500.00 to 750.00.
FOR QUALIFIED and CERTIFIED inspector. Certifications mean nothing anymore..... Except NOFMA. Anybody can obtain certifications these days..

Inspectors:
www.QuestInspect.com
www.FloorReports.com
www.NWFAcp.com (or .org)
www.NOFMA.org

But as long as the installer is doing all he can to take care of your floor;;;;;;; No need.

Floorguy: Thanks for the DriTac update. You are very usefull at keeping updated information since you have the time to cruise the Net. Must Be nice

Thanks Ray! I was just looking at the NWFA.org website. I found a few, but I'm going to hold out for now. Definitly not cheap, but it's minute compared to the cost of the flooring.

I am just so ticked. I just measured my largest area in the family room and it is 4 1/2 x 3 1/2. CAN YOU BELIEVE IT!? Well, you guys here have probably seen everything, so it wouldn't suprise you. Lol.

Too bad you or Floorguy are not near by, I would hire you guys in a second!

Yes, Dana,
Floorguy has taught me pretty well...

4 1/2 x 3 1/2, inches or feet?

Sounds like the problems are showing up worse to me. Hold on to the money. Something is not right here.

Who was doing the verifying for the "flatness" issue and giving out the OK signal.... anybody? That's who I would be speaking with.

It sounds like your contractor allowed you to hire your own sub for the flooring, instead of you paying the contractor and then he pays the sub. A tangled web if that's what happened.

New work is something I try to avoid.... and you are a prime example of why that is. I feel bad for you, but sounds like everybody got pushed because of the closing deadlines. That is not an excuse though... just creates a lot of pressure and stress.

It almost has to be a flatness issue if the boards depress. Was wondering if the floor was rolled or did they walk it in? But there is another reason this may be happening.... banana boards (bowed). They could be lifting up out of the adhesive and depressing when weight is applied. You would need a long straight edge to tell.

Put a straight edge over a problem area that depresses. If the straight edge shows a slight hump with no weight on it, that could be the reason too.

Gary,
I WISH it was inches. It is feet. There is another inside the pantry that is 3x3 feet, a few against the wall/side of stairs next to the pantry. and then many 2x2. A few 1x1. This doesn't include the other areas of the house, only the family room. I remember a huge one in the downstairs bedroom/den...........the room is full so I can't get to it, but it has to be at least as big as the one in the tv niche.

Just experienced some popping over a small area, but it doesn't happen every time you step on it. That one is in a high traffic area with a 3x3 next to the wall near the kitchen.



Hi Jerry! Thanks so much for responding. I truely appreciate it as this is so downrigh stressful. I invested a lot of money in these floors.

I assume the hardwood installer gave it the ok regarding the flatness level. I specifically asked him over the phone if it was ok and he said 'Yes.' The guy who owns the flooring company knew everything that was going on and had come out on several occassions.

The guys who grinded down the high spots were the actual builders that built the house. BUT, my tile guy ( did the kitchen and bathrooms) who works for the same flooring company is the one who floated the low spots.

As far as the 'rolled' or 'walk it in', not sure what that means. I remember one guy spreading the glue and the other laying the board down and hammering it down with what appeared to be a rubber mallet.

I just simply don't understand this at all..............my flooring company owner, tile guy and hardwood installer all said it was one of the worse slabs they had ever seen. The builder admitted that it was bad. One of their own contractors said it was bad. So the builders grind the high spots, my tile guy floats the low spots and the hardwood installer installs the wood. WHAT THE HELL WENT WRONG HERE?! They knew the floor was bad, so why didn't they make it flat? Why in the heck did the wood installer install over areas that weren't to the specifications? He is suppose to be a hardwood specialist that only does hardwood ( 11 years experience) and apparantly was trained by some great guy in California and worked with him for several years before he worked alone. Just makes no sense to me.

I don't expect 100% flatness........but isn't this a little much? Aren't some of these areas too big?

You are probably right, time issue. But like you said, it's not an excuse.

I forgot to mention this, but I am all over it. I took photos of the floor prep work ( after they floated the floors). I was suspicious because they told us it would take 2-3 days to float the floors.........well, they did it in one day. And a few areas didn't look flat to me. I remember walking over a few areas and it seemed a little higher, like a slight hump.

And I am marking every single area with blue tape that has the squishy/hollow problems and taking photos of those too.

You all might think that is overkill and maybe it won't help at all if I run into some major problems now or down the road, but when I am paying thousands of dollars and when I am told that my slab is one of the worse one has seen, you bet I am taking notes and staying on top of things.

I even have the name & number of a certified flooring inspector from the nwfa.org website ............just holding onto it if it heads that way. Hopefully not.

Hardwood over a wood substrate, nailed down, for 11 years, with limited gluedown experience, can cause a lot of these concerns.

I agree the wood guy accepted the substrate, which may not have been to spec.

Facts per Mrs. Poster: Engineered Wood glued direct to concret sub-floor.
1. Concret pour was bad.
2. high spots ground down and tile guy filled low spots.
3. Installers: one glued and one put down wood with mallet.
4. Currently, areas with deflection/hollow spots measuring up to 4'x4'.

Like others have suggested:::::::::: HOLD ON TO YOUR MONEY.

I do not know, nor do the DriTac Specifications state, size of areas that are repairable by Injection (unless I missed it).

DON"T BE NICE ABOUT THIS>>>>>> SEND LETTER demanding repairs.

Thanks for the response Floorguy! Engineered wood, but would have LOVED solid.

Ray,
I didn't even think about what size areas the Dri Tac covers.........I did wonder though if the really big areas should be redone completely.

I'll start a new topic regarding the Dri Tac. Good thought, thanks so much!

And nope, I am not being nice. I called him an hour ago, spoke to his wife ( she answers the phones) and told her to have him call me . I want him to come out here and see all of the areas BEFORE the hardwood installer comes back on Friday.

I'm not taking any sides on this.... but i think Floorguy may have hit on something to consider,

I personally would never let another sub do any phase of my job. I do all the flattening out myself... whatever that might involve. After that part is done the slab needs to be thoroughly cleaned again so the adhesive will bond.

Just too many people got their hands in the pudding here.

Omg, I can't believe this............

I just spoke to the flooring company owner and I requested that he come out tomorrow before any work repairs are done so he can see all the areas. He planned on coming anyways but he then proceeded to tell me that the builder of the home should have redone the cement since it was so bad. I then told him that the hardwood installer is the one who accepted the subfloor and I specifically asked him if it was ok and he said "yes". He then tells me that sometimes it is hard to tell with some low areas due to the glue and that he called the National Wood Flooring Association & they told him that sometimes with a 3/8 size that it doesn't 'stick' as well and occassional problems can happen.

How true is this?

He is very receptive though to fixing these spots & is telling me not to worry. He is coming tomorrow after 7am with the hardwood installer and he said he bought tons of Dri Tac and some other stuff that he said was really good. I thought it started with an E or something ( epoxy maybe?).

This just sucks. They are the nicest people and I really like them. I don't want to be mean, but I think it's going to end up being that way.

I'm laughing pretty hard. He is a smooth talker, like any salesman would be. Tell them what they want to hear, and never the complete truth!!!


It is not hard to tell AT ALL. A straight edge, a pipe, or even a string line, will tell everything.

The NWFA, never told him a thing, except he should have had the substrate flat so the glue touches the bottom of the board and it would have "stuck". This is a case of, it never was "stuck"

I figured. But had to ask the experts first! I walked around every single room today marking the rest of the squishy areas and there are some slightly higher spots and I thought to myself, "How in the heck did he not know?! I can feel it under my feet." I think there are some high spots they didn't grind down. What a damn mess this is going to be. I am even more ticked off now knowing that he tried to smooth me over.


Ok guys, so now that I found what appears to be some high spots too, what happens to those boards?

Dana, You have to remain calm right now, don't let some other posters get you all riled up , seriously, you will get nowhere if you don't get calm and collected.

You got 5 involved in this slab... the builder, whoever poured it, whoever ground the high spots, the tile guy who filled in, and the wood installer. This is pretty complicated.

I suggest you give your wood guy the benefit of a doubt for the time being and see what can be done at this point. Discuss it calmly and get all your questions and concerns addressed so everyone is on the same page.

Question for you... does the floor look good to you? Would you be happy if he can get eliminate this squishy problem you have?

If all else fails you may have to get an inspector to give his/her input.

Bottom line is stay cool/calm and open to a reasonable remedy your wood guy wants to try.