Should I expect the installer to replace? I have multiple problems. The floor is newly installed. The first floor is glue down, second floor is nailed all engineered 7" white oak. Around 5,000+ sq ft. I feel the quality of the actual board was not the best on top of bad installation.

Problem #1 How many hollow spots is acceptable and how large?
The hollow areas are massive, in fact, so many that I quit applying the tape to mark them because I should have marked the spots that didn't sound hollow instead! It's not just a few areas. It sounds so cheap. My fear is that the boards will also start to creak or make popping sounds in the future. He claimed to inject to solve the issue, but he didn't even put a dent into it. I don't want my floor to look like swiss cheese either! It is literally hollow in every direction when I sit on the floor and tap in a circle. Not sure if it was caused from poor glue adhesion or poor slab preparation/floating.

Problem #2
The gaps are uneven and do not look like the tongue and groove fit together tight or straight. Everything I read says it should be tight before any seasonal changes occur. The gaps were visible as soon as the floor was laid the same day. I feel bad cuts were also made by installers. Some ends of boards are rough cut like the saw blade chewed up the wood and crooked too.

Problem #3
Sides of boards are broken off, but then tried to be corrected with wood filler. Just doesn't look right and I am worried about splinters. The contractor has used so much wood filler it is ridiculous. When the wood filler cracks, he digs it out and tries another type. What is going to happen after I move in? I don't know how long wood filler lasts, but I know it looks terrible up close. I read somewhere that this can be caused by using only a rubber mallet instead of both a tapping block with the mallet. It breaks the edge off the board. Not sure if a tapping block was used, but I know that mallet was, and now my edges are broken off on boards. Should these boards be replaced or filled?

Problem #4
Before move in, installer wanted to apply a second coat of Rubio Monocoat to freshen up his repair work. I picked "Cotton White" which was the 1st coat, but he applied the 2nd coat being "Pure" (clear) which we all know isn't really "clear", is more yellow amber from the linseed oil. Now I have nice pickled boards of the color I chose, and other boards that picked up the dingy yellow. I worked so hard to keep yellow tones out of this house, and now he ruined it.

My concerns are in 10yrs and I go to sell the house, will it be a turn off for shotty work? Don't get me wrong, the floor is beautiful from a distance, but don't dare look closely. He has put lipstick on a pig continuously trying to make it right. Anyone have advice on what to do? Do I accept his fixes, or ask for a new floor? I dread putting a new floor in, but don't want it to come back and bite me in the butt financially in 10yrs. just because I settled. This is a very high end house and I know people can be super picky if they are looking to buy it. Advice Please!
Thank you so much! Pics are just a small portion of the problems.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/hySMDppKR7XHF6Aa7

Curious how much was paid for the flooring and location.

1. Some minor hollow spots aren't an issue, unless there was no attention to floor prep and it's worse. Don't obsess over tapping every spot on the floor.

2. Gaps. Could be the installer or lousy material to work with. Some guys take pride in getting everything tight. Others don't. Where are these ends? If it's covered by baseboard throw out that complaint.

3. Sloppy.

4. Others can try this one.



Floors are made to walk on, not crawled on. When it comes to what is acceptable and what isn't, it has to be viewed from a standing position.

The material here looks very familiar - Are you in Canada by chance? Toronto maybe? If I paid for 5000sqft of 7" wide flooring I would absolutely expect better install than that.

Remember that a lot of installers are piecework, meaning they get paid per SQFT not by the hour, so they tend to rush through everything. I've never seen a piecework installer use a tapping block for that reason. If you are not in a hurry, then you can take the time to correct your bad cuts instead of hide them with filler. While the use of filler is a perfectly acceptable construction method, it should only be applied as a remedy in tricky areas, not as a standard throughout the whole space. It looks like he's used putty and not a silicone filler, so yes it will come out over time and need to be reapplied.

I agree with Ken - don't worry about the hollow spots too much, unless there is also movement when you walk over it, as the movement can lead to deflection and possible noise issues. If the floor sinks down over the low spots as you step on it, and rises again when you step off, then I would be worried about air/moisture getting trapped in there. You should not feel any movement with a glue down floor.

As for the use of the incorrect stain - If your invoice says you asked for and paid for one kind of stain and he used another, then you can easily make a claim for it to be redone at the installers expense. If you signed off on the stain, then you are out of luck.

Hopefully you can sort things out - did the installer supply the material or was he contracted by a flooring dealer you purchased everything from? If he is a sub-contractor for a larger flooring company, I would get them in to look at the job and go from there.