Browse Forums Flooring & Floor Covering 1 Sep 25, 2009 9:22 am Hi All, I had my floating floors installed yesterday -and they look awesome! (Embelton - Spotted Gum with Premium Quiet Step underlay). My only gripe i have is that there is an approx 1 sq metre area that is drummy and hollow sounding - and has a springy feel to it. This unfortunately happens to be in the most high traffic area of the floor.... Does anyone know if this can be fixed at all? ie do i get the installer back in or is this just something that can occur and is plain unlucky? Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fixed? 3Sep 25, 2009 10:12 am Thanks borg - yeah logic tends to lead me to belive that the floor may have not been level there and hence the drummyness. That said - to the untrained eye the floor was level. And my installer did not pick this up.... With that all said and done- is there any method to fix this now that installation is complete? (apart from rip up the boards, level the floor and re-lay). Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fixed? 4Sep 25, 2009 10:34 am Was your flooring over a new slab? We've ordered our floor and we asked the question to the supplier 'should we make alowance to level the slab' and they said new slabs never require leveling. Does anyone disagree? What does leveling a slab involve? Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fixed? 5Sep 25, 2009 10:48 am hi mudmap - no it is not a newly poured slab. Building is 10 years old. We're on the first floor, we just ripped up the carpets, and the slab was in good condition. Flooring expert layed direct onto slab. Guess i should've got my spirit level out before we commenced.... Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fixed? 6Sep 25, 2009 11:44 am Mupps As the boards are 2m long it probably doesn't take much to have a low spot and may be hard to pick up. Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fixed? 7Sep 25, 2009 12:50 pm The flooring installers SHOULD HAVE checked the pad and advised you of any probs BEFORE they laid the floor. They cut corners! They are responsible (IMO) and should take the floor up, and relay it. You should pay for the levelling. Good luck with that. Ash. Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fixed? 8Sep 25, 2009 7:53 pm The installation company should be able to organise a competent specialist to drill into and through the boards to allow a filler to be injected underneath to fill the void that is causing the hollow sound and spring effect. Much easier and less messy than ripping up the offending area. The holes are then filled to blend in with the original finish. I have seen this method used regularly to fix commercial vinyl floors that have lifted in places. Hope this helps.. Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fixed? 9Feb 18, 2010 10:22 pm mudmap Was your flooring over a new slab? We've ordered our floor and we asked the question to the supplier 'should we make alowance to level the slab' and they said new slabs never require leveling. Does anyone disagree? What does leveling a slab involve? Sorry to bring up an old post but i just seen this a new or old slab does not matter i repair new slabs all the time. Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fixed? 10Feb 21, 2010 2:48 pm Yep, some new slabs I have had clients end up with in recent times, from some big "brand name" builders would be better seen in Wet & Wild theme park with water running over them. I had one customer who had to spend $4k fixing her brand new slab - and then fight the builder to get re-imbursed. 3mm per 1 metre is the maximum variation for most floating floors. Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fixed? 11Feb 21, 2010 5:31 pm anthony_carter Yep, some new slabs I have had clients end up with in recent times, from some big "brand name" builders would be better seen in Wet & Wild theme park with water running over them. I had one customer who had to spend $4k fixing her brand new slab - and then fight the builder to get re-imbursed. 3mm per 1 metre is the maximum variation for most floating floors. Wow, these defects are expensive!! Can you elaborate on why such huge expense? Was the area very large? And how does a slab get levelled? With what? Is it done by the flooring expert, or does the client need to do this beforehand? My signature is distracting people from my wise posts ... Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fixed? 12Feb 21, 2010 7:06 pm Lex Wow, these defects are expensive!! Can you elaborate on why such huge expense? Was the area very large? And how does a slab get levelled? With what? Is it done by the flooring expert, or does the client need to do this beforehand? If the concrete contractor didn't do a good job it will be high in spots and low in others. The way to fix it is either to bring it all up to the highest points, or take it down to the lowest. So you either need to grind the concrete high spots back, or fill the low points with a self levelling compound, such as Ardit. Usually, a bad slab will require a bit of both, but a run of the mill slab, with only a few ******* sections can easily be sorted by the same installer who lays vinyl or floating floors. Normally if it is extensive, a specialists floor leveller is got in - as they will have the equipment and better "know how". I had to fix one of my own floors at a house I had in Sydney, prior to laying a floater on it. I used a straight piece of steel to find out my low points, and a bright white crayon and marked out the floor (like marking around dead bodies in the law & order tv show). Then I mixed up some Ardit (mix with water according to instructions on pack) and poured it in the low points and the trowelled it out. Pretty simple really. You can get ardit from most decent hardwares and certainly from a flooring supply place like AFS (here in the eastern states). Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fixed? 13Feb 21, 2010 7:35 pm Many thanks Anthony. It's great to get expert advice with product details etc. Demolition August 2009, Construction Started September 2009, Completed December 2010 Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fixed? 15Feb 22, 2010 11:23 pm Oh thanks, Anthony. Only noticed your reply now , and I was going to ask if the Ardit wold need any special help to stick to the slab ... My signature is distracting people from my wise posts ... Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fixed? 16Feb 24, 2010 12:36 am Lex Oh thanks, Anthony. Only noticed your reply now , and I was going to ask if the Ardit wold need any special help to stick to the slab ... Ardit is just a brand name, They have umpteen products for different applications. You need look at the specs for what you want it to do. Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fixed? 17Feb 24, 2010 1:03 am Look at a feather finish product to smooth floors out, Ardit is more of a filler, if you want to level a floor out look for products like k15 which has a self leveling ability. As said all brand names, but if you look at the ardex range i don't think you can go wrong. Be careful tho, the advice given in this thread is great advice, but i would suggest leveling isn't as easy as mixing water and pouring on the floor, there is a reason floor prep can be costly. Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fixed? 18Feb 24, 2010 10:28 am Mark S Lex Oh thanks, Anthony. Only noticed your reply now , and I was going to ask if the Ardit wold need any special help to stick to the slab ... Ardit is just a brand name, They have umpteen products for different applications. You need look at the specs for what you want it to do. That's right, a brand name. Although we mentioned only that one brand name, I thought we were talking about slab levelling compounds in general and came to the conclusion that all of them would need to be forced (with something else) to stick to the concrete slab. You seem to suggest that not all of the levelling compounds on the market need this? My signature is distracting people from my wise posts ... Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fix 19Mar 03, 2010 9:13 pm Levelling a floor to run a floater over it, and levelling it to direct stick to, are VERY different - for example if you mixed up your ardit too much and it was runny as hell, and sets all powdery, then you are not sticking to it anytime - BUT it will level your floor with no dramas if you are putting down an underlay and a floater. Levelling, at least in my experiences, is generally carried out by over paid timber installers or even more over paid vinyl installers. Example, I had one of my vinyl layers try to charge me $1500 the other week for putting in some feather on a 30m2 job...........you work that out. Now if Carpet Layers did levelling, then prices would be sensible ! Don't freak out too much about it. See your local flooring supplies joint and have a chat. Just because you haven't done it before, doesn't mean you can't read the instructions and have a crack. AFS / QEP in the Eastern States. Not sure about WA. Re: Flooring Installed But Drummy in places. Can this be fix 20Mar 03, 2010 9:17 pm I use the word ARDIT, not as a brand, but as a product group......we call it "Arditing a floor". Like "Hoovering" I guess !!! Speak to a professional at AFS to discuss your needs and they will put you into the right floor levelling compound. The unit normally clips into a metal plate screwed to the wall, either plate is not flush, or unit not hooked in and could be hanging from the pipes partly, either might… 2 12570 Are you saying that these consultants are involved at key-points of the building, and perform site inspects at the stages, or only after building is completed to point… 4 8991 Thank you so much everyone. This all makes a lot of sense. I guess when you talk to a builder who butters up everything to look very polished, you get to start believing… 8 2234 |