Cupping – The Most Prevalent Form of Wood Floor Distress

Most of us see cupping everyday. There are not many homes that I walk into that have called me to look at their floors for a refinish that don’t have some cupping. Most of the time this form of distress is adjacent to an exterior door or in front of a kitchen sink.

It is usually pretty easy to determine the cause in these cases, but what if it is throughout the home or affects the middle of a room. Do you know how to determine the cause? And if you do figure out the cause, do you know how to remedy it?

I was going to add the info from NWFA Technical Publication No. C200 Problems, Causes, and Cures (pages 6-7), but it would have been 2 pages! So, please go to this publication for a full explanation of cupping and many choices for repair, or contact the NWFA Technical Hotline at 800.422.4556 (USA & Canada) or 636.519.9663 (local and international). This is a service for NWFA members and we are here to help!

*The Problems, Causes, and Cures publication is available for download to NWFA members at no cost. Non-members can purchase the publication for $50.00 here.

2 thoughts

  1. is it true if the MC of stored hardwood is more than MC in the house, after installation the wood will start drying from top and will create cupping ?

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