Old House Floors Sagging

Some homeowners when confronted with staggering bills for floor repairs come to terms with their floors.

Old house floors sagging.

Sloping floors may be due to framing issues but it is not uncommon for them to be caused by foundation and soil issues. There are lots of reasons that might cause sloping floors in a home. In my own house for example every floor pitches toward the center stairwell. One of the most common complaints of old house owners is sagging floors.

Sagging is never good. There might be foundation issues or problems with sinking or subsidence. If the floor is sagging bit there is no noticeable snagging in the roof it could just be the floor. These terms are related and a sagging floor actually has a slope from each side of the sag.

Sagging is a sign of either poor engineering to begin with or structural damage done later. Here s a quick review of the most common problems and a few of the typical remedies. Old houses often have floors that are less than perfect. The sill beam or floor joists might be rotted out or.

If you have a crawl space foundation which is common in the south a sagging floor often means you have a structural problem with your floor joists or beams. Over time the dirt your house sits atop can compact causing the foundation to sink. Common reasons for sloping or sagging second story floors. Even historic houses have saggy sloping floors.

There are countless hundred year old homes with proper structure that have floors that don t sag bounce or shake. Some are serious structural issues that require the attention of a contractor while others are more routine cosmetic problems that you can solve yourself if you re a fairly advanced do it yourselfer. Sagging floor issues often relates to framing issues or the loads that the floors are carrying. Although generally only an annoyance sagging floors can be an indication of worsening problems.

This is common in old houses and is usually more of a nuisance than a safety issue. If a load bearing wall is removed on the first floor then the second story floor joist or trusses may drop down in the area where the load bearing wall was removed. Load bearing wall removed or altered on first floor. Bcworkz does raise a good point about older foundation methods and short term sags that stabilize.

The cause of these may be the same or may be different. If unsure have a pro come out and inspect it and give you pointers. Sagging floors a common problem in old homes have many potential causes. I d suggest looking at the joists under your floor and then get into the attic and check the roof structure looking for sagging or other abnormalities.