Home renovation. Need help

[Kroze]

I'm in the process of ripping off the old carpet to replace it (previous owner have 3 dogs & 2 cats so you could imagine). While i'm at it, i'm planning to fix the squeaky floor. So after ripping up a portion of the carpet in the upstairs hallway, i noticed that there are stains everywhere, it went through the carpet, padding, and the wood floor. It really smells.

My question is, how do i go about replacing the subfloor? I have no experience in this, do i just pry out the old nail holding the floor to the joist and then remove the plywood?

Should i pre-cut the subfloor into little pieces first to make it easier to remove it?

also, it seems that the subfloor board is under the molding and wall studs, how do i get around this problem...is it possible for the subfloor to be underneath the wall studs? if that's the case, how can i remove it?

 

[feralkid]

Yes it can, and often is under the walls.

Is there one layer or two?

If there are two, it's a much simpler operation; cut and pry off the top layer...replace.

If it's a single layer...best left alone.

Another option is to "encapsulate" the funk using a variety of available products and techniques.

edit: Crawl-space or basement?

 

[swimscubasteve]

Originally posted by: Kroze
I'm in the process of ripping off the old carpet to replace it (previous owner have 3 dogs & 2 cats so you could imagine). While i'm at it, i'm planning to fix the squeaky floor. So after ripping up a portion of the carpet in the upstairs hallway, i noticed that there are stains everywhere, it went through the carpet, padding, and the wood floor. It really smells.

My question is, how do i go about replacing the subfloor? I have no experience in this, do i just pry out the old nail holding the floor to the joist and then remove the plywood?

Should i pre-cut the subfloor into little pieces first to make it easier to remove it?

also, it seems that the subfloor board is under the molding and wall studs, how do i get around this problem...is it possible for the subfloor to be underneath the wall studs? if that's the case, how can i remove it?

It is possible for the subfloor to be under the studs. Just saws-all it out and replace up to the studs. You will need to remove the moulding. Unless it's really nice stuff, just replace it with new.

 

[Kelemvor]

Or you could just get some sort of sealer to put down that would seal in the smell and such and not worry about it as long as it still seems sturdy and not rotted through.

 

[MikeyIs4Dcats]

yes, you could always use a sealer/primer to seal in the odor.

otherwise, cut it out at the wall and replace it. Now, the squeaking isn't dependent on the floor being stained. If you want to fix the squeaking, pull the screws of nails and glue the subfloor to the joist, then screw it down.

 

[Kroze]

this is a townhouse (2nd floor)

 

[djheater]

Originally posted by: Kelemvor
Or you could just get some sort of sealer to put down that would seal in the smell and such and not worry about it as long as it still seems sturdy and not rotted through.

Yeah, I';d probably use an enzymatic cleaner, let that dry, paint it over with Kilz and lay new floor. Work smarter not harder.

 

[Kroze]

Originally posted by: Kelemvor
Or you could just get some sort of sealer to put down that would seal in the smell and such and not worry about it as long as it still seems sturdy and not rotted through.

i don't think it's going to happen as the wood looks moldy. sooner or later i'm going to have to replace it.

 

[feralkid]

Originally posted by: Kroze
this is a townhouse (2nd floor)

That might be a candidate for sealing, unless you also own the downstairs unit.

 

[Sphexi]

Moldy doesn't necessarily mean that it's rotting or needs replacing. If you know anybody with experience locally, have them come look at it, chances are it's good for another 10-15 years easy, and at that point you won't be there any more (probably).

Tear down to the subfloor, clean and scrub, you can paint it with Kilz if you want, but you won't get any odors through the padding and carpet once you put it down. As far as squeaks go, walk around on the floor, and mark each spot that squeaks with a little X. Then just go through and put screws down in each spot. It'll deal with most of the squeaking, you might find that as you do this more will pop up, just let it sit a while before putting down padding and carpeting.

 

[drnickriviera]

Originally posted by: djheater

Originally posted by: Kelemvor
Or you could just get some sort of sealer to put down that would seal in the smell and such and not worry about it as long as it still seems sturdy and not rotted through.

Yeah, I';d probably use an enzymatic cleaner, let that dry, paint it over with Kilz and lay new floor. Work smarter not harder.

Unfortunately that doesn't always work. One of my foreclosures had a bad pet odor problem. Sprayed 10 gallons of bleach throughout the house and painted the subfloor & up 1' on the wall with oil based stain/odor primer. Still smelled.

It was like the Seinfeld Mutant BO episode.

 

[Kroze]

Originally posted by: drnickriviera

Originally posted by: djheater

Originally posted by: Kelemvor
Or you could just get some sort of sealer to put down that would seal in the smell and such and not worry about it as long as it still seems sturdy and not rotted through.

Yeah, I';d probably use an enzymatic cleaner, let that dry, paint it over with Kilz and lay new floor. Work smarter not harder.

Unfortunately that doesn't always work. One of my foreclosures had a bad pet odor problem. Sprayed 10 gallons of bleach throughout the house and painted the subfloor & up 1' on the wall with oil based stain/odor primer. Still smelled.

It was like the Seinfeld Mutant BO episode.

so you end up replacing the subfloor still?

 

[MikeyIs4Dcats]

Originally posted by: drnickriviera

Originally posted by: djheater

Originally posted by: Kelemvor
Or you could just get some sort of sealer to put down that would seal in the smell and such and not worry about it as long as it still seems sturdy and not rotted through.

Yeah, I';d probably use an enzymatic cleaner, let that dry, paint it over with Kilz and lay new floor. Work smarter not harder.

Unfortunately that doesn't always work. One of my foreclosures had a bad pet odor problem. Sprayed 10 gallons of bleach throughout the house and painted the subfloor & up 1' on the wall with oil based stain/odor primer. Still smelled.

It was like the Seinfeld Mutant BO episode.

it was probably coming from behind the sheetrock. you just missed areas.

the sealer/primers do work. that is what they do to building after a fire to get rid of the smoke smell.