Soft spots in a laminate floor can be caused by an uneven sub-floor or improper installation of flooring underlayment. For quick repairs of soft spots in your laminate floor use an air inflation needle or a syringe (used to blow up sports balls) on a can of spray foam.
Three major causes of soft spots include excessive moisture, an expansion gap, an unbalanced subfloor, and pests.
Cost to Replace Subflooring
Replacing subfloors will cost between $1.50 and $7 per square foot for materials. Labor costs will be around $27.50 per hour. The project requires the removal of the finished flooring and damaged area and the installation of a new material.
So what are the ways to fix the bouncy laminate floors in a home? The first thing to do is to address moisture issues if there are any. If they're still bouncy after the moisture issues have been resolved, fix the flooring by adding bridging, installing a layer of plywood, adding a beam or wall, and replacing boards.
Underlayment can also help protect the finished flooring from moisture, mold, and mildew. Plywood is a great underlayment to install over a subfloor. It is strong and durable and often very smooth without a lot of imperfections or knots.
Basically, subfloors are a structural part of your home that provide strength and rigidity to your home's flooring. Underlays, on the other hand, protect your floor covering from moisture, help soundproof your floor, and offer cushioning and comfort underfoot.
Underlayment: Some types of flooring can be installed directly on top of the subfloor, such as vinyl flooring. Other types need a middle layer, called underlayment, such as laminate,carpet and tile.
First layer must be dry prior to laying the second layer. Place a layer of 15-lb felt on top of the subflooring prior to installing second layer. Adhesives should not be used to fasten the two layers together.
Fix bouncy floors by adding bridging, adding a layer of plywood or adding a wall or beam. We'll show you three ways to stiffen up your bouncy floor—by adding bridging, installing plywood along the joists and adding a wall or beam under the floor. Any one of the three can solve your problem, depending on your situation.
LVT, Laminate or Wood Floor Bouncing
There are 2 reasons for a gap between the wood flooring and subfloor to occur. The subfloor is uneven. When floor planks are laid onto the uneven subfloor, they form bridges over the dips in the floor. When weight is applied, the wood flooring can then bend or bounce.
Leveling low spots in concrete or wood subfloor
In order to repair low spots in wood or concrete subfloor, you'll need either a floor patch product or floor leveler specifically made for underlayment. Floor levels are cement-based products that either come premixed or as a dry substance that you mix with water.
Poor structural support is the most common cause of sagging floors. When your floor joists start to bend downwards due to pressure and weight of the overlying material, your floor will start sagging. The best way to fix sagging floor joists is by installing new support structures such as jacks.
Trusses undersized, spaced too far apart or sub floor not proper strength for span. Trusses that are undersized for the weight that they are carrying will often sag, be bouncy or spongy when walked upon.
Floor vibrations are generally related to human activity, vibrating machinery and external forces. Walking is the most common source of floor vibrations and more than anything is simply considered a nuisance.
If the joists or columns are spaced too far apart, the joists will sag and bounce. Home remodeling projects, such as adding an addition, installing new appliances, granite countertops or large furniture pieces can add extra weight and stress to the floor joists– leading to bouncy floors. Don't take short cuts!
Water damage from storms, plumbing leaks or roof leaks, especially over time may create wood rot, damage and deterioration. Pests, such as termites, also causes wood deterioration and can weaken the strongest of beams, post and joist, creating sagging and sloping floors.
The solution to sagging floors, or the damaged sills and joist ends that contribute to them, often involves jacking. A common scenario is to install temporary jack posts and support beams, then permanent posts and beams over new footings.
One of the benefits of removing the old flooring is it allows you the chance to fix any loose subflooring or squeaks by re-securing the main subfloor to the floor joists prior to installing the new flooring. With all that being said though the answer is YES you can install New Wood Flooring over the old.
Underlayment
The underlayment material is installed below the floor covering and placed on top of a subfloor. Under the visible covering, there is a layer made of soft or foam-like materials with a thickness of between 1/4 – 1/2-inch.