Hi all!
We bought a market home last summer (been in 13 months now) and the builder just cannot seem to resolve problems with the subfloor on the main and second levels.
The joists (dimensional lumber) seem to run every 16" (basement is unfinished so I can access the joists for the main level) and the subfloor is 19/32" (osb I believe). Interestingly, where there is hardwood (kitchen) or tile (bathrooms) the floors are fine. I have dealt with problems in just about every carpeted area, however.
1). When I walk from the kitchen into the family room and step off of hardwood and onto carpeting (walking perpendicular to joist run), there is a lot of noise that can be heard from the basement. I fixed some of this by loosening the clamps holding the water line to the joists. I discovered that with the pipes clamped so tight, the water line was actually creaking as your walked across the floor. Now I have noise in the main trunk of the HVAC that runs perpendicular to the joists, in this same area.
2) In 2 downstairs rooms, if I walk perpendicular to the joists, the ductwork makes an oilcanning sound--even though the ductwork doesn't come into contact with any joists. The register box is nailed into the subfloor.
3) On the 2nd level, I have creaking in 2 bedrooms. The builder pealed back the carpet and isolated the noise to subfloor joints. They minimized the noise in 1 room and it has not abated in the other.
4) In my upstairs hallway, there is an oilcanning sound that has gotten worse with each attempted repair of the subfloor in an adjacent bedroom. It seems that the subfloor and HVAC ductwork like making music together up there. The floor is springy and creaks within a 4-foot line (recatangle) of where the ductwork comes up to the 2nd floor. Builder repairs of the cold air return have made the whole problem worse. Interestingly, some times, when I climb the stairs to the 2nd floor and step over this area, I get the oil canning of the ductwork and a popping like sound from the base of the wall that separated the hallway from the master bath. I had made the comment to the builder that I can be getting out of the shower and know when someone was coming down the hall because of that popping noise. To me, it has seemed like the doward pressure of a step in the hallway puts upward pressure on the sill plate or the subfloor in the bathroom (which has tile and a thicker subfloor on it).
I have read some articles about adding support to joists in this type of problem and I have tried that where I could--and it did not help.
I just walked through a new home in my neighborhood that is in the framing stage (higher-end builder) and noticed that their floors were much more substantial and also quieter. The builder that built my house has had this type of problem in both of their models they built here, our home, 2 neighbors homes, and another market home.
Could all of this be related to the thickness of the subfloor? I really want to upgrade the carpet in my home but will wait till I get the creaks and other noises fixed. If I should add to the existing floor, how much additional thickness? Do I run it parallel or perpendicular to the existing subfloor?
Thank you for your help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I've tried bracing the joists that I can access from the basement with 2x4s but I still have areas that I would describe as "springy". In this same area--when I step off of the hardwood and onto the carpeted area, the main trunk (I think its the cold air return) of HVAC makes an "oil-canning" sound. In 2 rooms, there is noise related to the ductwork (baffles me) that runs parallel to the joists. The one
We bought a market home last summer (been in 13 months now) and the builder just cannot seem to resolve problems with the subfloor on the main and second levels.
The joists (dimensional lumber) seem to run every 16" (basement is unfinished so I can access the joists for the main level) and the subfloor is 19/32" (osb I believe). Interestingly, where there is hardwood (kitchen) or tile (bathrooms) the floors are fine. I have dealt with problems in just about every carpeted area, however.
1). When I walk from the kitchen into the family room and step off of hardwood and onto carpeting (walking perpendicular to joist run), there is a lot of noise that can be heard from the basement. I fixed some of this by loosening the clamps holding the water line to the joists. I discovered that with the pipes clamped so tight, the water line was actually creaking as your walked across the floor. Now I have noise in the main trunk of the HVAC that runs perpendicular to the joists, in this same area.
2) In 2 downstairs rooms, if I walk perpendicular to the joists, the ductwork makes an oilcanning sound--even though the ductwork doesn't come into contact with any joists. The register box is nailed into the subfloor.
3) On the 2nd level, I have creaking in 2 bedrooms. The builder pealed back the carpet and isolated the noise to subfloor joints. They minimized the noise in 1 room and it has not abated in the other.
4) In my upstairs hallway, there is an oilcanning sound that has gotten worse with each attempted repair of the subfloor in an adjacent bedroom. It seems that the subfloor and HVAC ductwork like making music together up there. The floor is springy and creaks within a 4-foot line (recatangle) of where the ductwork comes up to the 2nd floor. Builder repairs of the cold air return have made the whole problem worse. Interestingly, some times, when I climb the stairs to the 2nd floor and step over this area, I get the oil canning of the ductwork and a popping like sound from the base of the wall that separated the hallway from the master bath. I had made the comment to the builder that I can be getting out of the shower and know when someone was coming down the hall because of that popping noise. To me, it has seemed like the doward pressure of a step in the hallway puts upward pressure on the sill plate or the subfloor in the bathroom (which has tile and a thicker subfloor on it).
I have read some articles about adding support to joists in this type of problem and I have tried that where I could--and it did not help.
I just walked through a new home in my neighborhood that is in the framing stage (higher-end builder) and noticed that their floors were much more substantial and also quieter. The builder that built my house has had this type of problem in both of their models they built here, our home, 2 neighbors homes, and another market home.
Could all of this be related to the thickness of the subfloor? I really want to upgrade the carpet in my home but will wait till I get the creaks and other noises fixed. If I should add to the existing floor, how much additional thickness? Do I run it parallel or perpendicular to the existing subfloor?
Thank you for your help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I've tried bracing the joists that I can access from the basement with 2x4s but I still have areas that I would describe as "springy". In this same area--when I step off of the hardwood and onto the carpeted area, the main trunk (I think its the cold air return) of HVAC makes an "oil-canning" sound. In 2 rooms, there is noise related to the ductwork (baffles me) that runs parallel to the joists. The one