TIL you can fix a squeaky floorboard with baby powder and a straw

I had this one spot in my hallway near the bathroom that would let out this awful creak every time I stepped on it. Drove me nuts for like 8 months. Tried a bunch of stuff - screws, glue, even thought about ripping up the whole floor. Then my neighbor saw me stomping on it one day and just laughed. Told me to get a straw, put one end on the crack, and blow baby powder into it. Actually worked on the first try. No noise for 3 weeks now. Anyone else got weird home fixes that sound fake?

3 comments

3 Comments

juliarodriguez26d ago

55 years in my house and I tried that baby powder trick on three different spots. First one worked okay for about a week but then the squeak came back louder than before. The second spot didn't change at all, just got a white powdery mess all over my socks for months. For the third one I actually made it worse somehow, like the powder jammed in there and made this grinding noise instead of a squeak. My uncle who refinished hardwood floors for 30 years told me baby powder is just a temporary fix because it traps moisture under the boards and can cause rot eventually. Really regret not just pulling up the board and fixing it right the first time, now I've got three problem spots instead of one.

dylan_brown3026d ago

Your uncle is right about moisture but I’ve had baby powder quiet spots for years with no rot in my 1920s house.

the_susan26d ago

@juliarodriguez same thing happened to me, the squeak came back worse after a couple weeks and I had white powder stains on my floors for ages. Baby powder is just a band-aid, not a real fix.