ALPHA XCEM FLOORING QUALITY ISSUES

Hi Everyone,

As most people know I recently became a bit of a fan boy for the Alpha XCEM flooring system over hebel, however I discovered yesterday that their system is far from perfect and still needs developing from Q & A perspective.

For anyone who follows them on social media they have been posting about their new moulds and improved systems so i was super excited to get our latest delivery.

We are building a 700sqm duplex in Eastwood and to cut a long story short, we received a really bad batch of panels.

A lot had hairline cracks, damaged edges, very inconsistent tongue and grooves that didn't line up and many were out of square.

Basically the finished product was just not up to the standard that we would be happy to hand over to a client.

I am going to try and get in touch with them today and see if they can or will take my call, and I still think it's better than Hebel, but once again we find ourselves in a position of needing to lay yellowtongue over the top of a flooring system to get a quality finished surface.

FYI I am still going to keep using it, I just wanted people to know that it's not as brilliant as I had first thought before spending your money.


Here are some photos. I am not sure if the inconsistency in the edges shows up well and the damaged/cracked edges. But basically you couldn't lay hybrid on top of this as is, it would need sanding and topping first.

The issue is not every batch is like this.

Thanks for that insight, keep us posted on how there aftersale support is....

Yes, please keep us updated on this matter, Simeon!

I haven't done anything yet except order another load.

I will try and find some time this week.

Although having whinged about my last batch, I had my herringbone floor crew through Lindfield on Saturday and these guys thought the Alpha was amazing and a great surface to glue their little bits of fancy timber on.

I have a whole new batch coming so we shall see how that goes and I will try and find time for a call.

Cheers

Simeon

Thank you.

Hi there. Just a kind follow up on the Alpha floor batch you had.Was it resolved? Was the second batch good?

The second batch was fantastic.

I think it was just one bad batch for us.

I also think the quality of installers makes a huge difference.

So we are going to keep using it going forward

If anyone is in Sydney my invitation is always open to drop by one of my job sites for a look.

Just give me a shout

Cheers

Simeon

That’s assuring!Thank you.Would love to see this in person if you are working on a project inner or north west Sydney

can you make it to Lindfield?

Did they make good on the bad batch?

I've been super keen on Xcem Alphafloor and you did show me and my family around your Lindfield and Eastwood homes (thanks!) But my builder is super not keen.

At first they were put off by there being no certified test results to back up their accoustic claims. Now I believe they have certified results, but the builder is saying they have received industry and retailer feedback to stay away from this product.

I don't know exactly what feedback they've heard from retailers who sell this product, but hearing about this bad batch is enough to give me pause. I hope it was just a bad batch and problems resolved now, but will be hard to convince my builder in any case.

Would you say that two layers of yellow tongue and/or narrower spacing between joists would result in an equally solid feeling finished floor, compared to Xcem? That was my main driver for Xcem, the solid feel, not the accoustic performance.

I am also studying Alpha floor .My current constraint is simply the budget not quality concerns. Reputable builders like Fowler ,Fairmount ,Kings,Eagle ,Bellriver have all used it .Fowler actually offering it as a promotion .Care to share which builder you are referring to who is quoting industry sources ?Any builder who rates particle board ahead of solid concrete is just not an objective builder in my opinion .

They are recommending 22m thick Scyon Secura compressed fibre-cement as the next best alternative, which I've never heard of (but haven't looked to find out yet). Alphafloor still sounds great to me, but switching to another builder over this issue or being asked to sign a warranty waiver doesn't seem worth it.

The scyon is a good alternative. My friend who is a builder used it in his home and loves it.

We are now onto our fourth home with the Alpha and overall we love it and will keep using it.

I think we had one bad batch and honestly, the carpenter who we were using for that job wasn't our regular as our regular crew were busy on other projects so part of the problem could have been their installation skills. And they should have notified us early on that there was an issue but to be fair it was their first time using it.

On the jobs since using our regular team we have had zero issues. I can't understand why your builder is so against change but hey, each to their own.

Hi Everyone

I just wanted to follow up on my earlier posts about ALPHA XCEM and give an update, and also talk quickly about some alternatives and costs.

Firstly my business partner and I are in love with ALPHA XCEM as a flooring system however it does cost more, but you do honestly get what you pay for.

Now that our Lindfield build is finished we have people coming through and walking and jumping on it who are really impressed.

Just yesterday I had a potential new client come through and without me even saying anything she asked what the subfloor was it felt so solid. So yes in my opinion it is worth the spending a little extra.

It just gives your build a more premium feel.

To recap, I have lost count now but I think we have built over 50 homes in the last 6-7 years, in the early days most of our subfloors were 75mm Hebel topped with a layer of yellow tongue. We have switched to ALPHA XCEM as it is just a far superior product as are many other builders.

We found that Hebel on it's own as a flooring system is awful. it cracks and crumbles and just doesn't hold up to the build process. However when you add a layer of yellow tongue for protection it works really well. However that is time consuming and costly.

For clients who couldnt afford an extra $18,000-25,000 for a flooring upgrade we would use 2 layers of particle board either yellow tongue or red tongue. This system is a really good alternative for those on a tighter budget. The cost for an average sized home is around $8,000-10,000.

My only issue with particle board options is that they are very susceptible to weather. Here in Sydney over the last few years we have been getting a lot of rain, and particle board swells and bows with moisture so at the end of each build we are forced to spend several thousand dollars on sanding and straightening the subfloor.

There are zero issues with ALPHA XCEM when it comes to weather and it holds up to the abuse dished out by tradies during the build really well.

I genuinely think if you are doing a build it's a worth while investment.

Happy to answer anyones questions or give anyone a tour of one of my builds so you can see for yourself

And in case you are wondering, no I am not sponsored by them, they don't even know I exist. We pay full freight through Bunnings, but I am open to it if they read my posts... just joking, I don't need their money.

Just hit me up if you have any questions. Always happy to help forum members

Cheers

Simeon

Really appreciate your follow up posts about Xcem Alphafloor. I am keen to use it, but my builder is not keen. Can you talk about any cons, besides price?

Is it a pain to work with because you need to screw it down vs nailgun? (I'd have thought screws should be used regardless.)

Is there enough variance in panel thickness such that the subfloor needs some grinding and levelling to prepare for finished floor on top?

Is transport and labor cost on site high because of the weight?

I am just trying to wrap my head around what could be the issue. They have suggested Scyon in lieu of Xcem Alphafloor. When I checked some installation videos, that looked to be quite flexible and flimsy compared to Xcem Alphafloor.

I am mostly concerned with having a really solid feeling floor, and will have first floor overhangs of 600mm. I really want to avoid any shake and wobble as I walk through the house in 10-15-20 years time, when I imagine the particleboard is getting tired and screws/nails are getting loose from flex over time.

Cheers.

Thank for your questions.

1. For us there hasn't been any cons other than it's a bit more expensive. The installation process is identical to both scyon and yellowtongue. They all need to be glued and screwed and have a tongue and groove system. I can not understand your builder's reluctance. I have an idea but best to keep my negative thoughts private. Have you asked them why they are objecting other than they don't like change?

2. We found out of all the subfloor combinations we have used this one was the only one that needed no prep and we have glued herringbone timber directly to it and that needs a perfectly flat surface

3. It costs more to purchase and the boys do have to lift the panels up, but if we wanted to we could crane them up but so far our boys haven't complained. They just get on with the job

4. It has zero wobble. It is a much better feeling underfoot than any other product we have used.

I think you need a heart to heart with your builder and try to get to the bottom of his objections.

At the end of the day you are the one paying him so he should within reason meet your expectations.

All the best

Simeon