hard to tell without knowing the brand of the flooring. Hopefully you called the rep, and or the company you procured product from. If the floor is hand scraped - it would appear that there is hand scrapping details at the butt joints as well.

1) "luxury vinyl" is an oxymoron
2) "thank" the installer for bringing his concerns to your attention (not all would)
3) even if the mfr. rep. ok's the material, can you really have confidence in it?
4) there's an industry standard for defining "plank"....what you have doesn't qualify.

A great forum for posting questions and getting professional responses: http://www.thefloorpro.com/community/vinyl-flooring-q-and-a/

Hope this helps!

We have installed "luxury wood vinyl" in two commercial projects: a Los Angeles bank cafeteria and a senior's center multi purpose room in San Clemente, CA..........

We love the look of the "wood" vinyl and are now recommending it to our residential clients as a alternative when the budget is tight.

It looks great and holds up well.

I was just in a furniture showroom in Hong Kong yesterday and they had the "wood" vinyl in their showroom floor and it looked great. No one would have known if they hadn't told us.

I am sure that the rep will clear it up or replace the material. Please let us know what he says. What brand is it?

babbasgma:
Thanks for the link. Lots of good info there.
Lampert Dias:
Good to know of the commercial uses of the product. I'm sure our selection is not commercial quality(it's Shaw) but it has a good warranty that we hope to never make use of. We figure if this floor lasts until our youngest child is done dragging stuff around the house, we'll be doing good.
Thanks again!

We met with the rep who has confidence that the floor is fine, that it just hasn't fully settled in or acclimated yet. His initial concern was the locking joints not doing their job but they were. So, prayers that the floor will do it's job for the 25 years it's covered under warranty or until it ugly's out.
Thanks to all of you who chimed in on our dilemma!

Great to hear you received the "OK" from the rep. In terms of the "dip" you mentioned, was this a subfloor imperfection that was perhaps telegraphing through the vinyl? I am researching LVT for an on-grade concrete rec-room/home gym, and all/all of the installation guides define "flat" as no more than 3/16" over 10' run. Curious how everything is holding up for you, and hope you are enjoying your new home.
Thanks for your original post!

The issue with the "dip" in the floor has not been a problem at all. I do think it needed to acclimate better before it was installed. Luckily, it seems to have settled in nicely, as have we! I will say, this floor already has some scratches but they've been caused by extreme wear. You know, when the electrician connected the range and drrraaaaggggeeddd the range out of it's spot and ssshhhhooooovvveeedd it back into place. Other than that, all is well here. Good luck on your flooring project, ezbaker. :-)

Hi Cal! I too am interested in knowing how the floor is holding up in your home as I am considering it when we build our new home (we are currently in the planning phase). There doesn't seem to be that much information available from people with this kind of flooring (like you I do not wish to hear how 'luxury vinyl' is an oxymoron! Fact - wood doesn't work for everyone!). We have a large dog, a medium dog and a toddler. I have ruled out solid wood (cost prohibitive - we are building in Mexico and EVERYTHING is imported) and due to the issues with dogs scratching hardwood/engineered wood. Also, our kitchen will be open to the dining room, lounge and family room, so we will most likely put the same flooring throughout the entire downstairs floor, so it needs to be water resistant. My husband is against 'fake wood', does it look believable in a large space? Thanks for you feedback, it would be greatly appreciated! Do you have pics of by any chance?

Did we ever find out the brand?

@Lamper, thank you for sharing. The visuals that have come out the last couple years are amazing and hard to tell from real.

nikki, just pick a brand that has several visuals per box, the more the better and yes they do look very believable.

On the same note, I have had installers think the intentional distress in a product is a defect and stop a job - better safe than sorry.

Fantastic Floors,

It is a Shaw product but I don't remember exactly which one. It was not something at a big box store but from a flooring shop, so not cheapy and not top-of-the-line, somewhere in the midrange. We did compare the thickness of the wear layer on the different products in hopes of getting the best one for our money.

I will have to admit that although I really love the look of the product(we get compliments on it all the time), it has not held up as well as we hoped. Our dog has not been an issue with the floor getting scratched but the movement of chairs(with felt pads!) has scratched the floor. It is super easy to clean which is a huge plus!

I have a friend who is a designer. I have known her for years and she has always been a firm believer in getting the real thing; if you want wood, get wood! She recently replaced her maple floors and chose to get a commercial grade wood-look vinyl for her home. She loves it and says it has stood up to the wear and tear of her family and dogs.

I would still get a vinyl when it comes time to replace it but will definitely be much more prepared to upgrade.

Thanks for sharing Cal. I will have to compare the products available in Mexico, although I suspect choice may be limited as ceramic is the norm (too hard with kids and cold for me!). We are currently on an international assignment in New York (hubby's job) and as luck would have it, we are renting an apartment with vinyl plank flooring. The washing machine flooded on the first day we were here, no damange to floor, it looks great and is super easy to clean, however there are some definite scratches that were here when we moved in, so I wonder how it will hold up as they were renovated fairly recently. Of course i have no idea what kind of quality they are or how they were scratched.

nikki, I'm with you on the tile being cold! You may be able to find a good looking wood-look porcelain. Good luck on your project!

I keep getting conflicting information on what flooring to install in a below grade basement concrete floor. One company says that the click system is terrible and he'd rather me not buy anything from him than for him to sell me the product and then have problems with it in the future. He is saying to put a glue down LVP but I'm concerned about the coldness and hardness. Also, is a subfloor necessary? Other flooring companies have raved about the LVP and the click system is necessary if I am putting a subfloor in. I'm getting pretty frustrated with it all as I just want to make the decisions so I can get the project done! Thanks for your help.

I think the reason why they are saying to use a subfloor is because of the existing surface in the basement. Is it necessary? I honestly don't know. Ours did not have a subfloor but we were new construction. We have not had any problems with the joints (so far, fingers crossed). I have a feeling that with the glue down, though, you would get a better surface that would stand up to potential moisture issues. I have a friend who has it and it is beautiful. To me, it doesn't seem cold and hard, not like a tile at all. Good luck!

I am a wood snob also. However, I am in the planning stages of a new house and am considering a wood looking vinyl for my upstairs. This will be a heavily used area----sewing and painting-- chairs being rolled around,etc. I was pleasantly surprised by the overall look of the product. Both my husband and I are experience designers and have also worked in the flooring industry. We know what quality looks like but at the same time we have a budget for our upper level. Of course, there are different qualities available and we will go with the best looking and the best that we can afford. It seems to fit the bill for us .

My friend chose a Karndean product. She said she is so happy she changed from the wood to that.

Do you know what line of Karndean? There is another thread that just talks about some really bad experiences with the product scuffing and scratching easily. The basement rec room will be the kid's play area, hence the concern for warmth.

I do not know which line it was. If I can get in touch with her, I will ask.

Basements are weird things. The MOISTURE mitigation is always an issue. If you read the vinyl plank installation information you will find that each producer states that it is NOT a vapour barrier and therefore STILL REQUIRES the proper mitigation (if required). A basement with a subfloor (properly built sleeper subfloor or a DIY DryCore...doesn't matter) can use either the glue down (on PLYWOOD...not OSB...just be careful what the surface is if you want glue down).

The PROFESSIONAL flooring installers, who have installed vinyl in their own homes, install the GLUE DOWN version. They don't "play" with the click together...it isn't their cup of tea. That being said, the glue down increases your install costs quite heavily. It also ensures a LONG LASTING form of install with the LEAST amount of concern (again...moisture mitigation is always a requirement that MUST be dealth with prior to gluing).

A floating floor plank is a DIY option. You STILL have to figure out HOW to deal with the moisture in the slab (that means you have to test). A simple vapour barrier = 6mil polyethylene sheeting. Vinyl doens't like underpad (you can use a professional grade vinyl underpad SPECIFICALLY designed for vinyl...which is very, very expensive). That means there are very few options to help "cushion" or "warm up" the floor.

The CoreTec products allow a 3mm cork underlay (is NOT considered a vapour barrier). It is one of the FEW vinyls that allows cork. Cork is both a "cushion" and a "thermal break" that helps keep the chill off the floor.

Vinyl has many benefits...quiet and soft aren't benefits that vinyl offers. If you want warm and soft, cork floating flooring will offer both.

I love cork but couldn't convince myself it would work in our house. :-)

I just installed the coretec product in a clients home over tile. Like it a lot however a bit dull. Will be applying Zep high traffic polish on it shortly.

bjmirson....you may not want to add a polish to a vinyl floor. Once you start, you will ALWAYS have to add polish. A polish is a temporary finish (polymer) that MUST be maintained. Once you add the polish you could be VOIDING your warranty. The Zep product is a commercial vinyl floor polish. This is for the floors you find in WALMART...not CoreTec.

If the CoreTec seems dull, it is because it is a LOW GLOSS finish (matter or satin). If you want shiny, you have to PURCHASE shiny (semigloss or gloss). A polish is a temporary fix that needs to be added multiple times per year...and then stripped after the 5th application...and start the cycle all over again.

Please work with the material mentioned on CoreTec's maintenance page: http://www.usfloorsllc.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/USF_Maint_COREtec-Plus_Res.pdf

You could be responsible for the replacement of the floor because you have voided the client's warranty for them. CoreTec specifically mentions "Hilway Direct”as a floor polish. This would be the product you want to work with...not Zep.

Please work with the material/polish mentioned by USFloors. It will help should anything goes sideways.

@cal_rascoe:

Have you had any issue with the seams puckering up? I'm at the beginning of a kitchen remodel and we're deciding to go with vinyl but can't decided between plank or whole sheet glue down. I've read review on some planks puckering from big box stores, and DIY homeowners reinstalling them.I'm wondering what grade is yours and any sign of puckering?

I have click vinyl plank. NOT glue down. Mine did buckle and peak. I would only suggest glue down or vinyl plank that has a hard backing surface. Not that flexible 8mm stuff.

Here we are, 2 years later: In the smaller rooms(powder room, laundry room) there have been no issues except for scratches. In the dining room, hallway and kitchen we have had butt joints(ends of the planks) separating, creating gaps. We filed a claim with the company and they found no manufacturing flaw. We were told the quarter round was installed too tightly leaving no room for movement. They recommended we pull the trim and allow the floor to relax back together, hopefully. We have decided against doing anything since pulling up the trim will potentially create more issues. We are going to deal with what is essentially an annoying lesson until we are ready to replace it. I don't think the flooring is bad. I think there are better applications for it, just not here.

I had Adura vinyl plank installed in my kitchen, the click kind, and had to have it removed because the off gassing was making me sick. it had a strong odor., burned my eyes, and gave me a headache.

We are having the same struggle...I want shiny wood floors. Every Dr's office I've been in has scratches in their LVP, which I'm sure would have been commercial grade. If you look close the vinyl layer is very thin, under the vinyl is the structure of plank. They recommend Cortec or Lifeproof, but to me it's just glorified linoleum in plank form. I'm not ready to commit to my whole downstairs to it..My sister has had light oak Bruce high gloss wood floor for 20 years, 3 kids and many animals and it still looks grand, shows nothing...so I'm in a holding pattern on this flooring, not sold yet..We now have red oak Shaw engineered soft sheen, biggest mistake of my life 17 years...