Finished And The Floor Looks Fantastic

CW Floors has finished our floor and it looks fantastic! Damien came by yesterday to complete a few pieces of trim and we can finally say done. The floor is solid and glued down. I can't say enough about CW Floors agreeing to fix the original installation. We've already told quite a few folks about how happy we are with the installation and that it is rare that a company will go to the lengths that CW Floors did to get it right. We'd be happy to show our floor to anyone considering having CW Floors do the same.

It does look like the manufacturers picture in the header above.

The hallway looks really nice.

Here's Damien's card. He was the subcontractor from San Antonio that did the second installation.

New Wood Floor Laid

Here are some pictures of the new wood floor. Just like before, it looks great. It's a little lighter in color but I prefer it lighter plus it will darken as it ages. The installers called last night and said they would be back today to finish the trim and even said they'd repaint the baseboards because they got some of the floor leveling material on them.

We stayed off the floors as much as possible because the glue was still soft. This morning, I touched some of the glue that was exposed around the edges and it felt like marshmellow so I knew it wasn't dry yet.



Floor Prep Done

It looks like the floor prep is finished and it's time to put the wood down. The crew (Damien?) worked really hard getting the floor flat to prevent problems like we had on the first install. You can also see the care they took in covering pictures and mirrors with plastic. The true test will be if the floor is solidly glued down with no hollow spots.

I have to say I am really impressed so far with how much CW Floors has put into making this floor right. It's rare that a company will come right out and say that a job is not right and that they're going to redo it at their expense. And I know the expense was considerable as Pat said they were putting their best subcontractors from San Antonio on the job.

It's hard living with remodeling and even harder the second time. We're basically living in our bedroom as the furniture from the new floor parts of the house is stuffed in all the other rooms and the wood is stacked in the kitchen making it hard to get around. We really did not want to have to redo the floors and were not trying to complain on some technicality about the flatness of the floor. It was just with so much movement of the wood, there was no way the wood would last for the 25 year warranty and it seemed obvious that the cause was the floor not being flat to the manufactures specs. We didn't want perfection, just what was contracted for and paid for and that it meet the minimim specifications as required by the manufacturer. I'm looking forward to a much better experience the second time around. If it looks as good as before and is solid, we'll happily tell everyone we know (along with our blog followers) about how hard CW Floors worked to make it right!

Removing Old Floor

CW Floors started removing the floor on Monday. Sad to see it go as everyone that saw it mentioned how nice it looked. Here are some pictures of the removal. I didn't see them removing it but I'm sure it wasn't easy. I'm happy that CW Floors is making it right but it's still a lot of trouble to live through another floor replacement. All of our stuff is crammed in the kid's bedrooms and we're living and eating out of our bedroom. Hopefully, this time will go better and quicker.

Here's the new glue they're using. Different than the first one they used. This must be better.

Replacing The Floor!

Wow! Paula and I met with Pat and Chad and Pat said, "Yes, it's a bad installation and we'll replace the entire floor". Pat also said they would have the floor leveling product representative AND the floor glue rep there to ensure it went correctly. Chad said he'd already reserved the new wood. I'm thrilled that CW Floors is standing behind their product and installation that strongly. You can imagine my worry that there would be great difficulty. I feel badly that CW Floors is having to replace the floor. That's a lot of trouble and expense but I definitely have to commend them for making it right.

Contacting the Manufacturer

I'm contacting the manufacturer to see if the floors as installed by CW Floors of New Braunfels will be covered by their 25 year warranty. I'll update their reply here. Then I'll contact CW Floors.

I just spoke to Vicky from Swiff-Train, which is the company that distributes Scandian wood floor products for Texas. They are located in Corpus Christi. She said someone from their claims inspection department would contact me in a day or two about inspecting our floor installation.

Vicky called and we're scheduled for a meeting on Wednesday morning with Chad from Swiff-Train and Pat from CW Floors.

Hollow Spots in Living Room

These are all the hollow spots I found in the living room. It sounds terrible and feels like I'm walking on a springboard. The other areas are the same but I didn't outline them as the furniture from the living room was in the way plus I ran out of tape.



This is a picture of the non-flatness of the floor. It shows 1/4" above the floor on the end of my 8' straight-edge.

The lack of flatness isn't just a cosmetic issue. You can see in the pictures above how many hollow spots there are plus it makes our couch rock which can't be good for it's frame.

Stunned At The Poor Installation

Here are some pictures and videos from the floor installation. It's supposed to be a glue down installation on our concrete slab. I'll be contacting the manufacturer to see if they will warranty this installation. I repeatedly told CW Floors that I wasn't looking for perfection, just that it meet the MINIMUM manufacturers requirements. This clearly does NOT meet those requirements. There are large and numerous areas where the floor sounds hollow and not glued down. There are even several areas where the wood actually flexes like in the video below. I haven't told Paula yet as I don't want to spoil her Christmas cheer. More later. I'll add pictures showing the hollow spots.



Floors In

Wow! The new floor is in and it looks great. Below are some pictures. I haven't checked for flat yet as we got in late from a Christmas party and awards banquet with Paula's realtor friends at the car museum in San Marcos. Layton finished up yesterday in the study. You can see the blue tape.

Wood Partially Installed

Layton and crew got most of the floor installed yesterday. These are pictures from this morning. They just have the study and then the baseboard. From what I could see, they have done a good job installing the wood. I haven't looked yet to see if the floor is flat (not level, just flat). I like the look of the wood. Looks like teak.

Floors Today!

Gilbert emailed that Layton and crew would be installing the floors today and tomorrow. It's been a challenge living in just a bedroom as all the stuff from the rooms getting new floors is crowded in the other rooms. There is a little leveling left as shown in the pictures below. I'm sure Layton will knock down some of the high spots before starting. Our neighbors were over yesterday and said Layton had working on their tile and they were happy with the job.

We Went With CW Floors Here In New Braunfels

We decided to go with CW Floors here in New Braunfels. Their website is cwfloors.com. Our salesman is Gilbert Martinez. Very nice guy and patient with all of our questions.

Here are some pictures of the wood we picked. It looks like a cross between mahogany and cherry. The planks are 5.5" in width. It's an engineered laminate. Cost for the full retail install is about $8000 for about 700 square feet.

The manufacturer is Scandian. Headquartered in Curitiba Parana, Scandian Industries currently owns and operates 3 different manufacturing facilities in 3 different Brazilian states, a sales and distribution operation in Houston - Texas. The product list includes pre-finished engineered hardwood flooring, pre-finished and unfinished solid hardwood flooring, plywood for the furniture industry, veneer core platform, and wood veneer (core stock).

For almost 30 years Scandian Industries has specialized in the manufacturing and commercialization of wood and wood products in Brazil. Scandian continues to invest in quality products and people by embracing new technologies, new machinery, and increased automation. The decisive management structure coupled with a dedication to meeting and exceeding client's expectations has established Scandian as a leader in the forest product industry.

Here's a picture from the manufacturer of how it's supposed to look. If it looks anywhere close to this, we'll be thrilled. From the manufacturer, "Timborana is a beautiful teak like species with a color that ranges from a yellow brown to a dark reddish brown. Its rich appearance and luster is mostly unaffected by light, and its depth in color and fine graining make it perfect for use anywhere a warm and distinguished look is desired."

Back At Work Leveling

Layton and his partner were back at work yesterday leveling the floor. He said he'd be back this morning for more leveling. Clay said it would have to dry for a few days to get the moisture level down to ensure a good bond. At his suggestion, we're keeping the heater on to help with the drying. I told them yesterday that I'd rather have it right than fast. Here are some more pictures of the progress. I don't know why Scooter the cat always has to be in the picture.

Met With Clay About New Bill

I met with Clay Sultemeier, the general manager of the New Braunfels branch along with Gilbert and Layton about the bill for leveling the floor. After a long discussion, we came to an agreement that the floor would be leveled to the manufacturers specs for the "new" price and that anything above that would be at their expense. Clay came out to the house to personally inspect the floor and talk to Layton about leveling the floor. I also think he wanted to make sure the job was doable for that price. The guys are back on the job so I'll post here tommorrow to let y'all know how it looks. Again, we're not looking for perfect, just that the job meets the minimum manufactures specs and that we both do what we said we'll do at the price we agreed to.

New Estimate For Leveling The Floor

I just received "new" bills for leveling the floor. A little surprising since Gilbert already looked at the floor and gave us a bill for $641.92 for the leveling. These two new bills bring the total to $1,961.84 just for the additional floor leveling above what was quoted on the original bill. The reason we went with CW Floors at the full retail price and not the discount companies out of San Antonio was so that we didn't have to hassle with things like this. I can understand not knowing what the condition of the floor is under the carpet but AFTER looking at the bare floor I expect the original bill to be reasonably accurate and not triple after the job has already started. There were no unknowns or surprises after the floor was bare and every flaw could be seen. Here are the new additional bills for the floor leveling.

Time For More Leveling

Well, it's Monday morning and time for more leveling. Layton said he was going to San Antonio this morning to get more self-leveling compound. He said they would get most of the floor prepped today and maybe some final touches tomorrow. I told him level is more important than fast. From the pictures below, there is a fair amount of leveling left to do. Oh, and Scooter just had to be in the picture.

More Leveling Needed

I just met with Gilbert, Layton and Pat (company service manager for CW Floors) to discuss the floor and how level it needs to be. Looks like we've got more work to do before it's time to glue wood. Here's some extra leveling work they did today. Layton is coming by tomorrow to use some self leveling compound. That's what I used on the tile floors in our master bath to make sure the floor was really level for the travertine. I got it level to 1/16" over 8 feet. I hope they get close.

Gilbert Is Coming To Check The Install

I just spoke to Gilbert on the phone this morning. Very responsive and understanding! He's coming out to look at the install and was concerned about the level, too. He said the installer (Layton) had some concerns about the floor being level and had contacted him. I told Gilbert that we're not looking for perfect but just want to meet the minimum manufactures specs so we don't have problems later.

I don't think I would have gotten the discount folks in San Antonio (Lumber Liquidators) to come look at the floor before the install so for that reason, I'm glad we went with local folks even if it is more expensive. Sometimes, you get what you pay for. I doubt I could have even gotten them on the phone! I'll let you know how it goes.

After looking at the floor, here's the quote he gave us to level the floor. He has given me an estimate over the phone of about $600 so this is right in line with that.

Prep Work

Here is the status of the prep work so far. I measured the levelness of the floor and hope they're going to do some more work. The manufacturer says it should be level within 3/16 over 10 feet. I took these measurements at random spots and didn't really have to look hard. Gilbert said it might take a week to finish the floors and they said they were going to start gluing floor today.