Busted floors in a new development.. what should I do?

sounds like a glue down job directly atop a cement slab, without a proper subfloor and vapor barrier..is this the satori, because when I looked at it out of curiosity, I noticed that every floor in the model apartment was cupping,and at that point it was literally a few weeks old

eman134

in Flooring 13 years and 11 months ago

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iatepaste | 13 years and 11 months ago

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Hey all!

So I moved into a brand new condo in November. Shortly after the heat went on the floors started warping, in some places up to two inches high.

Now the developer did attempt to fix it – they replaced some boards but simply sanded down the rest of the ‘wavy’ part which went all the way across the living room floor. Then it continued to worsen, so they had to come in and do it again. Now the living room has several small boards that have fallen in and some sealant ridging up between the boards. Yuck.

Now both bedrooms exhibit waviness and the living room is flat but you can tell it’s been sanded because of the uneven color of the wood. 

They’re coming back in to look soon. Question is, is the sanding itself a major problem? Should I allow them to resand everything or demand that they replace the entire floor in the living room? It’s warrantied as it’s new but I don’t know how much leverage I have. Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

steam_man | 13 years and 11 months ago

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iatepaste, Please e-mail me directly to discuss a similar issue I had. heat@moltenmechanical.com

daveinbedstuy | 13 years and 11 months ago

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And people wonder why I post crazy rants about new construction!!!!!

Seriously, hld out for all new floors and make sure they are done correctly.  Are these really true solid hardwood floors???  Sanding them does not remedy the basic problem of why they are buckling.

If you call most flooring guys, they will come in and assess the situation and give tou a free estimate.

Mine is Jose…

917-355-7977

Get an independent assessment. As with the shoddy workmanship, the contractor is only out to screw you.

stevecym | 13 years and 11 months ago

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At this point you can only hold out for new floors.  Listen, the NWFA has some very specific instructions on how to install floors, including specs for nailing and gluing and acceptable moisture content at time of installation.  I would check their website and with the help of a qualified installer, try to ascertain whether or not these were followed.  It will help you negotiate.

As far as the sanding and the uneven color, if a floor finisher properly sands a floor and finishes it off at the same grit all the way around, the only variations in the floor should be in the wood graining.  But how many times are they going to sand your new floor?  two times?  so 15 years from now after you and your kids beat the floor up and you want to resand, there is only one sanding left – or less because they went heavy in some spots to reduce cup or crown?

I should not knock other contractors – but we have to try to understand what is going on with the product we install – Wood Moves!

I am not the qualified installer for this.  You will need someone who eats and sleeps floors to help you.

Steve