HW Flooring - Advice on resolving a dispute with installer?

rickm · #11 01-22-2008, 10:09 AM

my other problem with this floor, (it is a prefinished model oak floor) is that the dog scratches the snot out of it. Rarely does he scratch the wood, but the finish is easily scratched. Model puts like 8 coats of whatever they call aluminum oxide over the floor. Does anyone know how to recoat the floor and eliminate the scratches?

Eddy Smiles · #12 01-22-2008, 11:38 AM

With all due respect to Susieq's suggestion about a lawyer I think that I'd conduct a minor cost benefit analysis first before contacting a lawyer and try all avenues open via the BBB and chamber of commerces. As Susieq stated a lawyer can eat up the profits pretty fast and before you know it you could end up spending enough to renovate the entire house never mind just a couple of floors. In this case where you've only dropped $6,000 it might behoove you to see what you can get out of small claims court. Of course your claim is going to have to be tight and backed up with a lot of documentation. It would be the same as what a lawyer would do but a lot cheaper and it comes with about the same guarantee of seeing any money at the end of the line.

Eddy Smiles · #13 01-22-2008, 11:41 AM

Rick.... How thick are your floor boards.... 1/4"....1/2" ? Are they solid oak all the way through or are they laminate. If laminted, how thick is the laminated portion? On some flooring you can get away with giving them a light sanding and then coat them with floor poly. If thick enough you can go right down to the bare wood and start from scratch with stain or clear. Your dog must have some humongus nail!

Kenny_S · #14 01-22-2008, 11:58 AM

If all else fails Chuck, send Gino and the boys down with a couple of Louieville sluggers. Nah, Just kidding. Floors don't have to be completely level for laminate flooring. I have installed the Bruce type and the Pergo in a couple of houses and, yes the floor should be as level as can be but not as level as one would think. I agree with the rest on the PB being ripped up and a thinner layer of wood sheet installed. I would like to find those who invented the PB, for sure. Great suggestions given without the lawyer involvement. But may need him or her. I know when I need some help in talking to floor people or siding or what have you, I send the little bride to talk. Just at of relief from her, they do just about whatever I want them to do! HEHEHEHEHE
Sorry you are having so much trouble after spending that kind of money.

Keep after them!

North Wind · #15 01-22-2008, 01:07 PM

I would first of all check with the manager of this product as they all have certain protocol which must be met for installation of their product before they will guarantee it. If the company that sold and installed this did not follow their guidelines then they will be responsible for any replacement or repair. I have been in construction for many years and most products caryy some sort of guarantee as long as you follow their installation instructions. Some even go so far as to offer training classes for installers. My 2 cents, Vince.

rickm · #16 01-22-2008, 03:52 PM

nails are very short. It is solid oak flooring with this 9 layers of whatever coating on it.

that surface gets scratched. I had a traditional oak floor before, (stained, with poly on it,_) and it survived better than this. This floor could be sanded down, but you'd have to sand the snot out of it, with all the coatings. I am looking for some type of coating to put on it, that would eliminte the surface scratches

susieq · #17 01-22-2008, 05:41 PM

Hi Chuck,
Eddy is right and that was the point of my long rant about attorneys.... I wanted you to know what you were in for if it came to that. But, my first suggestion was to let an attorney write a letter for you.....if you can't work things out on your own. I have seen one letter from an attorney to the person/business in question, completely turn around their thinking. They know that they will need an attorney also at that point and and it will cost them a bundle to defend themselves too.

Or you can go pro se and represent yourself in small claims court....if this amount of money ($6,000.) is considered small enough for small claims. I don't know what the limit is.

Or.....around here we have tv attorneys that are connected to television news programs. For instance, here locally on channel 8 we have a feature on the evening news, called 8 on your side. A reporter/attorney investigates problems that people write into the station about. They do a feature on it and it is usually a lot of bad publicity for the business in question. Frequently, they get results.
What ever happens, I do wish you the best of luck on this situation. It is something that can happen to anyone.

cats pa · #18 01-30-2008, 12:38 AM

Chuck, I'm bumping this because I'm curious to know if anything has moved on it yet. Did the floor shop do what is right? Were we ful of doo-doo? Are you pouring concrete over it, and polishing to a high gloss? Inquiring minds want to know...

Parker

mikeGinSC · #19 02-04-2008, 11:32 PM

Rick,

If your subfloor is 3/4" plywood, you shouldn't need any more underlayment. I've installed over 30,000 sq ft of HW flooring over the years. PB is definitely not a recommended substrate to install flooring over. It should have been taken up and the nails pulled. Like someone else said, if they installed the flooring over the "wet spot" where the pipe broke without letting the floor dry, you will have major problems in that area. Also, what kind of vapor barrier did they use? I've always used 30# felt for the vapor barrier. It also helps with squeaks.

Does your flooring have an eased edge? If so, that might be the "height difference you feel when you run your hand across it. This is supposed to help with installing prefinished floor...less chance of chipping an edge when the boards are "slammed together". Around the edges close to a wall, I use a finish nailer with a "padded" nose to nail the floor, but I also nail close enough to the wall so that the base and/or shoe mold will cover the nail holes. The rest of the floor shoud be blind nailed through the tongue every 12 inches and 3 inches from the ends of each board.

All the Bruce flooring I've ever installed usually had a 20 or 25 yr warrantee on the topcoat and it takes a couple of years before a dog will scratch the floor enough to notice...unless you have a St Bernard or Great Dane

Have you tried the manufacturer's recommended floor finish/wax? on the scratched areas?

I don't know what labor costs are in your area, but around here, Cashiers, NC, sanding, staining and 3 coats of a premium Poly,( We use Bono water based Poly made specifically for floors. Under optimum conditions it dries in about 4 hours, 6 hours if it's real humid.), will run about $2.50 a sq ft with stairs running about $3.50 a ft. Not that you want to have to refinish your newly installed flooring, but you can refinish 3/4" pre-finished flooring a couple of times before you start sanding into the T&G part of the floor.

My qualifications...I've been a carpenter/ homebuilder for over 25 years. I hope you get your problem resolved with minimum hassle. If the company you used is reputable, they should resolve the problem to your satisfaction. Nobody likes "callbacks" because it costs the contractor money and causes hard feelings with the client.

Just my buck, two fifty-eight for what it's worth,

Mike G. in SC

rickm · #20 02-05-2008, 08:40 AM

I appreciate the reply. Model, which is in Canada, also called PG industries, sent a rep down, looked at the floor and told me "this is the wrong floor if you have a dog" apparently the nine coats of whatever they put on it is too soft and scratches easily. Also, their warranty does not cover damage from pets, high heels etc.

The dog is a rott, and very sedate in the house. doesnt run through the house etc. I dremel his nails and they are almost non existant, to the point when he goes outside and we play frisbee it is hard for him to get a grip. He does like to jump on people, to the consternation of the rest of the family when they visit, and I think when he does that, he "digs in" with his nails and that is the scratches.

Regardless, the floor scratches way too easy to be comfortable. I am stuck with it, unless I want to hire a attorney and spend $$$$ in suing everyone.
What I need is a coating, whether poly or whatever that will fill the scratches, as most are in the coating and not the wood. There are some deep scatches, but most are smaller and only in the coating. Problem is they stick out on a large expanse.
I want to avoid sanding it as we keep him out of a large portion of the house and I dont want the disparity between one part of the house and the other. The other problem is that I really dont want to pay out a ton of more money to have the whole thing resanded and sealed if I can get away with a lessor fix.