A Compilation Of Hack Jobs

[Ernesto]

From the craigslister here in town who touts himself as a "Pergo Certified Installer" who worked for HD (first 3 pics) to DIY'ers who failed to install a vapor retarder under laminate, to professional box store wannabe installers. Here is what I get to go look at.

 

[Ernesto]

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[ws6owner]

Those are pretty ugly.

To be fair though, not all box store installers do shoddy work. It's a tough market around here and it's easier to get constant work through L***s and H*** D**** without having to scrape every week to find a new customer. We aren't all like that

 

[Floorist]

I see a lot of those jobs, but around here most laminate is installed by DIYers. And they are proud no matter how bad it looks,

 

[Nick]

I love the way they cut around door jams .

 

[havasu]

I agree that many are a hack job, but it is possible that the installer (most likely a homeowner) just don't know any better?

 

[rugaddict]

i saw a picture one time where instead of undercutting the doorway--they covered the casing in quarter round---it was a beauty

 

[Incognito]

I agree that many are a hack job, but it is possible that the installer (most likely a homeowner) just don't know any better?

It's just possible.

 

[Ernesto]

These days installation instructions and requirements are pretty much consistently on or in the boxes. So, there's no excuse.
I do love seeing the installers cutting the flooring net to the vent hole in the floor and shoving the vent cover down in there. THats like one of the first places I look, and some even screw the vent down through the flooing!!!

The so called "Pergo Certified Installer" was installing a rotating lock using the UNICLIC method and tapping block. The use of a tapping block for this laminate sold in Home Depot is explicitly explained in the instructions in bold print, DO NOT USE A TAPPING BLOCK! You'da thunk he woulda figured that out when the planks would not go together and were chipping, plus ledgeing, proud corners etc.

The DIY'er with the other light maple Pergo with attached cushion swears there were no instructions about using a vapor retarder (six mil) under the floor. They were Norwegian with heavy accents, so there's no excuse there. LOL

The one with the gallons of white caulking around the jambs, well, the property management guy was adamant about there was absolutely nothing wrong with the installation, and the buckling was the fault of the renter. And that they were slopping water on it when cleaning. Even though there were zero swollen edges.

On the click vinyl, I give the people the benefit of the doubt as there are still vague and inconsistent instructions about longest length and width of runs, and the use of stops in doorways. These vinyl manufacturers just don't male matching transitions for their floors. And the laminate ones are to high or don't match. Also no weight limits on furniture and appliances, which IMO are the cause of many decoupling floors.

Here's a neat one on a Home Depot laminate. Not installation or maintenance. These spots are consistent even under the beds where no UV light can get or usually cleaned. NO swollen edges ect. Floor is two years old and she's been fighting with the manufacturer and HD since the spots started showing up 1 year after install. She's got 1,500 sqft of it. Ph test in every room was neutral, moisture meter in non-affected areas were all consistent with affected areas.

 

[Ken]

My favorite is the square cuts and white caulk around the door ways. The spots in those last pics didn't just show up all of a sudden. Pergo is notorious for defects in finish but they installed them without pulling the planks so no claim there, lol. Ive seen those spots a bunch of times and we always pull them prior to install.

 

[Ernesto]

lady says they wern't there when installed.

 

[ws6owner]

I second the pergo finish comment. The dye lots were different on this job and it was dark in the house. We didn't catch it until the sun came shining through the front door.

 

[ws6owner]

FYI I wasn't installing in long rows like that. I was pulling them out to get back to the bad boards lol.

 

[Nick]

Don't you just love it when the mills Piss on your leg , and tell you it is raining ?

 

[Ken]

I JUST had a pergo job with two different lots. No color variation issued however I'd you mixed the lots in the same row the short stand wouldn't sit right. I had to make sure each row was made of one lot and it was perfect. A major pain in the butt but I got the job done instead of having to wait for a single lot.

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[Ernesto]

Well keep an eye out for this, on XP or on styles with a V-groove. Can anyone guess what it is?

 

[Ken]

That's paint overspray

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[Ken]

I see that ALL the time with pergo. I always pull the bed pcs though. If you get into a tight spot and need to finish the job you can scrape it off with minimal effort or scratching if you get it before they wash the floor for the first time.

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[Ernesto]

It is a color matched sealer like paint used to protect and hide the core. Besides scraping off, which I would not recommend, acetone removes it easily. Water or water based cleaners won't touch it.
The darker floor had like 50+ planks of it installed in the floor.

 

[Ernesto]

It also gets stuck down in the grain. So that's where acetone helps alot.