Hardwood flooring help

[shanesmith80]

Just moved into new home and discovered wet carpet. Was going to pull it up one day just didn't plan on today.
Has hardwood floor underneath.
The hardwood floor is directly on the joists. Is this acceptable if I just sand them back and finish them? Or do I need a subfloor?
House is double brick on foundations. The room in question I believe used to be a garage so is concreted underneath. Distance from concrete to floor approx 400 - 500mm.
Hope this makes sense.
Thanks
Shane.

[bryn23]

You would have to let the moisture escape from the hardwood before finishing, a moisture meter is handy for this.

If you are going to sand them back and finish the hardwood timber for a flooring surface. it might be wise to put in some underfloor insulation if you can get under there.

Another thing is... why was there wet carpet... you need to fix the water ingress before sanding and finishing the floor.

[FenceFurniture]

The hardwood floor is directly on the joists. I presume there are bearers under the joists? If so then that's the norm. (bearers, joists, floor)


Another thing is... why was there wet carpet... you need to fix the water ingress before sanding and finishing the floor.Indeed!

[rwbuild]

Investigate/rectify the reason for wet carpet first. I suspect that if it being a garage originally I wouldn't be surprised if the floor framing and/or flooring is touching the brickwork or if there is a window in the external door there is a possibility that there is a flashing problem with the window allowing water in or is there a water pipe somewhere in a wall that has developed a leak. Lots of reasons for moister, but you have to address that issue before doing anything else.

[shanesmith80]

Thanks guys. I have been investigating where the water come from. I'm about 98% sure it's from something leaking or a crappy steam clean job. Under the house is dry. Bricks and bearers/ joists all look and feel dry. Brick piers have metal caps before bearers. Doesn't appear to be any pipes in that section of Wall. Up in roof also dry as a bone. Am going to leave it for a while and see if it gets wet when rains. Until then time to do some sanding.
Any others tips on finishing hardwood floors much appreciated.
Thanks again for the replies.
Shane.

[Fuzzie]

Wet sounds different to damp. Perhaps put down some newspaper as a tell tale to see if water is dripping from somewhere or help locate wettest area? The water may come from outside when it rains or the entry to garage is hosed down etc. When you think it is dry, as a check lay down a layer of clear plastic to see if any condensation is apparent coming off the floor.