I’m having trouble keeping this engineered hardwood straight after I get a few rows.
Last time I worked on laying down hardwood was a few years back and I sem to recall it going down in no time, with no problems.
but this engineered stuff is causing me tons of grief. seems that the boards have slight variations in width. worst being 1/6″ ( very few) but more common is 1/32″ but these add up. and I find myself having to every few rows straighten things out by ripping the tounge end slighty to get things back on track. WHAT A PAIN.
this can’t be normal practice?! what to I have to do get a pair of calipers to sort the widths now? I’ve already sorted the colours, the defects and the warped boards. but this is taking way to long and the HO are coming home tomorrow night and thier floor won’t be done at this rate.
Replies
Sorry to hear this. I've never had any problems with eng.'d flooring being that far off. Moisture the same in all these? Run number the same on the ends of the cartons? Wish I could offer you some ingenious answers.
A great place for Information, Comraderie, and a sucker punch.
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
Quittin' Time
I'll check the numbers.... they all came at once and have been all climatizing for over a week in same spot as per manufactures specs
I installed about 400 sq ft of the cheapy lowes special and i noticed the same thing...almost a whole 1/16" in some pieces out of the same package. we were reflooring an apartment rental so we just set the larger ones aside and used them all in the same row. The last row always seems to have a tapered cut anyhow. The stuff seemed to settle downb after a few days...all the CH gaps dissappeared.
This stuff is a Brazillian Teak they bought at a flooring store. mid range price I think. I think they paid around $5 CND sq ft. I almost wich the variance was all bigger, then it would be easier to try and sort. at 1/32" with the beveled edges it's hard to catch.
Sounds like you got a bad run of boards. Exchange them for new or... as stupid as it might sound sort them by width and do the rows accordingly...Buic
I've done it that way before once too.
You mention 'they' bought it at a floor store. I take it 'they' are the H.O.ers.
I would have brought it to 'their' attention immediatley and taken it all back, hope this isn't a $q. ft. job.
Are you ripping the bevel off when you re-size the boards?
They were away when I started laying the floor - coming back tonight. They had bought the flooring several weeks ago and stored it in basement up until a week ago to aclimatize.
anyway if they were here I sure would have told them about it. But they weren't and I knew how crushed they would be to come home and not have their floor layed. so after several rows when I noticed the problem occuring. I had decided to try to make it work ( also not knowing if this was normal - I've put down a couple floors in the past, but it's been a few years since I 've layed any hardwood and it was not engineered)
this job is a reno for which I am charging by the hour. But I hate to see there bill skyrocket, for perhaps a bad deciscion on my part.
it is a small bevel ( about 1/16") which does get taken off, or eaten in to. I rebevel it, sanding it with 240 grit. even before the touch up stain it looks pretty good. but it is time consuming as most the adjustments are not a straight rip that I can do on my table saw. but a slight hump that was created by previous rows.
I am going to pick up some calipers and start sorting the widths. then once I've got a perfectly straight row again, will start laying em by width.
They had bought the flooring several weeks ago and stored it in basement up until a week ago to aclimatize.
If the basement was too humid and the packages were not equally exposed, you might have some random expansion. When I last installed engineered wood, I removed the packaging and laid out the pieces so they could all get the same exposure, in the room where they were to be installed.
That was my thinking...I asked the salesman and he said they never do that...they get staked atop each other packs unoped.. but stack on dunnage. but just piled after that.
I followed all the manufatures recommendations. but that doesn't mean it's right, but at least they will warranty it, by either discounting it or take it back for new product.
I am refreshing this thread for Forestgirl...I wasn't sure how to give her a link
Go to the first message.Then in the upper right corner is the message number under lined. It is a link to this thread. In this case is it 77686.1Right click on that and Copy Link.That will give the the URL for the thread.Then most it in a reply in the other thread.Like this.http://forums.taunton.com/tp-breaktime/messages?msg=77686.1
Thnks Bill
Sounds like a bad batch of wood.
This is the same reason why my local auto mechanic won't install any part I buy.
I found it, thanks! It's got important info. Took awhile, since I have a zillion unread messages at Breaktime, LOL. Hope you understood the directions on copying the URL. I use that all the time over at Knots, it's handy! (Oh, BTW, after you right click, you might be looking for "Copy Shortcut")
forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Edited 8/30/2006 12:54 am by forestgirl