Hello,

I recenlty had some braz teak installed and the idiot installers did not align the wood pieces the same length assuming that a T-molding would hide their inferior craftsmanship. I would like the wood/tile transition to be seamless and am thinking that the best way to accomplish this now would be to add a small strip of wood flooring parallel (against) the tile/wood. I have a small gap, maybe 1/2'. The 3 1/4' strips are cut roughly the same length but are not exact.

QUESTION: Is there a tool that can be used to cut the wood between the door jambs the same length to allow for a strip of the wood flooring to finish the transition? Or am I screwed here and forced to use an ugly t-molding?

was it discussed that they would use a t-molding? was it priced out as such? are the tile and floor the same hieght?

The Tile installers did excellent work and set the tile exactly to match the heigth of the floor.

It was said that the wood installer had discourse with my wife about using the T-molding and she did not run this past me so they may have been under the impression that it was OK to use the T-molding. In any case, would it have killed them to line up the wood properly anyway?

well when you are laying a floor next to tile you usually turn a board the oppostite way as the floor is going (unless the door and floor are paralell(sp?) to each other. So when you do that all the boards are locked in (hopefully) to the turned board. everything is strait and square. It takes more time to do so.

Now if I was to install a job, and t moldings were discussed, or sold (or if they were with the rest of the materials) I would guess I would use it. I would ask the homeowner first. So it sounds like they did, and your wife wanted/ok'ed it.

So they do what is standard in that situation, leave a approx 3/4 gap between the two floors for the t moulding to sit in. They may make each cut as they go, or cut them all at once. Provided the moulding covers they didnt do anything to make them "idiots"

I asked a specific question which you haven't addressed. I don't need the your speculation or lecture.

If your not going to offer help/assistance/ideas/support then please don't respond to this post. I don't have time to rehash every detail of the construction process to aid in more speculation and blame

btw, parallel is the correct spelling

Well, as an installer I took offence to your first post and probed for information, which you gave and the conversation continued etc.


To answer your question, there is a tool made just for that. A fesstool It has a metal track to guide a circular saw along the floor to cut an accurate line. Its near the 1000 mark, there is also a multimaster tool that can do it as well if the skill level is there, but it runs 200 for the cheap one, and 400? I think for the expensive one. Blades are 40ish and cutting through teak you will use alot 32" doorway Im going to guess on 6-8 blades possibly a few more. If the floor is prefinished you should route /sand/finish a bevel on the side you cut to match up with the board you install

I dont spell as well as I do hardwood floors

Thanks for your help. You don't know the history behind this bldg project. I have basically had to become my own general contractor as the guy I have been dealing with has had many personal issues and other distractions. I have zero patience left at this point and I made very clear how important the flooring was. He could have checked with me directly before making assumptions or asking my wife.

The wood we received was poorly milled and I spent over 20 hrs hand sorting and cutting bad spots out of pieces for end runs. I am sick that with all the effort expended that this will be the result in the transitional areas.

I still don't see how you could use a circular type saw though as the door jambs would interfere with your beginning and ending cuts?

Would it be possible to use a dremel tool with a guide along the top?

Last question: The floor is prefinished, what is the best way to clean it (from the sawdust and other construction debris). I have tried to research this but came up with very little information. Some say the swiffer type cleaners will scratch your flooring. Some recommend a horse hair attachment brush. What is the best way to clean and preserve the finish (limiting microscratches and abrasions)?

the fess tool has a very close range, can get between an inch or two to the doors, at wich point you could us a fein tool, or a chisel.

We have had many, may jobs where only one spouse is present. What often happens when an option comes up is that the present spouse will say, "just a sec, let me call my husband/wife and run this by him/her".
Sometimes they make a decison without consulting the spouse. Either way, it's none of our business how the decision is arrived at and it would be extremely rude and presumptious and condescending to ask the present homeowner "did you get your spouse's permission?" before proceding.

We discuss options with the present homeowner, they ok one, we do it. End of story. If the homeowner spouses disagree on what they wanted afterwards, that's their problem. It is not our job to worry about the homeowners' marital dynamics.

Calling the installers idiots is completely misplaced.

DC

Wood floors require expansion gapping and "T" expansion trim is to Industry Standards.
Had the homeowner wanted something "DIFFERENT" than that;;;;; this issue should have been discussed before the installers arrived.
Now: put in the "T" expansion trim or put in a header, but if there is a problem later after installing the header;;;;;;;;; it is your problem, not the installers.

It can be done easily with a Festool plunge cut saw and then finish the ends off with a Fein Multimaster using an E blade.... just did one. I took a few pictures while I was doing it.... have not had time to load them yet.

EDIT: Life is too short to get bent out of shape.

Jerry Thomas> it would be great to see pics of the job you just did if you have time to upload. Where are you located in VA?

This comment is not appropriate either. I do take offense. Please ignore posts you do not appreciate and use knowledge gained from posts that are helpful.

My original comment was incorrectly worded (calling the installers idiots). It was not the installers that I am upset with, it is the general contractor that did not oversee the job the way I had clearly communicated (one day prior to installation).

So if anyone took offense to this I apologize.


I would like to know if anyone on this board is near Lewisburg, WV or Roanoke VA. I could use some help in making these cuts and I have been unable to locate any local intallers that that have heard of a "festool".