How to make an uneven floor. How to level a wooden floor with your own hands: technology for leveling an old floor without tearing off the boards

In order to determine how uneven the floor is, you need to determine the floor marks in all corners, in the middle of the walls and in the middle of the room (if the room is very large or the floor is very uneven, then more marks are needed). The easiest way to do this is with a two-meter building level. with the various measuring instruments used for this purpose are given separately.

If the floor marks are at the same height

(plus or minus 5 mm doesn’t count, but it all depends on how demanding you are; you can’t even count a difference of 1-1.5 cm), which means the floor is flat. And if the height differences do not exceed 2-3 mm, then such a floor does not need to be leveled with sheet materials at all.

• You can putty such a floor 1-2 times with acrylic putty or acrylic sealant. The main advantage of acrylic putties is their high plasticity; even if the boards sag a little when walking on the floor, the putty will not collapse. If the amount of work is not large, then acrylic sealant sold in syringes for a construction gun will do. Floors must be treated with a suitable primer before applying putty to improve adhesion to the boards. It will look something like this:

Download more full version This video is available, video size is 60 MB, wmv format.

In this case, it was necessary to level about 1.5 m2 of floor. For large volumes it is better to buy acrylic putty for wooden floors in buckets, however, the principle of applying putty will not change. By the way, in this way you can level floors for painting and even for varnish, for example, parquet floors (of course, if they are in sufficient condition) good condition), but then you will need a tinted sealant. However, buying tinted sealant to match the color of wood is now a small problem, although the choice of colors is not very large and they cost much more than white acrylic sealant, but still.

Before laying linoleum or carpet, it is advisable to sand the putty surface.

• The main disadvantage of acrylic putty is low strength. Therefore, instead of acrylic putties or sealants, you can use putty mixed with PVA glue. If the thickness of the applied layer does not exceed 1-2 mm, then you can use finishing gypsum putty mixed with PVA glue. If the applied layer is thicker, you can use gypsum starting putty mixed with PVA glue or sawdust mixed with PVA glue. The main disadvantages of this method: it is very difficult to immediately apply the putty in an even layer due to the extreme stickiness of the putty (PVA is very good glue), so the putty surface will have to be sanded for a long time to obtain a smooth surface.

The thicker the layer of sealant or putty, the longer it will take to dry. therefore, if the floor unevenness is more than 3 mm and there are many of them, then you can’t do without screeding or laying sheet materials. How linoleum was laid on the floor, previously leveled with putty, can be seen separately.

2.1. On an old wooden floor you can lay plywood 8-20 mm thick, or chipboard, OSB, MDF.

You can also use gypsum fiber sheets. In this case, the top of the wave will serve as a support (like a lag) for the new floor covering. With a board width of 10-20 cm and a uniform distribution of waves, a plywood thickness of 8-10 mm is quite sufficient. If there are waves on the boards through one board or the width of the boards is more than 20 cm, then it is better to use thicker plywood (in the picture below).

Picture 1. Easy leveling of wooden floors.

It makes no sense to use fiberboard to level the floor, since over time the fiberboard will take the shape of the floor and waves will appear again. In principle, the thickness of sheet materials can be greater, but the thicker the sheet materials, the more expensive they are and, most importantly, the heavier. I prefer moisture-resistant plywood; it is irreplaceable for kitchens and hallways in Stalin and Khrushchev buildings, but it costs more than other sheet materials. Sheet materials are attached to wooden floor using screws or self-tapping screws. To recess the head of a screw or self-tapping screw, a countersunk hole is made. Sheet materials are attached to the boards at the top of the wave (see figure). After screwing the sheets, the joints of the sheets and the heads of the screws are puttied with acrylic sealant. If you have high quality plywood with a good textured pattern, the plywood joints are neat and well-fitted and the grooves are evenly distributed, then you can select an acrylic sealant of the appropriate color and simply open the plywood with varnish.

Sometimes, if the old wooden floor is relatively flat, but there are small “pits”, then you can try to level the floor with plywood using foam. I myself have not leveled the floors this way, so I included a description of this method in a separate article.

If the height differences at the floor marks do not satisfy you, then you will have to tinker here. It is necessary to make a support for the new foundation at one mark. You can do this in 2 ways:

2.2. Tape support - mini logs made of timber.

This method is good if you need to equalize the height difference from 3 to 10 cm. However, to ensure that the timber is at the same height, wooden pads are used different thicknesses- covens. Typically, slabs are made from plywood of different thicknesses, but they can also be made from short bars using an ax or chisel. Where we are talking about millimeters, roofing felt or any other thin waterproof material is used. The distance between mini-lags depends on the thickness of the sheet material and, in principle, requires engineering calculation , but as practice shows, for plywood with a thickness of 12-14 mm and for chipboard, OSB with a thickness of 16-18 mm, the maximum distance between mini-lags is 35-40 cm. For plywood with a thickness of 16-18 mm and for OSB with a thickness of 20-24 mm, the maximum distance between mini-lags 50 cm. This logical series can be continued further, but laying thicker sheet materials is difficult even with two people, and the load on the floor will again increase, it’s good if the floor is reinforced concrete or metal beams, but increase the load by wooden beams need to be careful. For large differences in height, it is convenient to use timber of different sections; where the difference in height is small, timber of a smaller cross-section is used, but it also needs to be attached to the floor boards more often; then timber of a larger cross-section is used.

Figure 2. Leveling wooden floors using mini-lags.

Mini-lags can be attached both across the boards (in the picture above) and along (in the picture below). Here it is important to accurately mark the sheets (determine the locations for the holes) so as not to drill extra holes.

For clarity, photographs 1 and 2 show the transition from an old wooden floor to a new coating in doorway. The floor was leveled with waterproof plywood, with scaffold supports in places, mainly on mini-lags made of bars of different sections, the total height difference of the old floor was more than 6 cm. Before gluing the LG PVC tiles, the self-tapping screws were puttied twice with tinted acrylic sealant:

Photo 1. View from the corridor. (increase)

Photo 2. View from the room

2.3. Point support - shabby.

This method is suitable if the height differences are not very large. Point support is less reliable than tape support, so blocks need to be placed under sheet materials more often, so that a mesh with a cell size of 30-35 cm is obtained for plywood with a thickness of 12-14 mm and for chipboard, OSB with a thickness of 16-18 mm. For plywood with a thickness of 16-18 mm and for OSB with a thickness of 20-24 mm, the cell size is 40-45 cm.

Of course, with both a strip support and a point one, you can make more distance between the supports, but in this case the new floor will be too susceptible to dynamic deformations; in other words, it can sag when jumping and dancing, and even when walking.

After the base of the floor is leveled, lay the finishing coating on it, be it parquet, linoleum, carpet, PVC tiles, fast, easy and pleasant. Just don’t forget about underground ventilation. To do this, in one of the corners (where the old ventilation was), after laying the finishing coating, a hole is drilled and a small ventilation grill is installed.

If the difference in height of the old wooden floor is more than 8-10 cm (and this happens), then it is better to remove some of the boards and replace them with sheet material.

The floor can be leveled with a “wet” screed.

But only if you are absolutely sure of the strength of the wooden floor, for example, if the floors were immediately made for screed, or if these are wooden floors according to reinforced concrete floor, with logs on brick columns, while the logs and the distance between the logs and the thickness of the floorboards are selected in such a way as to ensure minimal deflection of the floors under design loads. The fact is that cement screeds work well in compression and much worse in tension; this can lead to the fact that the cement screed on a wooden floor will collapse or ceramic tile, glued to such a screed, will peel off. To level wooden floors, special dry mixtures with plasticizers and fillers are used to provide the screed with maximum strength and elasticity, as an example - Vetonit 3300. This screed is applied in a layer of no more than 1 cm; before applying the screed, a reinforcing fiberglass mesh is packed onto the wooden floors and the floors are primed. If the floor unevenness exceeds 1 cm, then such a screed will not help. Theoretically, a regular cement screed 5-7 cm thick with a metal reinforcing mesh can be made on a wooden floor, in this case the load on the floor will immediately increase by 75-100 kg/m2, so before making such a screed, you must first check bearing capacity ceilings To protect the wood from the effects of water from the screed, a plastic film is laid on the wooden floor.

But in any case, regardless of the leveling method, we must not forget about the ventilation system for wooden floors so that the floors do not rot. Underground space must be ventilated. Previously, to do this, they drilled a hole in a board with a diameter of about 50 mm in one of the corners of the room and stuffed a decorative lattice on top, or made ventilation duct in the wall and nailed the decorative lattice to the wall. Such lattices look something like this:

Figure 3. Ventilation grates for wooden floors.

If you had similar gratings on the floor or wall, then do not rush to cover them up or cover them with wallpaper.

In general, old wooden floors, with cracks, paint stains, knots, chips, gouges and other defects - this is incredibly cool and super stylish, now more and more people are tired of straight lines modern design, they want perfectly smooth and smooth screed lay down parquet board, stylized as old, time-warped wooden floors. This pleasure is not cheap, so before you sew up wooden floors, think about whether you need it?

I submitted questions related to leveling a wooden floor for laying laminate flooring, as well as a recipe for preparing a putty mixture from Ruslan.

Over time, a wooden floor begins to crack and lose its smooth surface. Therefore, sooner or later, owners of houses with such floors face the question of covering them with new material. And to do this, as you know, you first need to make the base perfectly flat.

Of course, leveling a wooden floor is not so easy, but if you follow all the tips and recommendations, then every home craftsman can cope with this task.

General information

Wooden floors are those types of flooring that require constant maintenance, as the wood is susceptible to drying out, warping and cracking. Leveling the wooden covering allows you to eliminate various irregularities that could spoil the new covering in the future.

This applies to both hard floor materials, such as parquet or laminate, and soft ones, such as carpet or linoleum.

Leveling floors with your own hands can be done in one of several ways:

• Cycling;
• Using putty and PVA glue;
• Plywood;
• Self-leveling mixture.

Determining the condition of the coating

To choose The right way leveling, it is necessary to determine the condition of the wooden floor.

This is done as follows:

• First you need to check the boards for resistance to rot and insect damage.. To do this, you should tear off one board and inspect it reverse side and lag. If the board is dry and durable and has no signs of damage by insects, then the floor does not need to be replaced. If areas of decay or cracks are found, then low-quality boards will have to be replaced.
• Then you need to determine how much the floor has deviated from the horizontal. This procedure can be performed using a laser level.

If the floor has a lot of unevenness and deviations from the horizontal, then level it with a self-leveling mixture. If the floor is horizontal, but has surface defects, then they can be repaired with putty or sanded.

Leveling the floor

Alignment using scraping

Looping is one of the simplest and most labor-intensive. Most often it is used in cases where they do not want to cover the wood with other material. Therefore, scraping is especially popular when leveling floors in wooden houses.

This method comes in two types:

• Manual;
• Mechanical.

Manual floor scraping is too labor-intensive and almost always unjustified. The mechanical one is performed by a special scraping machine, which means it is of higher quality. Therefore, if you have a question - how to level the floors in wooden house, then the best solution would be mechanical scraping, provided that the condition of the coating allows this procedure to be performed.

This operation is carried out as follows:

• Before leveling the floor in a wooden house, it is necessary to prepare the surface. To do this, you need to remove all the nails and buttons that could damage the sanding machine.
• Then all safety measures should be taken, i.e. wear a respirator that will protect against dust and wood dispersion, as well as thick gloves.
• After this, you can begin the scraping itself. The operation should begin from the corner and move in a snake from one wall to another, removing the first layer.
• Hard-to-reach areas must be sanded by hand.
• It is quite possible that after this the floor surface will not be ideal; in this case, cracks and holes should be repaired using putty, which has a color similar to wood.
• When the putty has dried well, the floor should be sanded again.

Advice!
If a board is too damaged, it can be turned over to the other side.

After the scraping work is completed, you should begin removing debris and dust. The surface must be thoroughly vacuumed and before varnishing, wiped with a cloth soaked in a degreaser.

Note!
Leveling can only be considered successful if the entire surface is smooth and free of any irregularities.

Leveling with PVA and putty

Recently, home owners are increasingly using the method of leveling floors using PVA glue and putty. This method is the most unusual and innovative. With help sawdust, putty and PVA, a mixture is made to cover the floor. After hardening, it becomes durable and difficult to work with.

Since the price for all components of such a coating is not at all high, it can be called a budget solution. In this case, the result resembles chipboard slabs, with the only difference being that liquid putty can penetrate into the cracks. This type of leveling also combines floor insulation.

The work is carried out in several stages:

• First of all, beacon slats are placed on the floor according to the level, similar to beacons for screeds;
• Then the floor is filled with a prepared mixture of PVA and sawdust.
• If necessary apply thick layer sawdust, the procedure should be performed in several stages. First, apply the first layer, then, after complete drying, you can apply the second layer. All subsequent layers are applied after the previous one has dried.
• Then all errors must be checked using a level. If any are detected, unevenness should be eliminated by applying additional putty material.

Advice!
To prevent sawdust from absorbing all the moisture from the PVA, you can pre-wet it.

Leveling with self-leveling mixture

If you want to cover the floor with a new material, and not just paint or varnish, then sanding will not work in this case. You will have to use another method of leveling the floor - a self-leveling mixture.

Today there are mixtures on the market that are intended exclusively for leveling wooden floors. They will allow even the most warped floor to find a perfectly flat and smooth surface. In this case, the thickness of the coating will be 0.5-2 cm.

Instructions for leveling the surface using this method are as follows:

• First you need to prepare the surface, i.e. fix all the boards so that they do not wobble. To do this, you can use screws or self-tapping screws. All nail heads must be driven below floor level.
• The next stage of preparation is to sand the surface and remove all remaining varnish or paint from it. If there are large gaps in the floor, they must be sealed using a self-leveling mixture of a thicker consistency than for pouring floors.
• Then the surface should be primed with a waterproof primer.
• After this, the level and thickness of the layer are determined and a strip is installed in the doorway, equal in height to the thickness of the future coating.
• Then you need to lay it on the primed floor. reinforced mesh with an overlap of several centimeters. You can secure it using a construction stapler.
• Once the surface is prepared, you can prepare the mixture according to the directions on the package and pour it onto the reinforced floor. The resulting bubbles should be eliminated using a spiked roller. After this, the mixture must be leveled on the floor using a smooth rubber roller.

In the photo - removing bubbles with a roller

Note!
Excessive volume of water can simplify the process, but it will lead to delamination of the coating.

Leveling wood flooring with plywood

This method is extremely common and popular. If you follow the instructions, it will allow you to get a flat surface suitable for covering with any flooring material.

To level with plywood, you must perform the following steps:

• Self-tapping screws or self-tapping screws must be placed along the entire perimeter as beacons at a certain level. Then the floor should be divided into squares with sides of 200-300 mm and beacons should be placed in the corners.
• After the level is set, you need to lay the logs - plywood strips 3 cm wide, attaching them to the floor with self-tapping screws or glue.
• Then you need to cut the sheets into squares approximately 60x60 cm.
• The sheets must be attached to the joists with self-tapping screws, arranging them in a checkerboard pattern.

Advice!
Before installing plywood sheets, you need to pay attention to their ends.
If they delaminate, then the material is not suitable for installation.

Conclusion

Additional information on this topic can be obtained from the video in this article." width="640" height="480" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen">

Conclusion

As we can see, modern technologies allow every homeowner to quickly and efficiently level a wooden floor. The main thing is to have at least minor skills in working with the tool and adhere to the instructions outlined above.

For more information on this topic, watch the video in this article.

The use of plywood is rightfully considered an economical and well-established method of leveling the floor surface in wooden buildings. Dry screed using sheet material does not require incredible labor costs and does not require significant financial investments. There are no noticeable technological interruptions in the process that delay the finishing process. But there are nuances that an independent performer needs to know about. Before you begin the planned repair, you should find out how to level a wooden floor using plywood sheets in order to avoid unwanted and very expensive alterations.

How to create a perfectly smooth surface using factory regulated systems, the videos will be demonstrated in great detail. The video is aimed at owners of city apartments with concrete floors.

Fundamentally installation method adjustable joists with plywood or plywood sheets with anchor posts on wooden base does not differ from the scheme of their installation over cement slabs.

If the owner of a country bathhouse has a surplus Money, he may well use ready-made adjustable kits. Leveling in the recreation room, billiard room or dressing room will be carried out quickly and without special effort. However, to the category of cheap methods adjustable plywood and we certainly won’t include lags. Let's better explore budget options.

Methods and techniques for leveling with plywood

Choice optimal technology leveling a wooden floor with plywood determines the condition of the floors and the degree of deviation of the “relief” of the surface from the norm specified by the construction requirements:

• with a difference in height levels of 2 mm found on an area of ​​1 m2, even for laying linoleum, which is extremely sensitive to deviations, leveling is not required. Quite sufficient measure will be treated with acrylic sealant or putty with a homemade mixture of moistened sawdust and PVA glue;
• with uniform deformation of correctly laid floorboards with a difference in height levels of 5 mm, leveling the floor with plywood can be done by attaching the sheets directly to the plank floor;
• height differences of more than 1 cm, but not more than 8 cm require the creation of point or strip supports. Essentially, the process consists of constructing a sheathing from timber or from slabs replacing solid logs, for the manufacture of which thick plywood or boards are used.

Correct laying means that the builders alternated boards with different directions of the pattern of annual rings of wood in accordance with technological requirements. This means that bulges-humps or concavities-boats on the floor appeared through one or two boards.

If it is not possible to level a wooden floor without problems with your own hands due to too large fluctuations in height, the structure must be disassembled and built from new lumber. Such serious deviations probably have no less serious reasons.

It is important to note that plywood can be used for dry leveling only if there are no complaints about the technical characteristics of the floor.

How to determine differences in height?

A laser device is an excellent thing, but a two-meter level gauge would be more effective as a measuring tool in this case. With its help it is more convenient to study the surface. It is necessary to mark the points in the corners of the room being repaired, find and mark the centers of the lines where the floor and walls meet, and the center of the room. Having divided the room into specific segments, it is necessary to examine each area. Evaluating the recorded results will paint a picture of the upcoming repair.

Regardless of the scope of the work to be done, inspection and repair of the foundation must be carried out. It is necessary to eliminate the creaking, update the fasteners, replace damaged elements, and check the functionality of the “underground” communications.

Method #1 - “the simplest” without installing lag

Before laying plywood, it is necessary to provide the opportunity to “get used to” the conditions of the upcoming service. Material intended for arranging a regularly heated room needs to stand on the edge for a couple of days where it will be laid. In a room that is not spoiled by constant heating, sheets moistened with warm water should stand for at least a day.

All wood floor elements and dry screed materials based on wood veneer or fibers are pre-treated with an antiseptic.

The most the easy way Leveling the floor with plywood is considered a method without installing joists. Installation of a support beam is not required, since its function will be adequately performed by the evenly distributed tubercles of curved floorboards. In addition to plywood, suitable for such leveling are: CBPB slabs or GVL.

There is no point in leveling a wavy, deformed fiberboard floor. During operation, the material will sag and repeat all the grooves with the tubercles of the rough base.

For a plank floor with floorboards up to 20 cm wide, each of which “swells” evenly, we will buy plywood 8-10 mm thick. If a board more than 20 cm wide was used for flooring, and also if not every floorboard rests with a convex “hump” on a plywood sheet, sheet material will be required with a thickness of 18-20 mm.

The sequence of actions for leveling the subfloor using plywood:

• We will place bosses along the perimeter of the repaired floor to form a mandatory two-centimeter distance from the walls.
• We lay plywood sheets with a gap of 3-8 mm between them to absorb movements caused by moisture fluctuations. When laying several rows, we imitate brickwork. That is, we place the slabs of the next row offset to the slabs of the previous one. There should not be a cross-shaped intersection of four butt seams at one point. The minimum offset size is a quarter of a sheet, the maximum is half.
• We attach them to the “ridges” of the boardwalk at the points with the maximum height established during the preliminary examination. We try to distribute the attachment points evenly, focusing on the distances between the convexes identified as a result of measurements.

It is recommended to drill holes for fasteners in advance in two steps. First you need to use a drill whose size is equal to the diameter of the screw. Then you need to make a hole with the diameter of the cap so that it can be completely recessed in the plywood sheet. The dowels along the perimeter of the plywood sheet should be at least 2 cm away from the edge.

Sheets of plywood with one-sided roughness, intended for subsequent laying of the final coating, are recommended to be laid with the unsanded side up to improve the adhesion of the coating to the leveling layer. It is better to turn the sanded side if you plan to simply mask the screw heads with acrylic sealant and open the plywood with varnish on top.

Method #2 - with a tape support device

The technology consists of constructing a sheathing of longitudinal joists and crossbars aligned in one horizontal plane. The perimeter logs are placed at a distance of 3 cm from the walls. The spacing of the longitudinal components of the structure being constructed frame system determines the size of the plywood sheet. Usually its values ​​vary from 40 cm to half a meter.

Example - if the side is 152.5 cm, then optimal distance between the axes of both the log and the crossbars there will be 48 - 50 cm. If the side is 122.0 cm, it is recommended to leave 37 - 40 cm between the axes of the support beam.

Step by step guide:

• Let's start with fitting. Let's lay out the plywood without fastening, following the standard layout brickwork and ensuring clearances. Let's outline the outline of the slabs; these lines will become guides for future marking of the location of the logs. Don't forget to number the sample sheets.
• Using the markings made on the floor, we first install the joists along the walls. Optimal material for installing strip sheathing under plywood is considered square beam with a side from 40 to 60 cm, variations are allowed. If it is undesirable and not necessary to raise the floor too much, joists can be made by cutting plywood into strips, or using second-grade boards.
• We install transverse jumpers with a step calculated according to the dimensions of the sheet. They are attached to the joists with self-tapping screws, preferably using metal corners.
• We align the logs and transverse elements vertically in a single plane according to the readings of the level gauge. Those wishing to find out how to properly level the surface of an old wooden floor should adhere to the requirements specified in SNiP number 3.04.01-87. According to this collection of standards, it is prohibited to drive wedges made from leftover lumber under the joists. Leveling is done by adding sand, in case of minor deviations by laying roofing material or roofing felt. Most often, a single plane of the joists is achieved by placing wooden spacers under them, such as point supports.
• After leveling, the joist system is attached to the base with galvanized metal corners; dowels, the length of which is three times the thickness of the joist, can be used to fix the sheathing.
• We complete the leveling by laying and fastening the plywood.

The space between the joists can be filled with additional insulation or a homemade screed made from wet sawdust mixed in half with PVA glue.

Apply the mixture, the consistency of thick sour cream, in two or three layers and wait for it to completely harden for two days. In such cases, you can buy thinner plywood for leveling.

Method #3 - alignment with a mini-lag device

Used for leveling floors with slopes and significant differences heights up to 8 cm. It consists of installing slats and wooden pads in order to create unified system supports for plywood. Without accurate engineering calculations, it will be extremely difficult for the contractor to cope with a very difficult task.

First you need to try it on, and then carefully calculate the size of each supporting element using the lines marked on the floor. It is necessary to calculate the height and select dimensions very carefully, since all elements of the supporting structure will be different.

Method #4 - with point support sheathing

The point method consists of installing individual supports-slabs, cut from a board, OSB boards or the same plywood. The thickness of the block is selected in accordance with the difference between the created flat surface and the actual level. Ultimately, the support system should form a kind of mesh that replaces the strip sheathing.

Since in terms of reliability and stability it is inferior tape type, the shabby linings are installed in smaller increments. You should get some kind of cells with an imaginary square size of 30 cm for sheet material up to 14 mm thick, 45 cm for thick plywood.

And don’t forget about providing underground ventilation! After removing and installing the baseboard, you need to drill ventilation holes in it at pre-existing points. Cover the holes with a ventilation grill.

Have you figured out the best way to level your wood floor with plywood? There's little to do, all that remains is to prepare morally and technically and begin implementing plans. Surely everything will work out great, because the repair procedure does not present any particular difficulties.

Floor is a basic element in the interior of a house. Along with windows and doors, furniture and lighting, the condition of the floor plays a key role in creating a comfortable and comfortable living space. Therefore, work on this important element in a house, apartment or any other space should be done with high quality and with full responsibility. And wooden floors require a particularly careful approach.

Features: pros and cons

The most popular at all times were precisely wooden crafts. First of all, because wood is a symbol of warmth and reliability, moreover, it is incredibly pleasant to the touch and seems to be “alive.” Wood itself is a durable material, however, over time it can lose its attractiveness, deform, bend, sag, dry out and crack. But this is not at all a reason for stupor and bewilderment.

Many owners, in order to hide the flaws that have appeared over time, prefer to install any modern coatings on a wooden base. It can be laminate, tile or linoleum. To do this, of course, it is necessary to improve the characteristics of the floor as much as possible, and more specifically, to level its surface so that the new coating fits on it without any difficulties or defects.

Even with minimal technical skills, you can do the work of leveling the floor covering yourself, choosing from a variety of methods the most appropriate one.

Floor condition assessment

It is much easier and cheaper to resuscitate and restore an old wooden base than to completely replace the covering. The duration of its service depends on the curvature coefficient. Often, connection locks lose their strength over time, and cracks begin to form where dirt and moisture collect. Therefore, before leveling and laying a new coating, it is necessary to carry out full analysis rough wooden floor.

To determine the degree of damage, it is necessary to walk along its surface and examine in detail almost every centimeter. Perhaps remove a few boards and check the condition of the joists. It happens that upon inspection, rotten boards worn away by insects are discovered; in this case, a complete or partial replacement of the floor will most likely be required.

If after checking it turns out that the problem is only peeling paint, pits and bumps, if the boards and joists are in tolerable condition, without rotten or cracked areas, if the floor does not bend underfoot under load, then restoration work will be carried out with minimal costs energy and time.

It is very important to determine how much the floor deviates horizontally. Typically, the operation is carried out using a laser level, which is installed at the highest corner in the room and indicates the difference between the horizon line and uneven areas of the surface.

If the boards sag and wobble under your feet, it is necessary to rotate the wooden floor.

If, upon inspection, gaps between the boards are wider than 8-10 mm or the degree of slope of the surface from a flat horizontal line is very obvious, the surface of the sagging floor must be laid with sheet material, for example, chipboard.

Materials and tools

First of all, to level the floors, it is necessary that all the necessary tools are always at hand. If the work is being done in a large room, experts often recommend dividing it into several squares and leveling each of them separately. It’s good when more than one pair of hands is involved in the work. This will help save nerves and time.

Choice necessary tools depends on the type of leveling work.

The standard set, as a rule, is:

• tape measure (for taking measurements);
• levels (hydraulic and laser levels);
• steel brush (for cleaning the surface from flaking in hard to reach places);
• brush-brush (for cleaning debris from the base of the floor);
• spatula (a tool for leveling the solution on a plane);
• trowel (for leveling the cement-sand mass);
• hammer drill (for drilling in wood);

• electric drill (for preparing leveler);
• needle roller (for rolling out self-leveling material);
• hacksaw (for cutting wood);
• plane (removes small wood shavings, leveling uneven surfaces);
• screwdriver (for screwing in and out of screws).

Using PVA and sawdust

Leveling the surface using PVA glue and sawdust is a modern and convenient method that does not require large expenses and uses good characteristics and reviews among builders. Before starting the process itself, it is necessary to clean the floor and nail the beacons along laser level. Next, the sawdust needs to be slightly moistened and mixed with glue. The mixture should be medium thick (should resemble sour cream).

After this, the resulting mass must be poured between the beacons and leveled. If the surface is not level the first time, you may need to apply several layers of the mixture. The layer should be at least 1-2 cm. There can be any number of similar layers, the goal is to keep the height differences to a minimum. Before applying each new layer, it is important to wait until the previous layer has completely dried. As you can see, the method is simple and practical.

putty

With the help of properly selected putty, you can hide all cracks, smooth out seams and irregularities, and also ensure long service life for your wooden floor. This leveling method is used not only if you want to lay new flooring, but also for the purposes cosmetic repairs. Today, there is a wide selection of putty mixtures that have a color that matches the color of real wood.

Putty may vary in composition, but there are a number general requirements, which includes:

1. Elasticity. This will allow the mixture to evenly fill all the cracks and holes in the surface.
2. High percentage of adhesion(adhesion) of putty material to wood. This will eliminate the possibility of delamination of the coating and guarantee its long-term service.
3. Uniformity. The composition must be a completely homogeneous mass, without the presence of foreign impurities.
4. Fire resistance. This property of the putty mixture guarantees the safety of the wooden floor in case of fire.
5. Antiseptic properties. They protect the surface from the formation of fungus and mold, which are harmful to wood and human health.

Mastic

Mastic is a material that is applied over a wooden floor. Performs both leveling and protective function. One of the advantages of this material is its antibacterial property. The mastic is applied to the surface in several layers and gives it a glossy tint. If the owner’s task is to restore a wooden floor covering and restore, improve its appearance, then one of the best means To achieve this goal, rub the floor with mastic.

Nowadays you can see a huge variety of this product on the construction market. Mastic can be sold ready-made, or it can be in a prepared state, which must be mixed with other ingredients and, for example, with warm water. Also the material can be different colors, but it can be transparent. Based on their composition, they are divided into wax, water-based, turpentine and water-soluble mastics.

To apply the material to the floor surface, you will need a paint roller, which will help the solution to be evenly distributed over the area of ​​the room. The composition can be applied in several layers, so its protective properties will be higher.

Of course, a product based natural composition has best qualities. It will take only 2-3 days for such mastic to dry completely, and it is much easier to update it.

Polyurethane foam

Polyurethane foam – great way combating the problem of creaking floors. Wood, as mentioned above, is susceptible to environment. Changes in temperature, humidity - all this, over time, contributes to the fact that wood boards begin to creak underfoot. The use of polyurethane foam will not only help get rid of the defect, but also insulate the wooden floor in the house.

To do this, after general cleaning of the surface and securing the boards to the joists, it is necessary to drill holes in those places where there is the most creaking. Next, through this hole, using polyurethane foam, the empty space above the floor is filled, which helps to securely fasten the boards from below. It is worth noting that drilled holes should match, or better yet, be slightly wider than the diameter of the polyurethane foam nozzle.

Important point– do not overdo it with foam injection so that the surface does not rise with the so-called hump.

Expanded clay

Expanded clay is a material based on a natural composition. It is capable of not only leveling even the most hopeless uneven surfaces, but also soundproofing and insulating the floor. Expanded clay – environmentally friendly material, which has fire resistance, durability, strength, resistance to temperature changes, antibacterial properties and affordability.

For correct installation material needs to be carried out preparatory work:

• The first is to clear the room of debris, seal gaps and strengthen the boards.
• Next, it is necessary to waterproof the base in order to prevent leaks and damage to the screed.
• Along the walls, a damper tape is attached directly to the waterproofing, which is necessary to compensate for the possible expansion of materials during operation.
• To maintain an even screed level, beacons are installed.
• Now it’s time to lay the expanded clay.

Expanded clay is laid on a base prepared in advance so that the layer does not reach the top of the lighthouse. The layer is leveled and compacted well. The evenness of the resulting layer can be checked with a level. If the result satisfies you, you can apply the solution over the insulation.

Sometimes, in order to avoid shifts and deformation, repairmen fill the expanded clay with a special cement laitance and leave it to dry for a day until it hardens, after which they cover the expanded clay “cushion” with the solution

Another way is to dry level the floor using expanded clay. This method is perhaps the simplest and does not require much time. Dry expanded clay is laid at the level of the beacons and distributed evenly. A layer of 3-4 cm is enough to make it stable coating. Sheets of the material you choose (OSB, chipboard, plywood sheets, etc.) are laid on the formed expanded clay “cushion”.

Plates

In this case, leveling the floor occurs by laying special slabs on a wooden surface.

OSB boards are sheets formed from compressed wood shavings using an adhesive mixture. There are 3 types of particle boards: OSB-2, OSB-3 and OSB-4, each of which is intended for use in certain conditions, has different thickness and properties. It is important to determine which one materials will suit in your case. It is worth noting that in comparison with chipboard, OSB boards have a high percentage of strength and are characterized by maximum thickness. The material also guarantees heat and sound insulation.

The material is secured by nailing it with nails of the required length to supports located at a distance of about 30 cm from each other. OSB can be laid on the logs themselves or using a point support. In the second case, the more often the supports are located, the more resistant to use the surface will be. It is mandatory to eliminate gaps at the junction of the canvases themselves and the canvases with the walls.

To obtain a durable and even surface, GVL coating is often used. GVL-coating is a technology for leveling the floor by covering plank surfaces with gypsum fiber sheets. The product contains reinforced gypsum and cellulose. This composition guarantees high density and strength of the finished product, and the ability to withstand severe mechanical loads. The material is moisture resistant and retains heat well.

The method of laying gypsum fiber depends on the quality of the base. Most often, additional leveling material is used. The sheets are laid in 2 layers, where the first is attached to the slats, and the second is glued on top of the first.

To securely fasten the board to the base, special screws are used. Working with self-tapping screws ensures a long life for a wooden floor.

Moreover, when purchasing such a tool you should be extremely careful. Savings in this case are a guarantee that soon there will be a need to repair the wooden floor again.

The size of the screws can vary significantly. Choosing the appropriate size depends on the thickness of the floor covering.

Self-leveling mixtures

Self-leveling mixtures are solutions that are designed to fill the floor, and are also one of the best and fastest levelers.

There are several types of leveling mixtures:

1. Fast-hardening. It is used when it is necessary to quickly harden the solution. Can be applied in both thin and thick layers.
2. Finishers. Used upon completion of work, immediately before finishing floor. The thickness of the applied layer should be no more than 5 mm. It is worth paying attention to the fact that the time for complete drying of the solution is much less than the drying time for the screed.
3. Thick-layer. Here the name speaks for itself. If applied thin layer solution of this type, then the effect of application will be almost not noticeable.
4. Special. This solution has the greatest strength and is used in small quantities to fill cracks and crevices. The mixture contains special elements that increase the percentage of wood adhesion to the base.

When renovating private houses and apartments, it is usually necessary to create a new floor covering. In this case, there is often a problem with carrying out additional work to eliminate unevenness and defects in the foundation. The article will tell you how much it costs and how to properly level a wooden floor with your own hands without tearing off the boards.

If the old floor is crooked and unattractive, the coating needs to be replaced. Before doing this, experts recommend leveling it. Why do this?

The quality of installation of any facing product depends on the degree of evenness of the base.

Soft coverings (such as carpet, linoleum) allow for small differences in height. But if possible, it is better to eliminate all defects. Hard materials (such as laminate, parquet) require a perfectly flat base. The slightest irregularities lead to the fact that the structure cannot withstand the load, swells, and quickly wears out. If the differences are large, then laying the parquet will not be possible, then we will insulate it.

Over time, even high-quality wood covering deteriorates: holes and cracks form in it, the structure rots and bends.
Leveling the subfloor allows you to achieve the following:

1. no changes when walking around the apartment;
2. aesthetic appearance of the final finish;
3. ensuring normal operating conditions for the finished floor, thereby extending its service life.

Ways to create a level floor

Exist different ways creating smooth linoleum or parquet. Each of them has its own characteristics, advantages and disadvantages. To understand which option is better to choose, you should consider the characteristics of each.

Craftsmen offer the following methods for leveling an old sagging floor without dismantling the structure itself:

To understand what is the best way to level, it is necessary to divide all unevenness into significant (from 2 to 10 centimeters) and insignificant (from 0.5 to 1 centimeter). If the differences are small, you can get by with putty, sanding, or laying sheet material (fibreboard, chipboard, OSB, plywood). Significant defects are eliminated cement mortar or laying sheet products on joists.

Leveling the surface with plywood

The easiest method to implement is the one that does not require lags. The work is not difficult. It is carried out according to a pre-designed scheme.

The algorithm for how to level a floor with plywood is described below and on the forum:

1. Install bosses around the perimeter of the walls.
2. Lay out the plywood sheets with a gap of 0.3 to 0.8 centimeters. The indentation is made in order to prevent bending during thermal expansion and movement of the material.
3. Secure the sheets with self-tapping screws or self-tapping screws at the top point of each product. To simplify the work, experts advise making holes in the plywood in advance.
4. Putty the space between the slabs.

Sometimes logs are additionally used. They are installed along the walls using jumpers and screws. It turns out strip support. The material is spread on top and attached to the joists.

When working with plywood and joists, it is important to remember the following:

• Communication can be hidden under the material;
• before use, purchased sheets must be acclimatized (kept in the room where installation is planned for several days);
• preferably in plywood floor make small holes for ventilation;
• logs increase the floor level to 10 centimeters;
• plywood is allowed to be used as a final covering.

Leveling with liquid self-leveling compounds

Mixtures for creating self-leveling floors can have different composition(polymer, epoxy, methyl methacrylate). The coating is frost-resistant, plastic, and able to withstand temperature changes. Therefore, it is suitable for finishing unglazed balconies and loggias.

Below is how to align correctly:

Wet floor screed

Stores sell ready-made screed solutions. But they are expensive. Therefore, it is better to cook it yourself. To do this, sand, water, gravel and cement are mixed in a certain proportion. The kneading should be tight.

Instructions on how to level with a wet screed are presented below:

• clean the base from dirt;
• cover existing irregularities with cement;
• install beacons;
• pour the prepared solution into the cells between the beacons;
• smooth out the mixture;
• pour wet sawdust on top;
• let the screed dry.

Benefits wet screed are waterproof, high strength. Since the layer is small in thickness, the filling does not particularly affect the height of the room. The disadvantages are that it requires a lot of labor. The solution takes a very long time to dry. The resulting floor is characterized by low sound and heat insulation.

Putty for leveling the floor

To work you will need a mixture of PVA glue and sawdust. You will also need a grinding device. Before you start puttingty, you need to prepare the room: remove furniture, clean the floor.

There are some subtleties of work that you need to know about in order to level it efficiently:

• The composition must be applied so that it rises above wooden surface. After all, shrinkage occurs during drying.
• You cannot putty at sub-zero temperatures. In this case, the solution loses its elasticity.
• The humidity of the treated board should not exceed 12%.
• The putty should be applied carefully using a spatula.

Scraping and instructions for its use

Sanding is done if you plan to cover the boards with varnish or paint.

Can be done manually and mechanically. The first option is the most time-consuming and complex. Therefore, it is better to use a special machine. You should work in protective gloves, headphones and a respirator.

Instructions for scraping:

If the wooden base becomes smooth without deformation, it is considered that the sanding was successful.

Thus, there are different ways to level the floor yourself wooden floors. The choice depends on the degree of damage, material finishing, apartment owner's budget. Minor defects are eliminated by puttying, sanding, or using sheets of plywood or fiberboard. Big changes removed using a wet screed or self-leveling mixtures. Watch a video on the topic below.