Steve awakes each morning to the sound of elephants pacing around our bedroom...no wait, it's just me. Or the dog. Yes, they're so bad the dog can even make the floors squeak. Ugggggh.
We've tried drilling holes and using screws that are supposed to remedy the problem (they didn't), and pouring graphite and even talcum powder all over the floor (didn't work either). We finally talked to some contractors and (shocker) they have no solution other than ripping up the floor boards, putting down a sub floor that is apparently missing, and re-installing the floors. The quote for this, just to do our two bedrooms? Upwards of $3,500.
We're debating pricing out just doing our bedroom, which is the squeakiest. But that's still going to be a couple grand, which is definitely not a home improvement project that we have on our list - remember the bathroom upgrade I'm dying to do?
While the squeaking is just generally annoying for us (and probably for our neighbors below), in the long term we are thinking about selling our place in a few years, and wonder just how much the squeaks and squawks would deter potential home buyers. We're going to rearrange the furniture in our room, which we think will cover some of the worst spots, but not all.
Would some squeakin' floors make you run away, or would you overlook it if the place was cute and had fantastic appliances?
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3 comments:
If you can live with it, I woudn't worry. Our house is over 80 years old and all our floors and stairs squeak like a mattress in a seedy motel. (Like your dog, our cat makes ours squeak when he walks normally across a room.) I swear, we barely noticed it before we bought the house and now, we're used to it. It's never occurred to me to fix it even! If your house has other great features (as you said, the appliances and cuteness), I wouldn't spend the money on the fix. Would an area rug in the worst or highest-traffic areas help? Rug won't stop the squeaks obviously, but in our home, our rugs have stifled the sound a bit and all-but-eliminated the piercing echos.
My parents' house have the same problem! I've grown so accustomed to it that I know which floorboards squeak and which don't, and tailor my walking path accordingly ;)
I really doubt people would notice enough to be turned off by it. More than likely that will be one of the WTF moments they have post purchase (I have a lot of those in our new home. Like WTF, how did I not notice that the ceilings and walls are three different shades of white!). If you're planning to move out in a few years, and it sounds like you're maybe in a condo, I wouldn't spend the money redoing floors. You won't get your money back in the sale, and I really don't believe it will chase people off. Good luck!
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