Floor bored

It's been a while since I mentioned it, but the saga of our floor continues nonetheless. Last time I mentioned it, we had just lawyered-up. We debated going to trial but dismissed that idea once the lawyer told us a few facts: a new floor would cost $XX,000; a trial would cost us about a third of that; in NC, you can't sue for legal costs in these kinds of suits; a trial wouldn't happen for a year at least, and it would be a constant fight during that time.

So, the lawyer wrote the builder a threatening letter, instead. That got his attention. After a couple of shouting matches, the builder acknowledged there was something about the floor that needed to be addressed. So, last winter, he had his HVAC guy install a full-house humidifier to bring the moisture levels up, which would make the wood stop shrinking so much. That did help (plus, my sinuses loved the humidity!). And he agreed to look at the floor in the summer, to see how the gaps and crowning looked after a few months with stable humidity.

Summer comes, his people come and look and everyone agrees there's a problem with the floor. Just like we said. Just like the inspector said. Just like the lawyer said.

So, the floor guy agreed to fix the problem areas. He'd fill the small gaps and replace boards where he needed to. And that started yesterday.

He and his helper moved half of the furniture in our downstairs into the other half of the house, filled the gaps with putty, buffed it out, then put a new coat of finish on the floor. Looks like crap. The putty shows in the finish - when you get the light just right, you can see that it's rougher. Also, because the tops of the boards are convex in many places, the putty evaded the sander and spreads out a cm or so from the edge of the wood. And because the putty is a uniform color and wood is not, you can see it pretty well in places. I asked him about that today and he said it will be fine after he does the second coat of finish today. We're skeptical. We don't want the floor to end up looking worse than it started, so we might not let him do the rest of the house.

Night. Mare.

Mrs. is frantically searching for land for a new new house.

3 thoughts on “Floor bored

  1. Ugh

    Everytime I think about doing a renovation or new construction, I think of your experience and back away.

    1. cleek Post author

      i think our fundamental mistake was choosing a builder who was wrong for us and for what we wanted. we naively assumed all builders were essentially the same and that because we chose the house plan, there wouldn’t be any surprises. but they’re definitely not the same, and house plans just show you where the walls go. builders have individual aesthetic styles and work styles and some are very used to being the boss.

      we’ve met with other builders who fit our personalities and style and fit-n-finish expectations much better.

      live and learn. and spend a fortune doing it.

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