By lifting the parquet, we understand the fact that the material grows horizontally on the surface until it collides with the wall, the door pre-frame or other obstacle. If it grows too much, after colliding, the first thing you notice is that it forms one or more mounds that, when stepped on, normally give way (although sometimes not, especially if it is solid wood) and, when you stop stepping on, it returns to get up.

When this happens to us, the truth is that we get a feeling of doubt and anguish but, above all, we must remain calm.

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Why is this happening?

Parquet can rise for many reasons, the most frequent being the following:

• Water leak from a pipe. We must observe if a puddle of water or a wet area is visible with the naked eye. Many times, the source of humidity is hidden behind the skirting board or even under the parquet.
• Poorly sealed balcony or terrace windows. If we look at the outside of the windows, it is just its perimeter, it must have a cord normally made of silicone or other material, covering any cracks. We must observe that it does not present any pores or cracks.
• Spill from a bucket or leak from an appliance. In this case, all we can do is quickly pick up the puddle of water with the mop. Many times, if the water does not remain on the parquet for long, nothing happens.
• Failures in the waterproofing in the foundations of the construction or nonexistence of it. It is very typical today to find works that have not been properly waterproofed. We can observe this fact because the house smells musty, especially in rainy seasons, and we see spots of humidity that rise from the ground to a certain height of the wall. Here not only the parquet suffers, if not the doors, furniture, walls, … etc. The solution is a bit complicated, but the responsibility falls on the architect and the builder.
• Failures in the waterproofing of ceilings or walls. We must solve this before fixing the parquet.
• Excessively humid environment. We already saw in the post “Recommendations to take into account with wooden floors” that the relative humidity of the house must be kept at an adequate level. In the rainy season or if we are absent for a long time in winter and leave the house closed, humidity increases and swelling phenomena can occur. A dehumidifier, air conditioning or heating can help us eliminate excess humidity.

As we can see, almost all the occasions in which the parquet rises, it is due to either water or excessive humidity. On very few occasions we have found that it is the fault of a bad assembly, especially if it has been assembled by a professional or specialized company. If we have had cases in which an amateur assembler has not read the technical sheet properly or has not respected the basic installation rules that any assembler must take into account.

To avoid unexpected expenses due to a problem related to the damage caused by water (leaks, etc.), we must have a good insurance that covers this type of mishap since, if it occurs, it would take care of everything and we would not have to worry about nothing.

It is very important to know that after a leak occurs that affects the parquet:

1. First, we have to locate the fault or leak and solve it.
2. We must wait for the humidity to go away, sometimes it is necessary to remove the affected material to facilitate aeration. This step is very important, we should not run because if we mount before the moisture is eliminated the parquet can be raised again.
3. Let us advise the professional at all times. Note that the company’s expert is not always an expert on the matter.
4. Do not despair because there are many parquets (made of wood) on which 30 years pass and they do not have the slightest problem.

Care of wood floors

Without a doubt, parquet is the most elegant and warmest of floors… but many people think twice before installing one because they fear that its maintenance will be very complicated. In reality, the durability and good appearance of a wooden floor depends a lot on the quality of it, however, even the most durable floor requires some care. Experts advise that:

• Do not buy the right meters of floor, buy some extra so that in case you need to make a minor repair in only one area of ​​the floor, the color of the wood is the same.
• Surely at the entrance of your house you have a rug, but is it made of stiff bristles? You need one to properly remove the dirt that we bring on our shoes and that could scratch it.
• The parquet is thinking for us to walk on it… but avoid doing it if you come from the street with wet shoes: you can stain it.
• Never pass a wet lingo on the parquet, it should be cleaned with a slightly damp cloth. For stubborn stains, use special wood cleaning products or the dry shampoo used for upholstery and carpets.
• For maintenance and to revive its shine, once a year a professional should pass a polishing machine on the floor.
• You also have to wax it at least twice a year. This does not have to be done by the professional.
• Do you live in a very dry place? Then place a humidifier in the areas where you have parquet. The recommended ambient humidity is between 35% and 65%.
• If the floor gets wet, dry it immediately: water can seep between the wood and the floor, damaging it. A tip: if you notice that the liquid has been filtered, after drying with a cloth, use a hair dryer that is not very hot to evaporate the water.

Walk on Wood is a proud family business with over 20 years of experience in the flooring industry. If you are thinking of installing timber flooring in your house or commercial building, contact us now.