c/flooring-installers

Wasted 2 years not letting glue tack up before sticking LVP

I used to just spread the adhesive and slap the planks in right away. Thought I was saving time. Then at a job in Denver last Tuesday, I watched a guy wait 15 minutes for it to get tacky and his floor came out way flatter than mine ever do. Has anyone else made this dumb mistake or just me?

I finally tried floating vs glued down LVP on a big job last month

I had a 1,200 square foot basement in Denver and decided to do half floating and half glue down to see which held up better. The floating side had way more seam separation after 3 weeks, even with proper expansion gaps. Has anyone else had bad luck with floating LVP on concrete slabs in colder climates?

Chasing a squeak under engineered hardwood for 2 hours...

I had this job last week in a condo near downtown. Finished laying 800 sq ft of engineered and right when we cleaned up, every step near the kitchen let out this awful squeak. Pulled up three boards, rechecked the subfloor screws, nothing loose. Turns out it was a tiny high spot in the concrete underneath where the old tile was. Took 2 hours of grinding it down with a cup wheel and relaying those boards to fix. Has anyone else run into hidden slab issues that drove them nuts?

Old timer told me to use cork underlayment for LVP, I laughed at first

I had this guy named Frank, been installing floors since before I was born (probably), tell me to always use cork underlayment for luxury vinyl plank. I thought he was crazy, I always used the cheap foam stuff. After my last job where the customer complained about the floor feeling hollow and a bit bouncy, I decided to try cork on a small bathroom remodel. Dang it if he wasn't right, the floor feels solid and there's zero echo. Has anyone else made the switch from foam to cork and actually noticed a difference?

Joint compound vs feather finish for patching floors before tile - what's the right call?

I keep seeing guys fill low spots in subfloors with joint compound before laying tile and it drives me nuts. Joint compound shrinks and cracks under tile after a few months, especially on plywood. Feather finish or a proper self leveler is what you should use, yeah it costs more per bag but I'd rather spend the extra $15 than have a callback in 6 months. Had a buddy who used joint compound on a 400 sq ft kitchen remodel last spring and 3 tiles cracked by November. Am I wrong here or do some of y'all actually get away with using drywall mud under tile?

Found out from a factory rep last month that 90% of click-lock vinyl plank failures start at the tongue

I was just assuming it was poor subfloor prep until he pulled up a failed install and showed me hairline cracks on the tongue from people tapping too hard or at the wrong angle, has anyone else noticed this on their callbacks?

Small win today on a tricky L-shaped hallway install

I was laying luxury vinyl plank in this narrow L-shaped hallway in an old house near downtown Austin. The walls were way out of square and I kept fighting with my spacers. Finally stopped and cut a custom cardboard template for the turn, saved me from ripping out three crooked rows. Has anyone else ditched the measuring tape and gone straight to templates for tight spots?

Blew out my knee on a floating floor install last Wednesday and had to finish the job one-handed

I was rushing to get the last row clicked in on a 1,200 square foot LVP job in Norwood, and my knee just gave out from all the kneeling and standing, so I had to tape a knee pad to a 2x4 and slide across the subfloor to finish the final cuts has anyone else had to rig up a crazy system to get through a job after getting hurt?

Guy at the supply house changed my mind about cork underlayment

I always thought cork underlayment was just extra cost for no real benefit, but last Tuesday a 20 year installer showed me how it reduces sound transfer by like 15 decibels in his own house. He had a decibel meter and everything to prove it. Anyone else ever been shown hard numbers like that on a product they were doubting?

Finally caught my glue-up mistake after 8 years of doing it backwards

Overheard a builder say LVP doesn't need expansion gaps... yikes

I was at a supply house last week and heard some contractor telling his apprentice that luxury vinyl plank doesn't expand so you can butt it tight to the walls. I almost choked on my coffee. Every single manufacturer I deal with says you need at least a quarter inch gap around the perimeter. I've pulled up maybe 10 LVP jobs this year alone that failed because of no expansion room. The planks buckled right at the seams after one hot summer. Has anyone else had to fix these nightmares from people skipping the gaps?

Thought I could glue down LVP on a damp slab, big mistake

Did a basement job in Raleigh last month, slab tested fine with a meter but I skipped the full moisture test. Within 3 weeks the planks were cupping along the seams. Now I'm pulling it all up and eating the cost. Anyone else learned this the hard way?

TIL the hard way that moisture readings on concrete can be misleading

I had a job in Portland last year where the slab passed a calcium chloride test but failed the RH probe test two days later. The homeowner wanted to save money so we pushed ahead anyway, and now the glue-down vinyl plank is starting to bubble near the seams. Has anyone else had the experience of one test passing and the other failing, and which one do you usually trust?

Customer pointed out my transition gaps and I felt like an idiot

Guy had me back to his house 3 days after I finished a laminate install in Portland. He showed me a 1/8 inch gap under the T-molding where the floor met the carpet. I always thought transitions just covered everything up but now I put a straight edge across every single one before I leave the job. Anybody else have a customer catch something that made you change your whole process?

Had an extra 2 feet of glue-down LVP leftover from a job in Phoenix last week

I stuck a piece in my truck bed for a test patch and that stuff handled 118 degree sun way better than I expected. Anybody else ever stress-test scraps in weird conditions?

Tried a glue-down LVP on a slab with no vapor barrier and it was fine for 6 months then turned into a mess

Last year I did a basement in Nashville for a buddy. Slab looked dry, no signs of moisture. I skipped the vapor barrier to save time and money. Six months later the planks started cupping and the edges lifted. Turns out there was moisture wicking up slow. Had to tear it all out and start over. Anyone else ever skip a step and pay for it later?

Saw a guy level floors with self leveler at a job site in Phoenix and it changed my whole method

I was helping a friend on a tile job in Phoenix last month. The floor was way off, like a 1/2 inch dip in the middle. He just mixed up some self leveler and poured it, took maybe 20 minutes. I always fought with shims and plywood to fix low spots. Has anyone else switched over to self leveler for big dips instead of building up layers?

Read a post on here about pre-finishing hardwood and it clicked for me

Some guy was talking about how he pre-finishes all his boards before install to save time on sanding and staining after. I always did it the old way with the whole room sanded at once. Tried it on a 800 sq ft job in Austin last week and man it cut my finishing time by almost half. The edges still need a touch up but nothing like before. Anyone else do this or am I just late to the party?

Old timer told me to always staple felt paper even with self-stick underlayment... I skipped it on a job in Austin

I had a 1,200 square foot job in downtown Austin, old house with pine subfloors. Guy I subcontract for sometimes told me to always staple the felt down every 6 inches even if the underlayment says it's self-stick. I figured the self-stick was good enough and saved maybe an hour of time. Now the floor has a soft spot near the kitchen and I'm pretty sure it's because the underlayment shifted during the heat that week. Anyone else trust the peel and stick and regret it?

Old timer told me to never glue LVP in a bathroom... I didn't listen

So I had this job in a small powder room in Austin last month. Customer wanted LVP in there and said their buddy said to glue it down so it doesn't move near the toilet. I know better but figured hey what's the harm. 3 days later the floor started bubbling up near the vent. Moisture trapped under the glue and warped like 4 planks. Had to rip it all out and start over. Cost me an extra $200 in materials and a whole Saturday. Has anyone else had a hack advice from a customer that backfired bad?

Swore those microfiber mop pads were a scam until my crew hit a job with 2000 sq ft of engineered hardwood

I used to think microfiber mop pads were just expensive rags that didn't work any better than a cotton one. Then we had this massive house in Portland last month where the homeowner insisted we only use their expensive microfiber system on the new floors. Got through 1200 sq ft in half the time with way less streaks. Has anyone else found a specific brand or type of pad that actually makes a difference on sealed hardwood?

My uncle said to always double-check the subfloor for squeaks before laying LVP

He told me this last year when I was doing a big job in a 1970s house in Tacoma. I was in a rush and figured the old plywood felt solid enough, so I skipped it. Two weeks after install, the homeowner calls me back because the floor sounds like a haunted house when you walk on it. Had to pull up about 300 square feet of planks to find and screw down the loose spots. Anyone have a favorite method for finding squeaks fast?

Showerthought: The time I cut a plank too short on a big job in Denver

I was laying a herringbone pattern with 7-inch wide oak, and my last piece for the corner was a perfect 1/4 inch short after the final cut. I had to pull up three rows to get a fresh piece in without a visible gap. What's your go-to fix for a bad cut when you're almost out of material?

Had a plank snap right under a client's fridge in the middle of a glue-down job

I was installing some 7-inch wide engineered oak in a condo downtown, using a full spread adhesive. Everything was going smooth, had about half the living room down. I went to slide the fridge back into its spot, just a gentle nudge with my knee, and I heard this awful crack. Pulled the fridge back out and saw a clean break right across the middle of a plank, right where a seam was. The subfloor was level, I checked it myself. My best guess is there was a tiny void in the glue right under that seam, and the pressure from the fridge leg was the final straw. I had to cut out the whole damaged plank and the one next to it to get a clean repair, which set me back almost two hours. Has anyone else had a plank fail like that during an install, not from moisture or a bad cut, but just from pressure on a weak spot?

Wasted a whole day on a glue down job because I didn't check the slab moisture first

Last week I started a 500 square foot vinyl plank glue down in a basement over a concrete slab. I just went ahead and started spreading the adhesive after a quick visual check. Two days later, the planks were bubbling up in the middle of the room. Turns out the slab had a moisture reading of 8 pounds, way over the 3 pound limit for that adhesive. I had to pull up all the planks, scrape off the adhesive, and start over, losing a full day of work and about $200 in wasted glue. Has anyone else had this happen, and what's your go-to test now?