Why is my apartment flooring bubbling and getting gaps after cleaning?
Moisture trapped beneath the surface is causing the flooring to swell when wet and pull apart into gaps. This makes the material highly sensitive to water, leaving it prone to damage from basic cleaning and everyday moisture.
What the numbers show
Counted from the threads quoted below. How we count
- The most recent one is from October 2026.
- This comes up 54.4× more often in r/Flooring than across the site as a whole.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Living with the issues until deciding to replace the floorsDid this help you?
- 2Attempting to accelerate drying with a hair dryerDid this help you?
- 3Pulling up the cheap vinyl and replacing itDid this help you?
- 4returning the affected planksDid this help you?
- 5avoiding the product brand/lineDid this help you?
- 6Pulling up the affected planks regardless of the sourceDid this help you?
- 7Checking for clogged condensation lines, slab leaks, or frozen air handlersDid this help you?
- 8Inspecting for spills or moisture wicking in the wallboardDid this help you?
- 9pestering customer service repeatedlyDid this help you?
- 10checking Better Business Bureau pages and Reddit for adviceDid this help you?
- 11considering replacing curtains with blinds to keep the sun off the floorDid this help you?
- 12hiring out the repair and paying half of the job cost through managementDid this help you?
- 13using a good quality floor paint with prep workDid this help you?
- 14sanding down to new wood and lacquering or waxing itDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I think this is LVP and this area has started warping/bubbljng.”source ↗
“We were concerned w water damage from our AC unit but we got that checked and no leaks.”source ↗
“Unfortunately it looks like we made the mistake of purchasing LVP for most of our house through Floor and Decor last fall.”source ↗
“We're now experiencing buckling and bubbling in a couple spots near doors, and separating at the end seams in the hallway.”source ↗
“Is there any legal action that can be taken if they refuse to stick to the warranty as stated??”source ↗
“Nope. Don’t use that one if it’s the only problem and rerturn them if they’re all like that. My guess is some sort of moisture caused this”source ↗
“Definitely looks like moisture to me. Despite all of the marketing, it is still inferior to LVP on all things water”source ↗
“in many places gaps started to appear and they make me really unconfortable, also yesterday I tried cleaning a stain from it and it started swell in that specific part even though i only brushed a bit with a sponge.”source ↗
“does anyone know why these issues are appearing and how to solve them”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 39How to tile over an uneven subfloor without tearing it up
- 2How to fix an H-pattern in installed flooring without tearing it all up
- 6Why is my subfloor wavy and dropping?
- 5What to do about a bad hardwood floor installation
- 4What to do about uneven or mismatched tile patterns
- 18Why are my floor tiles cracking and tenting?