Saggin Second Story Floors

The first and second floors in our house seem overly bouncy and sag toward the middle.

Saggin second story floors.

On the top side of the floor another fix it idea to lay down new hardwood over the existing floor. A plywood subfloor will bridge any minor waves in the existing floor and leveling compound would help too. Depending upon the conditions it is possible to strengthen or repair existing framing members such as floor joists or roof rafters by adding reinforcing material sandwiching the member on either side with plywood is sometimes worthwhile but the plywood must be installed correctly for greatest strength. Sloping to one direction.

Again this could be a sign of dry rotted second floor joists. Foundation issues deteriorating wood supports especially sills which rest on the foundation footer improperly installed joists or sub floors and other issues can all cause a floor to slope or sag. How can we evaluate whether the floors need reinforcement and if so what is the best way to do this. How much you pay will depend on what s causing the floor to sag type of flooring concrete hardwood etc and how many square feet of floor is involved.

Sagging floors are often the symptoms of structural damage to the floor joists below the surface. Termites can rot or damage the joists typically made of wood rendering the pieces unable to hold up the floor. Isolated to first floor isolated to second floor both floors. If a load bearing wall is removed on the first floor then the second story floor joist or trusses may drop down in the area where the load bearing wall was removed.

This could be a sign of serious structural damage due to foundation settlement. You will have to make sure your joists can handle the addition of considerably more weight from the plywood subfloor and any floor coverings. Thre ways to fix a sagging or sloping floor. Floors out of level windows and doors sticking or not closing properly bouncy floors or floors that sag in spots in a room.

If the floor is sagging visibly in the middle or is very bouncy you may want to reinforce the floor to eliminate the sag and reduce the bounciness. There are lots of clues that indicate structural problems in a house. And not all structural problems are that big a deal. But if all the floors in the house slope to the middle that says something more serious to me.

To prevent the collapse of your second story or injury from falling through a rotten floor you must repair the joists as soon as possible. Water damaged or structurally damaged first floor joists causing the joists to deflect or sag. Load bearing wall removed or altered on first floor. On average nationwide repairing a sagging floor costs between 1 000 and 10 000.