Natural Timber Floors – Expansion & Contraction
As a natural material that is sawn, seasoned and machined tongue and groove timber floors are a completely natural material. Natural timber is hygroscopic, ie. it continually takes up and gives off moisture to keep in balance with its surroundings. This results in a process of natural shrinkage and expansion. Depending on the timber species chosen, visible shrinkage and/or expansion may take a day, a week or even months, resulting in the gaps between floor boards opening and closing depending upon the weather, the season and local influences. To reduce the degree of shrinkage and expansion, today's timber flooring is kiln dried. Expansion and contraction of timber floorboards is a natural and cyclical process. The degree of movement depends on the surrounding changes in atmospheric moisture content and therefore is generally controlled by seasonal weather conditions. ! Changes are most evident during long periods of either dry or wet conditions. However, local conditions also have considerable influence. ! Good ventilation under your floor is a very significant factor. Minimum ventilation recommendations may not be adequate for your site. Excessive humidity in the under floor area can be caused by the lack of sufficient cross ventilation or from damp soil conditions arising from poor drainage. Ensure that water from gardens or stormwater does not drain under the floor area and that no water lays in the under floor area. ! Air conditioning and heating systems dramatically reduce the general moisture content within a home.
! moisture content around and in your home may therefore affect your floor. ! Shutting a house up when away on holidays for long periods can also create abnormal humidity conditions. ! Full-‐length windows, large glass areas which allow direct sunlight can create ‘sunroom conditions’ with high temperatures and low moisture conditions causing flooring to shrink. ! direct sunlight will also cause colour changes to the timber, so moving rugs occasionally, and the use of curtains or blinds are a good idea. ! If your home is located close to a body of water such as the ocean, a river, lake, dam or wetlands, or if it will experience prevailing winds which may direct particularly moist or dry air towards your home, special moisture control measures may be required. ! In areas where extreme temperature changes or moisture variation are common, gaps or cupping may appear in the floor. Maintain an ambient temperature to avoid dryness that may causes gaps, and moisture increases that may cause cupping. ! Over wetting a floor when mopping or cleaning can change the moisture balance and cause a floor to expand, with some resulting in cupping. For this reason, it is important to ensure that mops and cloths are well wrung so that as little water solution as possible wets the floor. ! Steam mops are not recommended for cleaning timber floors. Steam (moisture) is forced into the joints of the timber and any small incisions, breaks or cracks on the timber floor surface resulting in unusual reactions in the timber such as cupping. The heat from the steam mop could also cause damaged to the coating on the floor. ! Uneven slabs or bearers & joists can cause movement in the floor and resulting noises. ! Settling noises are to be expected in all timber floors.
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