Morning All Just want some opinions please on how to handle a situation fairly. Apologies for the long post but want to give full info to be fair to all As we had an uneven kitchen floor after a extension build, particularly a large "hump" around our hob area, we instructed a flooring company to level the floor with particular attention to the hump. The hump was basically the previous builder going overboard with latex when he was trying to level out where internal walls were. The contractor initially said he would chisel down the hump then latex the entire floor The latex was laid over the entire kitchen/utility, however because it wasn't chiselled down, the hump remained by the hob. We pointed this out and the contractor started to manually sand down the hump, first with an orbital sander, then with a more heavy duty sanding block. This did improve the situation, however when the LVT was fitted over the hump there was a definite peak which was visual and shows up on a spirit level, and is very noticeable when walking on it. He did work on this problem 3 times, taking up and relaying the floor each time before finally laying the floor over the hump and through the rest of the kitchen/utility room and refusing to take up the floor again saying that was him done. His justification to us was that it was "within 4mm tolerance" and that it wouldn't lift and the joins will be fine. Attached is a recent image, the spirit level is on the peak of the LVT and the gap to the left is 2mm, and to the right is nearly 5mm, the spirit level will rock from side to side. We've spoken to the floor supplier and they have said it's not a good job, and.. "the subfloor has not been adequately prepared for the flooring and so the installer is liable to remedy this" "as its sitting on the hump this will have caused stress on the locking system , and could lead to further issues down the line." So basically it can't stay as is Am going to give the fitter the option to come back, take up the floor in the utility room which is off the kitchen, thats about 2sqm, then into the kitchen around the hump , around another 2sqm, sand down the floor again so the spirit level is level, put it all back and then we'll pay his invoice. I know he wont do that, as he got angry the last time i said it wasn't good enough (see photos) so he will refuse i have his invoice which is broken down by labour,materials and individual items like taking off skirting boards, pouring latex etc. option 2 is just to tell him to leave it and not to come back. i'll go through his invoice and pay the materials but then work out the % of work he's done, and then try to work out what is fair to pay him. 80% of the floor is fine, it's just a 2sqm hump, but it can't stay as it, and to get to that hump about 8sqm of flooring needs taking up to get to it Job should have taken 5 days, he's been onsite for around 11 so far and still not finished, while the whole floor has been laid there's still skirting boards etc to put back This should have been a simple job and i dont want to end up in a dispute with him but can see it going that way just after some advise please! Thanks Chris
forgot to add, i've got another contractor coming out next week to look at fixing the job if the original contractor refuses, so lets say it's going to cost me £500 for someone to come in, take up the floor that's needed to get to the hump, sand, then relay. is it "fair" to take that amount off the original contractors invoice?
yes it its on one side, probably about 5-7 on one side and 3-4 on the other, bought a 2m level yesterday and was told by the flooring supplier.. "The British Standards Institute states the surface should have no more than 3mm of variation over a 2-metre span." and that the best way of checking was with a £1, and that shouldn't go under the gap, well it obviously does very much! i'm going to email the contractor this weekend with these photos attached and the above statement, as also the flooring supplier have said the LVT would not be under any kind of warranty if they start to lift or the joins go as it has not been layed on a suitable sub floor, and going to give him the option of coming back, lifting the floor and making it level (floor is almost perfect everywhere else) , or i've got 3 contractors coming round mon/tues to quote to fix the work, and i'll have to take that amount off this invoice as he's not done what he was employed to do i'm trying to be fair, so just want some opinions
Is the hump only caused by the builder adding compound or was something there first.. if it’s just a compound it would have been easy enough to grind down first then level the floor instead of this back and forth…
He was using an orbital sander, so probably not equipped to do it, that's the problem with a lot of fitters that don't have a flooring background and just go straight into the click stuff, they may do a great job of putting the stuff together, but don't have the knowledge or tools for the floor prep
After leveling the floor, discovering a "hump" can be frustrating and problematic for subsequent work, such as installing flooring. To address this, identify the extent and height of the hump using a straightedge or level. If the hump is minor, it can be sanded down using a floor sander or grinder. For more significant protrusions, you might need to use a concrete planer or self-leveling compound to even out the surrounding area. Ensure the floor is clean and free of debris before applying any compounds.
