable exclusively for linoleum and carpet. Tiles and laminates cannot be installed in this way.

Laying plywood

How to level a wooden floor, without tearing the boards, under the laminate? Leveling a wood floor with plywood sheets is the most common option. Laying is possible in different ways:

• Fixing to the base.
• Application of tape lags.
• Using lags from a bar.

The method of laying is selected depending on the degree of unevenness of the flooring:

• The difference in height does not exceed 6 mm per 1 sq. m - it is possible to do without lags.
• Not more than 10 mm - tape logs, the plywood sheet should be divided into pieces measuring 60 * 60.

Leveling the floor with attachment to the base

How to level a wooden floor without tearing the boards with plywood? With a small difference in height, plywood sheets are fixed to the base with self-tapping screws.

• Leveling is done at the maximum height, and in areas with an underestimation of the level, gaskets are placed under the sheets. In this case, it is better to use building material with a thickness of 8-10 mm, it is also possible to lay it out in two layers if necessary.
• Laying is carried out in rows, and each next row is shifted in relation to the previous one by no less than ¼ of the width of the plywood sheet.
• The initial row should be located at a distance of 8 mm from the wall (for this, a plank of a suitable width is reinforced).
• A gap of 3 mm should be made between the sheets.
• The caps of the self-tapping screws must be “sunk” into the plywood.

To exclude the possibility of a defect in the building material, holes should be drilled at the fastening points of the self-tapping screws.

Fastening to tape logs. How to level a wooden floor without tearing boards in an old house

With an average degree of flaws, plywood material is strengthened on tape logs. Lags are strips made of plywood, part width - 22-30 cm, thickness - 9-11 mm. They are fixed to the base, at a distance of 60 cm between the centers. Laying takes place in parallel. The alignment of the lags is carried out on a level, with a substrate made of a film heat insulator of the required thickness. Plywood sheets are laid in the same way as in the first case.

Fastening to block joists

With a large difference in heights along the perimeter of the floor, plywood sheets are stacked on logs made of 50 * 50 bars. The leveling process takes place by screwing the screws into the base to the desired depth:

• Screw beacons are located in the form of quadrangles with sides of about 30 cm.
• A timber beam is fixed to the base with self-tapping screws parallel to each other at a distance of 55 cm.
• The caps of the self-tapping screws are aligned horizontally using a level.
• The logs are aligned with the caps of the self-tapping beacons.
• Plywood quadrangles are fixed approximately in the middle of the timber.

Important! before laying plywood, it is filled with mineral wool / foam or other material that retains heat.

Concrete screed application

Leveling the wooden floor with concrete is complicated by the impressive mass of the structure. The thickness of the concrete screed is from 9 to 11 cm.

Stages of execution:

• Filling is carried out using beacons installed at a distance of 55-60 cm.
• The wooden floor is covered with a polyethylene foil so that its ends reach the wall higher than the height of the screed.
• The borders of the film are glued with tape, and it is applied with an overlap.
• The screed is carried out with reinforcement with a masonry net laid 4-5 cm above the base.
• The floor is poured in two layers, the composition is carefully compacted and leveled.

When looking for an answer to the question of how to level a wooden floor without tearing off the boards, pay attention to such points as:

• Technical capabilities.
• Need.
• Quality-to-value ratio.
• Labor cost.

Having answered these questions, you can easily understand how to level a wooden floor without tearing off the boards in a private house or apartment, and which technology is right for you.