Hickory Hardwood Flooring

Mike Finley

Um, actually this is awesome for your business. By being the guy like Donedat who knows the ins and outs of his products, knows the pitfalls, has taken the time to know everything he does about what he does is exactly what gives him an edge over his competition and is exactly what can be really good for his business.

Marco

And how does the customer know who is leading them down the primrose path?
I am in the process of maybe losing a 1000' install because I am telling the customer that it is better that they install 3/8" ply over their 6" cardecking to help hold down the bamboo. Adds $1k more to the bid. It is absolutley the right thing in their case, but they are hearing from somebody else that that idea is unworthy. Now, when they get a poory fastened floor that is creaking like crazy in 3 years, anybody and everybody who walks it will think about the poor craftsmen in the flooring trade. I'm sorry, but uneducated tradesmen hurt all of us and this is an example of how poorly trained competition can cost you jobs .

hauoli63

Is there some literature you can give them or a website you can direct them to?

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~~ Lisa ~~

www.chantillyplumbing.com

Teetorbilt

adams, I'm going by there today. I'll pick some up if he's open.

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You can't solve you're problems with the same level of thinking that created the problems.

Albert Einstein

GriffDecker

I just joined the forum and saw this thread. I recently (6 months ago) installed 750 sq. ft. of hickory, prefinished. The floor looked incredible after it was installed... but 6 months later it is a different story. All the boards are cupped rather badly, to the extent that the owner is making me rip it all out and install an engineered hardwood floor.

Here's some background to "level" the playing field: The condo is on Kiawah Island, S.C., right near the ocean and it does get very humid during the summer, even with the A/C on. The wood was acclimatized for 2 weeks prior to installation. I think the biggest detriment was the flooring was in 3", 4" and 5" widths -- these wide widths are much more prone to movement compared to 2" widths.

Donedat

Griff, I have the solution for you. Purchase a floor sealer like Bostik's MVP and coat the entire substrate with it. This will prevent any moisture related problems. Check Bostik's site:
http://www.bostikfindley-us.com/prod...egoryPageId=34

They have an instruction video on their site on how to prep the floor as well as tech people ready to help you out.

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I admit...I don't know everything...but don't tell my kids I told you.

Donedat

My solution above is only for the subfloor. If the site has drainage issues and/or poor underhouse ventilation, you could still have problems. Going with the customer's suggestion is a good thing and will solve most of your problems, but if you have a severe moisture issue, even going with engineered won't be a good solution until you isolate the source of the moisture and deal with it.

Those homes down there are probably poorly insulated and poorly vented. The proper humidity level for any floor material is somewhere between 40 and 60%. If you have a constant humidity of anything more than that you will have issues with most any domestic hardwood.

__________________
I admit...I don't know everything...but don't tell my kids I told you.