- The gaps that appear in wood floors are usually along the small lines of the floor where the planks meet end to end. Gaps are less likely to occur along the solid horizontal lines that run the length of the floor at the tops and bottoms of rows where the planks meet along their edges. This is because many flooring planks are held together with a snap-and-lock system at these points, which prevents the planks from separating. If the floor forms gaps, the floor was more than likely installed with this type of system.
- When you install a wood plank floor over a subfloor, you must leave space around the perimeter of the floor to allow for expansion of the wood. Though this prevents the wood from cracking, it is also one cause of gapping. As the floor is used, the planks at the edges can move outward slightly into the excess space, creating gaps between the flooring planks. Since you can't block these spaces, you should anticipate some movement of flooring planks.
- While you cannot prevent the space around the floor's perimeter that causes gaps, you can limit the actions that cause flooring planks to move. Intentionally sliding across the surface of wood floors or moving objects by sliding them over the floor's surface is more likely to cause gaps to form than standard use of the floor. Help prevent the gaps by walking normally over the floor surface and picking up objects that need to be moved.
- Once gaps appear in wood floors, they can be simple to fix or more complex, depending on the type of trim used around the floor. If you have a trim that just sits on top of the floor at the edges, simply pick the trim up and push the ends of the flooring planks to press them back toward the center of the room. If you have a secured trim around the floor or a wall baseboard, you must pry the baseboard or trim from the wall, press the boards back together and put the trim or baseboard back into place.
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