A lot of people love hardwood flooring. There is a reason for that. One of them is that hardwood flooring provides a lot of natural beauty to a house. However, you have to maintain your flooring to keep its beauty. This means occasional sanding, finishing, and staining when necessary.  

Unfortunately, even if you maintain your hardwood floor perfectly, it can still fall into a state of disrepair. When this happens, you’ll need a more rigorous task to restore them to their original look.  

If you’re planning a hardwood flooring installation Encinitas project, you need to prepare for the future repairs you might face. Here are several signs that indicate you need to fix your hardwood flooring.  

Rotting 

When people hear the word rotting, they think of gunky and smelly areas that you can identify easily. However, that is not the case with hardwood.  

A spill can often get into the wood and starts to rot it. If you don’t notice the spill, it might dry out. This can result in a soft area that you easily pick apart. If you choose to ignore it, it will become worse. There is a high possibility that your hardwood floor is rotting if you notice a weakening and splintering of a particular spot. 

Creaking 

Though creaky hardwood floors do have a particular charm to them, most homeowners don’t realize that hardwood floors are not supposed to make these sounds. In general, creaking comes from warping and shrinkage. It results in a creaking noise and movement that tends to echo across your home.  

A couple of people can tolerate various levels of creaking. However, you might want to fix them if you find them extremely annoying.  

Stubborn Stains 

You can easily prevent stains if you’ve got an excellent coat of finish on your hardwood floors. Typically, you can sand it out if you do get a stain on your floor. Unfortunately, you may have to replace the affected boards if you find stains that have sunken deep that sanding won’t help anymore.  

Aside from being difficult to cover up, a stain can also compromise the structural integrity of your hardwood floors. This means that it can result in worse issues in the future if you choose to ignore them. It is a huge indication that you have to fix your flooring if you find stubborn stains.  

Cracks and Chips 

Over time, cracks and chips can appear. It does not matter if you’ve got the best finishes and stains. Typically, this happens when a sharp object falls on the surface. However, cracks and chips can also occur from a slow deterioration of the finish.  

You may be able to sand out minor chips. However, excessive chipping and cracking will need replacement.  

Buckling 

It’s an indication that you have to replace the boards if you notice them beginning to bend upwards. When your boards start to buckle, there’s nothing you can do to restore them. Thus, it’s an indication that you need to replace your flooring. One of the most common causes of buckling is water damage.