How To Stop Wood Floors From Sweating? – Complete Guide

In this blog post, I will be narrating to you why wood floors sweat and how to stop wood floors from sweating.

At my new workplace, employees and visitors have been surviving by a whisker from falling. I recently wasn’t lucky and ended up on the floor.

It was worse for ladies who come in staggering in high heels with a lack of balance.

A few days ago, we fixed this problem. Sweating wood floors pose a real threat and that must be fixed while it is still early.

It may be fatal when children playing on such floors slip and fall. So, how do you stop your wood floor from sweating?

Stopping wooden floors from sweating can be achieved in a couple of ways. From raising the room temperature, and enhancing air circulation to changing the surface of the floor of your room.

Why Is My Wood Floor Sweating?

Before you design how you are going to stop your wooden floor from sweating, you must know the source of the sweat.

We already know that sweating floors are a menace that must be contained in good time.

If not fixed, they pose a real hazard, people will fall and might sustain serious injuries.

They might fall and hit parts of their bodies on furniture or other items in the room. So, why do wooden floors sweat?

Condensation

Condensation is the key reason most floors sweat. It happens when water vapor condenses into a liquid on the top of the floor.

Usually, the air on the floor is kept cool till it gets to the dew point.

During condensation, there is the movement of warm humid air from outside the room into it. 

The air cools fast when it comes into contact with cool wooden floors especially if the weather is warm.

It is this condensation that causes the mistiness and slipperiness on the floor.

Tip: Most times this mistiness or slipperiness may not be spotted by the naked eye. But the slipperiness can be felt by touching the floor.

Poor Ground Drainage

You may notice that the floor of your room is too cold. This may be a result of poor drainage and water flowing in the direction of your house.

The water is sucked up by the floor leading to dampness.

More water may penetrate through the floor hence you may notice petals of sweat on the wooden floor.

How To Stop Wood Floors From Sweating

The reasons above are the commonest as to why your wooden floor could be sweating. 

Some dangers come with wooden floors sweating.

Such dangers as the growth of molds, a foul smell, and slipperiness if left unchecked are harmful.

Below are the most efficient ways of stopping wood floors from sweating.

Step #1. Top-up Ventilation In Your Room

A poorly ventilated room is at the highest risk for sweating wooden floors. With poor or no ventilation, there is hardly any movement of air.

Hence the quality of the air in the room is poor. Stagnant air will at once cause the dampening of air and sweating of the floor.

To take care of this, enhance the ventilation in your room. Open all windows and doors during the day.

And also open all windows for the better part of the evening to boost the circulation of air in the room. 

Tip: You can get the stagnated air moving by using attic fans and vents to skyrocket the air movement.

Step #2. Install A Dehumidifier

Dehumidifiers are cost-effective machines suited for ejecting moisture from the air.

It is the build-up of moisture that largely contributes to wet hardwood floors.

So, installing a dehumidifier will greatly influence the level of moisture in your room hence keeping floor sweats at bay.

While installing a dehumidifier, choose carefully. Go for the one that is the most suitable, one that covers the entire area you want to de-moisturize. 

Other than taking care of the moisture, dehumidifiers inhibit condensation which is also a sweating factor.

They improve the general flow of air in the room and the odor. They also prevent molds and mildew from growing inside the room.

Note:  Dehumidifiers are the best electronic guides for a sweating wooden floor.

Step #3. Fix Any Leakages And Cracks

If you suspect that while it is raining there are leakages of water in your room, then get to work. Fix them all as soon as possible.

Leakages contribute largely to the moisture in your room.

If this water from leakages is not properly drained and the area dried, there will be a buildup of moisture.

This will most probably lead up to the dampening of your room hence causing sweating floors.

So, be as wise as to fix these leakages, cracks, crevices, and nooks in good time.

Step #4. Install Fans

Fans speed up the circulation of air in the room. They have a calming effect that each room needs.

Together with proper ventilation, fans will help you keep your wooden floor from sweating.

Turning on the fans helps to speed up the evaporation of moisture from floors.

Step #5. Install An Anti-slip Mat

You can visit online stores or go to one in person and get yourself the anti-slip mats.

These non-slip mats help you and other people using the room to stay on your feet. It helps you avoid tripping even when your floor is sweating.

They are pretty inexpensive and will save you the stress of a sweating wooden floor.

Step #6. Apply Anti Sweat Treatment On The Floor

Anti-sweat treatments are applied on the floors to distract the sweating by etching tiny grooves into the wooden surface. 

They function by making the surface rougher. This toughness improves the friction between the shoes or feet and the floor.

Step #7. Replace The Wooden Floors Wth New Ones

If all these options can’t seem to work out well, then the last and best of all options is to install new wooden floors.

Although it isn’t going to be an easy task, it will help fix the sweating issue once and for all.

Replacing wooden floors is quite tedious. Hence, the need to hire experts to come in and plug out the old wooden floor and replace it with the new one.

Note: Replacing the wooden floors will also help to assess if there may be other risks behind the sweating of the current floor.

Are There Other Ways to Stop Wood Floors from Sweating?

Other than these four ways of stopping sweating wooden floors, you can also do the following.

• Use exhaust fans while eating something in the room or while cooking.
• Check and control any growth of molds in the corners of your room, the ceiling, and the wall.
• Check if there is any build-up of moisture on the windows.
• Use a thermometer to read the humidity levels of the wooden floor manually.

Tip: You can also use other preventive measures to stop the escape of warm humid air. 

Such measures include covering any aquariums in the room, and covering pot lids while cooking dry. Remember also to dry all wet clothes outside.

Conclusion

For most of those reasons, you won’t have to replace the floor with a new one, try the options in this article that you find relevant on how to stop wood floors from sweating.

Sweating wood floors aren’t good for your safety and that of others.

Once you notice that the wooden floor is sweating, try to establish what could be making it sweat.

If all that seems to bear no fruits, then you will have to replace the wooden floor.  If you are in the position you can also install the anti-slip mats. 

Always ensure you and your family are safe.

Look out for any sweating wooden floors and fix them before they become hazardous.