Hi,
I just had prefinished Bruce hardwood oak flooring installed in my home. This is my first home and first time having hardwood installed. The installation finished yesterday and today i had a chance to clean up the dust and examine the floors. I noticed a lot of problems or things that i think that the contractor should address. Here are the major ones, which i also included pics of (except #4)

1. splintering along the edges of boards - (approx 20 places where so bad that it snagged the cotton off of my swiffer when i was dusting) other places where the edges are raised.
2.uneven spaces between the boards - mostly on the sides of the boards and a few on the ends, some spaces are worse than others smallest space i can fit a dime in largest space i can probably put my pinky in (thats only one spot near the entrance)
3. nail holes on the boards - this is pretty consistent along on the boards along the walls
4. raised hump in one of the rooms, the length of the room - this is about two boards width and length of the room, its raised about half an inch

We originally got these floors redone because the home was old and the floor was uneven. the contractor had to remove the old floors and shim. I dont know how much of these issues have to do with that. Basically of these issues im not sure what to address with him, or what he should fix as it seems to be an installation problem. which of these problems should be addressed as they may cause problems with the floors down the road? i guess i can live with the spacing issues but the splintering i feel like is unacceptable as it prevents a hazard to walking on the floors and the nail holes as it looks terrible as well as the "hump". What would fixing these issues entail?

http://s557.photobucket.com/user/vcento/library/Floor

Thanks in advance for any insight!

Work looks a little sloppy. Splintered planks; call the manufacturer and file a claim, get an inspector there. Installer may not notice those when installing. Gaps should have been adjusted with straps or a board puller/screw driver to pull together tighter. Nail holes should be filled.

Stephen,

you know the drill..installation is acceptance of the product..no claim can be had there.

Lilness,


no need for those nail holes..glue last few courses then finish nail where shoe or base will cover eliminates that.

a minor gap here or there is acceptable.

level issues are determined by the contract agreement however if the board snow "TeePee " as a result then no prep was offered and that's a no no.


the splintered edges are from banging together using metal side of hammer..the nailer.. or a bad board that should have not went in or cut and used in closet or a starter piece.

either was most of these issues can be touched up by guideline.

reality is all the issue would probably pass guideline..


Some guys are just better then others is the reality here..

\
True that James. However the installer cannot feel the edges of every plank to check for splintering. It's not like this is a square edged S&F job. But then those 20 planks would fall under the 5% rule anyhow I guess.

I've had quite a few splinters in my days, it is wood ya know. It never hurts to file a claim and have the inspector come out. Inspectors need to eat too!