Hello, my client (I'm a kitchen designer) had her 4" wide planks white oak floor installed (NOT nailed from the top). The wood was mistakenly purchased by her as straight strips, 4" wide x random lengths, without having tongue and grooved parts to each piece. They are straight, square cut planks.

The flooring installer said that he would make the tongue and grooves in each plank, and install it as a tongue/groove floor, but he didn't do that. I don't know how he nailed the planks/installed the floor, but right now, it looks very tight and near perfect, if not perfect. It was installed about 3 weeks ago. It was installed over a plywood subfloor.

But, I'm concerned about the future. What will happen with this type of installation? Also, my client paid for this increased labor to tongue/groove the planks and that cost was not separated out, so I feel she should get some sort of refund from the general contractor.

There are four clear seasons where the client lives, going from cold to hot and in between.

Any help would be very much appreciated.

A contract to install it is just that. He is done, your happy with the finished work, so pay him.
That is like someone wanting a set price for floor prep, yet there is carpet covering the scope of what is needed, so you bid it worse case scenerio fixed price. You pull the carpet and it needs nothing but a broom sweep, Do you refund the contract price, on an un itemized proposal(an Itemized proposal, is business suicide, for just this scenerio) or do you charge them full signed contract/proposal price???

He's already paid. This is a serious situation. In my business, if someone installed something the wrong way (which worries me) that might later fail, but looks good (now), I'd give them the information they are looking for, even if I have to disagree with the way something was done. This is not a contractual issue I am asking about, it is a flooring installation issue.

I don't blame you for being upset tivoli. There is a valid reason wood flooring is T & G. For someone to already know this, then charge a client extra labor to do it, but then not do it ..... well, that takes the cake imo.

I can't say for sure what's liable to happen but with a guy like that ... you most likely lost any warranty when his tail lights disappeared.

Please give me more information...what might happen, when, and why? I have a few hunches, but I am not a flooring professional, of course, so what I know is very limited, and I am hoping to learn a few things in the process in regard to this situation and in general.

That makes two of us.

One thing that is liable to happen is having proud boards (sock catchers)
Four inches is considered a solid plank and should be inter-locked together throughout the installation.

This floor can be nailed down without a tongue on it.... I wonder if any glue was used along with nailing/stapling?

I don't know at all if glue was used. Which is a better installation method, tongue and groove or straight cut planks and why? Specific information would be very helpful, as I try to sort through this. Of course, since the vast majority of wood sold for flooring is tonge and groove, that would be my assumption. It's just the way it's sold, except in my case, no doubt about that.

If it doesn't specifically say on your contract to remill the boards, Then he has filled his contract obligations. Call the guys you bought the wood from, and ask them for installation requirements for that wood.

We can only guess for you, since manufacturers requirements over rule anything we say.

Yes, it is most likely glued down.

When doing Marquetry, there is no T&G to work with.

There are different types of floors and installations. Certain types of wood floors do not have T&G's and are designed to be face-nailed and/or glued down. Perhaps at first he thought he needed to mill T&G's into the flooring but then found out from the manufacturer that it was not needed. While he should have communicated to you both that this wasn't needed, it does not necessarily mean the job he did will fail or is flawed. Perhaps all you need to do is call him and have a discussion and ask for an explanation.

Assuming glue was not used (I don't think it was) and it is not face nailed IS there an installation that is acceptable for 4" oak flooring without tongues/grooves otherwise? That would be helpful to know. I have not been able to find this sort of installation description.

It could be screwed down and plugged. That would be unusual but it has been done. Why not talk with the installer and find out exactly how he installed the floor?

He's the contractor's floor guy. I did send an email to the contractor asking to tell me the exact method of installation. I'd rather not get the client involved if I can find out the information I need to know in other ways. When asked why he didn't do the tongue and groove as he said he would, the floor guy said, if anything happens down the road, I'll be here. Not so comforting.

Yikes!

I say let it lye. How many message boards are you going to post this exact question, on?? I count, 5 including this one, and they are all telling you to contact the installer, to ask about his warranty and if he offers an extended warranty.

Yes, I have posted it on others so that I can sort through information and be open to as many opinions as I can. I think this is an issue worthy of further investigation. It will not lie.

How was your client so misinformed as to buy non-tounge and groove flooring in the first place?

As stated by others, talk to the installer (in this case you'll have to go through your general) and find out how exactly the floor was installed.

There are several legitimate ways of installing a non T&G floor. At this point I don't think it's fair to jump to conclusions regarding the floors future performance. The contractor may very well have done an excellant job by industry standards. Althouigh I think the contractor should have notified someone of the change in installation method if indeed it was documented in the contract.

Also, how do you know with certainty that the floor wasn't T&G'ed, or glued, or screwed and plugged....or installed by any other method for that matter? I wasn't able to determine this by you earlier posts.