Refinished floors look two different colors - advice please!

8 years ago

last modified: 8 years ago

Hello! I had some water damage in my house and half of the maple hardwood floors in my living room were ripped out. The (1/2) of the floor was ripped out as part of water abatement process and I then hired a contractor to do all of the repair work. In addition to having the floors in the living room refinished, insurance agreed to pay to have all of the contiguous wood floors relished. The problem is that in living room area, the floor looks like two different colors from where the wood was ripped out and replaced to the old wood. My contractor asserts since they used maple of the same quality that this is just how it works and even if they would have pulled out and replaced the remaining floor, it still could have been mismatched. It looks horrible and I am looking for advice the following: 1. Should the contractor have replaced the remaining floor to ensure a match? 2. What can be done at this point to fix this? If relevant, the original floor was probably about 15 years old and in excellent condition (room gets minimal use). I understand that due to light exposure new wood will not always match old wood (and have this issue with much of the trim that has been replaced), but I can't believe there is not a better solution to make sure that the floor of a single room is uniform. Your insights are greatly appreciated.

Featured Answer

nimrod25

8 years ago

There are always natural variations in wood. However, the natural variations become more pronounced as some types of wood age. Maple is one of the woods that becomes more yellow as it ages.

That being said, after you put your furniture in the room, I doubt it will be noticeable even to you. It's hardly noticeable in your photo. To me it just looks like natural variation.

Best wishes!

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Comments (7)

kzw100
Original Author
8 years ago
Thank you for the insight. Unfortunately the difference is very noticeable in person - when people walk in the house, they ask why I have two different colors on my floors :(
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The Floor Trader
8 years ago
There's a fairly high likelihood that with time and sunlight the floors will either fade or patina and become much more consistent. This also happens when people move an area rug that was in the same place for a few years. Within a few months it generally becomes unnoticeable. And it's really more of a question as to whether your insurance should have aid for the other half of the room. Contractors usually do what they're told. Best of luck
Kirk
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
Hello KZW,

I disagree with moving in and hoping it will self correct or you'll just get used to it. If the contractor could not assure you of a good match, the entire floor should have been replaced. The insurance company would have paid for the replacement and you would be happy right now.

This said, I'm not buying the dissimilar wood scenario. Did they sand and refinish the entire floor? If they did not, I suspect this is largely the problem. Always insist the contractor make a finished sample prior to applying to your new floor.

I hope this helps,

Kirk, MVH
kzw100 thanked Kirk
kzw100
Original Author
8 years ago
Thank you for your insight. When we discussed the floor I did tell him it was important to me that the floor matched and looked like the original floor and he said that would be the result. He says that they did sand them all down and did 4 coats of water based finish. As part of this project, they earlier did my downstairs floors which I requested stained. Although the color doesn't match the sample I provided they turned out nicely and the person who did that floor did do several color samples on the floor for me to see prior to the staining. I believe it was the same sub company that did the upstairs floors that don't match, but it was different workers. On the upstairs floors there are also areas where there are many very small bubbles in the coating as well as a couple of areas where there are dog hairs or small debris in the finish. I don't know if this is just what is expected or is this is sub-par work. Regardless, I am not happy with how they turned out.
Kirk
8 years ago
"Although the color doesn't match the sample I provided they turned out nicely"

Are you referring to the problem floor or the downstairs floor? I am assuming the downstairs floor.

" but it was different workers."

This may be the reason for your problem. It is common that contractors subcontract work to others. There could be a communication breakdown with this or simply an inferior worker.

Kirk, MVH
Kirk
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
" he said that would be the result."

Obviously he was incorrect, I think you should consider bringing the insurance company back into the dialogue. Insisting, that they make your floor right by paying to replace the entire floor. Then, perhaps you can go back to your contractor and pressure them to add the additional flooring and finish the floor once again. You can supplement the cost with the additional insurance settlement.

Kirk, MVH