Hi,

We decided to screen our floors to avoid sanding problems, but still have had a ton of problems. The contractor (who is more a general contractor and not a flooring guy but kept insisting he'd do a great job) used a dark stain, but it came out uneven. After the first coat of poly it seemed more even, but I learned later it's cause they were using the PolySHade dark colored poly and not the clear, to try to even out the color, even though it still wasn't even afterwards. After they put their last coat of finish on, the floor was pimpling.

The guy reassured us that they could fix it with some more buffering/sanding. They did get rid of the pimpling but now there are swirls and circular scratches in the parts they refinished. Also, it seems like he used more PolyShade but in some places it's very thick and covers up the grain. It still looks uneven and the color was actually nicer before they added that last coat.

He seemed to think it looked great now and with the lights off they looked Ok, but with the lights on the problems are evident from a distance. He said he could sand again to get rid of the swirls but we're not so sure about letting him, since whenever they try to fix one problem it causes other ones. Any suggestions? I have to move in in 2 days too....

Oh I also wanted to add that the polystain he used is a different color than the original stain so the color in the "fixed" parts are now very different than the original stain color.

Oh gosh, I'm so sorry. Yes, you should have gone with your gut and hired a flooring company. Sanding as well as screening should not be done by amateurs and it sounds like that is what happened.

Now, first, you can't change the color or use a stain without sanding, so that may be problem #1. It is possible that a stain wasn't used and it was just a tinted poly. But, problem #2 is sanding marks. You shouldn't have those if you screened. Screening just takes off some of the poly. It sounds like he might have gone down to some of the wood.

I can't see it, but based on what you described with the marks and uneven sand, you will probably now need to do a full sand & refinish. And, that will take a lot longer than 2 days, esp when you consider the drying time.

This post may help you on the time frames, but even w/ water based poly, you still need to allow for the stain to dry and and after all the coats of poly at least 2 days before moving furniture (4 days w/ oil based)...and all of those are after the last coat of poly.

http://theflooringgirl.com/blog/refinis ... -take.html

Debbie Gartner aka The Flooring Girl
Westchester County NY

You're going to have to fond a pro and do a complete sanding job.

Thanks for all of your advice. I was afraid of this, but sadly this is the only way. The current contractor just keeps on adding more polyurethane to try to fix the problem and it's getting worse and worse. I don't know if he can't see that it's not great or if he can and just wants to convince us that it's fine.

btw FlooringGirl the floors on your website look amazing. Really regretting giving this guy a chance and getting burned now.

Iceescape - Thx so much. And, I'm so sorry to hear this. He is prob. making it worse as you indicated. Unfortunately, I think it needs to be sanded down to the bare wood now.

Screening is actually more difficult than it seems, and if someone use wrong grit or sanded too far or used wrong type of product, you need to go back to the drawing board.

I don't know where you're located, but you can try Angieslist.com for good installers in your area. Or, for me, I'm part of a franchise called Floor Coverings International.com. On my site, I have a tab for other US locations. Hope that helps.

Debbie Gartner aka The Flooring Girl
http://TheFlooringGirl.com

We are planning on having two contractors from Angie's List coming in to look and each give their assessment.I'm pretty sure unfortunately that they will agree that it needs to be sanded down to the bare wood and redone.

We are in Manhattan, is that too far from your service area? It would be great to get someone who really knows what they are doing because the hours of trying to research how to do things right and the stress of that foreboding feeling that it is not coming out right is horrible. Not sure if he's even using the right kind of Poly.

Iceescape - Yes, Manhattan is too far for me. But, I'm so glad you are using Angie's List, and I hope it works out for you. If you find someone you like, let me know. I'm looking for a good referral partner in the City. I do get a bunch of leads for Manhattan and the Bronx and I'd love to pass them off to someone trustworthy. This has been on my "to do" list since Jan, but I've been so swamped/busy that I haven't had a chance to do.

I think we have a new person starting in Staten Island, but I haven't met him, and not sure that he is experienced enough yet.

Also, if you are happy with whomever you use on Angie's List, be sure to write them a good review. That's a great way to pay it forward.

Keep me posted.

Debbie Gartner aka The Flooring Girl
http://TheFlooringGirl.com

You could also go to http://woodfloors.org/certified-profess ... earch.aspx and search for a trained professional in your area.