What to do if the laminate bends when walking?

Quite often, after the installation of the laminate on the floor is completed, the joy of the apartment owners is overshadowed by resentment, surprise and sometimes even anger. Most often this is due to the fact that a seemingly well-laid laminate begins to make strange sounds or spring when walking on it. We all know that this is bad, so we begin to worry and wonder what to do if the laminate bends when walking? Today we will tell you how to fix this situation on our own, without using the services of specialists.

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Why does the laminate begin to bend when walking?

A well-laid laminate should not make any sound or bend when a person passes through it. Any owner of the apartment should remember this, because this information is useful to him when checking the work associated with the flooring, which was performed by the repairmen. If the material is laid correctly, then in theory it should lie perfectly straight, not bend or creak under your feet. But such a phenomenon occurs quite often, because the reasons that it can cause mass.

The main reasons why the laminate bends when walking includes only two:

1. Incorrect laminate installation. More often it is because of this that a similar effect arises, by the way, it occurs much more often than other defects. The fact is that during installation, the panels could be incorrectly installed. For example, there was a technical gap between the wall and the panels 1 cm wide. Even though the laminate should not lie snugly on the floor, it still tends to expand. So this very gap often goes unnoticed by the owners and builders. Since the coating expands periodically during operation, it begins to abut against the wall, as a result, the floor swells, the panels are bent, and the so-called breathing floor is obtained.
2. Uneven rough floor. This option can be attributed to the specifics of the installation. In operation, this material is very moody, so it reacts literally immediately to any irregularities present on the floor. Sometimes a small difference, just some 2 mm, is enough to experience all the charms of a mistake made when laying in a short time. That is, the base should be perfectly flat. Depressions are more often observed on the subfloor if they were made of drywall, and expanded clay was poured under it. Its granules are too large, when walking a person makes them rammed. As a result, the floors just begin to sag. A small hole is enough for the floor to creak or sag.

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Additional causes of laminate deflection

There are a number of secondary reasons that lead to the fact that the laminate bends after laying. Of course, they are much less common than those described above, but, nevertheless, they are also recommended to be considered.

These include the following factors:

1. Incorrectly fixed door lock. If you attach it not to the screed, but directly to the panel, then the coating will begin to deform. The same effect is observed when installing heavy furniture on the floor.
2. Contact with moisture. The laminate begins to absorb moisture and swell, then it dries and takes on an uneven shape.
3. Low quality laminate used. If you use a cheap laminate, most likely, in the process of operation, the connecting locks on the panels will quickly fail. For this reason, the coating begins to walk underfoot, debris gets under it, due to which the panels rise and bend under great weight.
4. Wrong substrate selected. According to technology, it should have a height of 2-3 mm. If you lay it in a thicker layer, the laminate will begin to bend.

Important! An ideal option is considered to be a coniferous substrate made of oak bark, since it has excellent soundproofing properties and will be the best layer between the coating and the subfloor.

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How to fix the deflection of the laminate in the home?

Fortunately, in most cases, laminate deflection can be easily eliminated. How to fix the situation yourself - we will consider further. Given that the solution to the problem directly depends on the cause that caused this defect, consideration should be given to correcting this error in a certain connection.

Perform a solution to the problem, depending on the cause of the deflection:

• Incorrectly laid laminate. In this case, you will have to completely disassemble the floor covering, reinstall it, but at the same time take into account the recommendations of specialists. The main thing is to observe an expansion gap of 1 cm between the wall and the coating.

Important! There is another option: if there is no gap, then you can remove the baseboard, file the edge panels 1-1.5 cm along the wall. Thus, the gap is formed after the installation.

• Incorrectly fixed door lock. There is only one way out - to install the latch correctly.
• The use of nails and glue during installation is in excess. When installing a laminate, these materials are almost never used. Do not connect panels to the subfloor in this way. It’s just that you need to remember this rule, otherwise you will have to re-cross the floor.
• Poorly prepared or not at all prepared subfloor. In this situation, you will have to dismantle the panels, level the rough floor or clear it of debris. The best friend of any master in laying laminate flooring should be a vacuum cleaner, because if you fill the floors unevenly, then somewhere there will definitely be a deflection. To fix the problem, you can disassemble the floor, find this place and fill it with a thin layer of a special mixture using the rule.
• Water entering under the laminate. It is necessary to disassemble the coating, remove all water, dry the material. But it also happens that you have to change it completely. If there is little water, then you can try using a load to level the laminate.
• Making mistakes when choosing a substrate. Here you have to replace the substrate with a thinner version.
• Low quality laminate flooring. The only option is to replace it with a better material.

Important! In order for the new installation to proceed quickly, it is better to number the panels during disassembly.

If the laminate does not bend much, then do not rush to disassemble the entire floor. It so often happens that over time he takes his place and takes the right position, because he, like everything new, needs to be given time to lie down.

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How much laminate should lay down before installation?

If you do not want to see and hear how after laying the laminate bends when walking, then you will have to observe one more condition. After you bring the material to the apartment, be sure to let it rest for some time. It will be enough for several days to acclimatize. At the same time, the ends of the packages must be open, it is better to place the packs on a flat surface.

Important! It is especially important to withstand this time in the winter, because the material gets into a warm apartment from a cold warehouse. During this time, he will have time to take a normal form.

The temperature in the room where the new laminate is stored should be at least plus 15 degrees. Humidity should be approximately 70%.To protect the material from accidental pouring with water, it is better to fold the packaging not directly onto the floor, but prepare smooth wooden platforms that rise above the floor.

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What happens if the material does not lie down?

Often people are surprised when they hear that the laminate needs to lie down before laying. But in fact, there is nothing strange here. And this is due to the composition and structure of the panels of the coating itself.

The basis of this material is a chipboard, subject to changes under the influence of temperatures, humidity and other factors. Even though the upper and lower layers of the panels have special protection against moisture, it should be noted that the side panels do not have it. If it doesn’t even lie down a bit, then it will simply get used to the environment, as a result, the finished coating will begin to adjust independently to the microclimate that is present in the room.

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Stock footage

In this article, we examined all the reasons why the laminate flexes when walking, and ways to solve this problem. We hope your case was not too critical and you were able to cope with the repair work in a short time.