Yes, that is a very good possibility.

Thank you both!

""I would have it inspected by a certified pro from the NHFA"

"The previous owners lived here for 10 years"

Bette P, what will the inspector tell them for 10 year old floors?

I have had hardwood floors of customers exhibit strange behavior, such as this, when basements were finished or additions added to houses...and those were years after the floors were originally done. Most of those involved significant gapping or some cupping or crowning of certain areas. Changing the indoor environment can cause hardwood to dance around.

An inspector will help her through discovering if she still has a humidity issue in the home. Does the crowning change through the seasons, get worse, better, etc. They are a great resource, even a phone call. Do you own a hygrometer? Dehumidifier? Do you have great swings of dryness and humidity through the year?

I would recommend you purchase a hygrometer ($35 at Home Depot) and put it at "table height" in the middle of the room. Wait 1 day and then take the reading. You want to see a reading around about 40% - 50% humidity in the air (that's what a hygrometer reads....air borne moisture = humidity).

A wood floor will POINT in the direction the moisture is HIGHER. If you imagine the centre of the plank is the tip of an arrow. The direction the "tip" is pointing (crowning like yours means the "tip" is pointing upwards) is the direction to look for extra moisture.

Your planks are pointing "UP" towards the ceiling....or into the AIR! So...check the amount of moisture in the air. Basements can be damp. There are many reasons for this....but you can investigate that later.

I would be interested to see if the air borne moisture (humidity %) is too high. If so, then a dehumidifier could work. That being said, these are 10 year old floors. They *might have done this 10 years ago and never been put back into shape. If that is the case, then a dehumidifier may not change the look (the wood has permanently changed shape).

If this is a RECENT event (only happened this summer/winter) then it is possible that a dehumidifier will solve the problem. If these floors have been like this for a long time (more than a year or two) then a sand and refinish will correct the look. The dehumidifier won't do much (other than balance out an area of the house with humidity problems).

SJ, this condition has existed at least 3.5 years because that is how long we've lived here. The floor is in need of a refinish but I just want to make sure it will remedy the condition and also that it won't happen again after refinishing them.

"but I just want to make sure it will remedy the condition and also that it won't happen again after refinishing them."

Maybe, maybe not, it's wood there are no guarantees...........

After 3.5 years (and counting...who knows how long it was like that before you moved in) the dehumidifier probably won't work to correct the wood. But it is STILL a VERY GOOD idea to get a hygrometer to measure the humidity levels...just to be sure.

Assuming the humidity is now constant AND acceptable (ie. you need to measure it for a few months), a sand and refinish should correct the look.

Again, this is highly dependent on the HUMIDITY readings in the basement. If they are too high...these floors might just do it again. Hence the recommendation to get a hygrometer down there and a pen/paper that you can write down daily/weekly readings for the next few months.

As long as the crowning is consistent throughout the year, refinishing should be successful. Using a thermo-hygrometer is good idea. Most log the high and low temperature and humidity.

Thank you all! I will take you up on your advice and feel relieved that you think the problem will be fixed when floors get redone.

Are your floors on a slab? The reason I asked is because we had a similar situation on wood flooring installed. We noticed the floors were crowning. It took us awhile to determine the cause but it was established the wrong adhesive was used which was water based. Our floors had to be removed, believe me if the installer was able to just sand them he would have went with that option rather than ripping them up and replacing. We also did moisture testing even to the extent of drilling holes in the slab.

I assume they are over plywood but no idea. This is the main floor of our house. Does that help determine what it is over? I know who built the home and he's supposed to be a good builder.

Is it over a basement? Over a crawlspace?

Just like Johnson mentioned. This is a result of sanding the floor when it has a high moisture content. Now, that the flooring has reached it's equilibrium, crowning appears. The floors were probably installed over a wet subfloor. If, you're not able to find any existing moisture problems. Have the floors refinished to flatten it.

SJ McCarthy, it's over a basement (with high ceilings). When previous owners bought the house, it was unfinished but they did finish the basement (probably 7 years ago).