3 weeks in - first oh #&@! encountered

15 years ago

I guess it was going to smoothly.

A few months ago, I had given my GC a spare plank of Anderson Mountain Hickory (Golden) that I've kept ever since I had my flooring replaced 8 years ago. He took it to his flooring sub and I was told, yup, it is still available. Thursday, the flooring guys installed a modest amount of planks (I had a peninsula removed and a wall was moved 12''). My GC told me over the phone that it wasn't an exact match, my floors had yellowed a bit. OK, I would not expect an exact match, and this flooring has lots of variation in it anyway. I got home late Thursday and didn't take a look. Friday, cabinets were delivered and installation began. The cabinets are perfect! But...whoa! The new sections of flooring were clearly not what I've walked on for 8 years. Yellowed my a**. I looked at the label on a carton of the new flooring and I saw the word "natural", not golden. Arhhgg! OK, deep breath Jon.

Skip to this morning, the flooring contractor was at my house with samples, confirmed they installed the wrong flooring. Assuming they can get their hands on the right stuff, they will be here Monday to make it right. Fortunately the cabinet install isn't any further along.

My GC will make this right, that is something I don't need to worry about. The bummer is the delay - maybe a week if the correct flooring isn't readily available.

Lesson learned (which I guess is the real point of this post): Whenever you install hardwood flooring, order a few extra boxes if you can, and tuck them away somewhere. If you can't, at least write down the exact and full description of what you used and attach to the one or two left over pieces you will keep.

OK, I feel better.

Jon

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Comments (5)

User
15 years ago
Just make sure they don't rush too much, the new wood will need to acclimate before it is installed. Hope this is your only hiccup, good luck!
lascatx
15 years ago
Hah! A week is nothing (except to the person waiting to live in the finished space). And flooring that is still available? You're lucky. :-D

Our 3-4 week project took months and the contractor who assured us the brick was still available sent me on a goose chase looking for a match that proved to be completely unavailable. You're still in the easy Zone -- but I hope the vent made you feel better. :-)
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Jon T
Original Author
15 years ago
Just a quick follow-up in case this helps anyone...

The flooring contractor was able to get the correct flooring within a day. On Monday following their Saturday visit to my house they removed all of the recently installed wrong colored planks, and on Tuesday they installed the correct stuff. The color is perfect, but.....in 8 years time, apparently the manufacturer (Anderson) changed the gloss level. Although both were called "low gloss", my older flooring is actually significantly glossier than the new planks. The new planks are quite dull in comparison. For now I'm not going to worry about it, some of the planks may be covered with a small rug.

If replacing sections of wood flooring that need to match existing flooring, get actual samples in your house before you begin so there are no surprises.

Jon
macybaby
15 years ago
Doesn't it just chap your hide that the people doing the actual install didn't STOP and say "wow, this looks like the wrong stuff, maybe we should call the owner"

Instead they just go ahead and install away.

Had this happen at work, they ordered the carpet and rubber baseboard trim separately, and once installed it was a horrid match. The guy that installed the baseboard admitted he thought it looked terrible, but since it was what was on the order, he installed in anyway.

There was no way we were going to leave that horrid look in our main public conference area.

Only cost an extra $2000 labor to have it removed and something more suitable installed, but GC did it instead of leaving it to the subcontractor that did the original work.

I think this is reason #238 why I learned to DIY.
gillycat
15 years ago
I read something like this and once again am so grateful and amazed at the GC and subs i had.
I needed 6 extra tiles for my front room and thought I had been given the exact same shade but when they were about to install they called me over to show me that the colour was a bit off. The new ones were very slightly more brown.
Since it was going behind a door and mostly under a wooden chest and you really have to look closely i said go ahead.

At the time i didn't realise how unusual that incident was in this renovation world!