water in engineered wood floor

[RWebb]

I have water down in the joints between panels of a wooden floor (engineered wood, i.e. the wood is laminated to a plywood substrate and the panels lock together)

is there anything I can do to save it?

[gr8fl4porsche]

Dehumidifier right next to the spot.

[RWebb]

here is what it looks like:




this was a little courtesy gift from the plasters who redid the ceiling in the room - they left a hell of a mess of debris, plaster, etc. and put a piece of wet carpet on top of the brown paper that was used to protect the floor

I went downstairs this am and found a big wet spot on the paper from the carpet. I tore it up and used my T-shirt to get what I could.

I don't have a dehumidifier.

I called the guy at 9:30 to come over here and see the problem, but he hasn't shown up.


Anybody have any other ideas besides replacing the entire floor?

[Heel n Toe]

You can rent a dehumidifier. The plaster contractor should pay for it.

If that's the only area that is discolored, you probably won't need to replace the entire floor.

Got a hair dryer? Put it on medium heat and hold it 12" above that spot and see what happens in 5 minutes or so.

[red911sc]

stooopid question but would rice or crackers help soak up some of the water? Maybe even put a sheet of plastic over it taped or weighted down around the edges with the rice/crackers under it to soak up some of the moisture?

Just an idea and cheap to try.

Couldn't hurt... right?

[RWebb]

Originally Posted by Heel n Toe

...

If that's the only area that is discolored, you probably won't need to replace the entire floor.
...

thx, but hair dryer no workie

I expect that room will need a new floor as they will never be able to find boards to match the existing.

The manfs. say you can sand these things 2x or 3x, so if the gaps are not too bad maybe that will work - wonder how bad the sanding dust will be... I hear it goes all over the place - walls, ceiling, etc. and is hard to get rid of.

[MarKoBrow]

The rice does work but you must use a lot of rice and it needs to be at least 4 inches bigger in diameter than the water spot and must be at least 2 inches high you can leave it there for at min 24 hrs and it should dry it up without staining.

[RWebb]

will do

[Heel n Toe]

What color was the wet carpet? If it was a dark color, the discoloration could be from it.

Otherwise, the discoloration could be from the glue (if glue was used) that is between the flooring and the subfloor.

Do you know the manufacturer of the flooring? If so, find someone locally who installs that make and have them come take a look at it. They may be able to match it better than you think and just replace a few boards.

I've seen it done on a manufactured floor that was installed over a slab. Water had come in under the tracks of several sliding glass doors, and there were areas where the flooring had puckered.

The puckered flooring was pulled up and dehumidifiers were brought in for about three days to dry out the slab.

They only used a coupla boxes of flooring and when they were done, you couldn't tell where the damage had been.

I realize your problem is discoloration and you don't have puckering, but it looks like there is enough variation in the color of the wood that it should be able to be repaired cleanly (at the expense of the plastering contractor).

Also, if all else fails, is it in a spot where you could cover it with an area rug?

[RWebb]

the discoloration is the water itself in the wood

if all else fails I'll go after the plastering contractor, either thru the state regulatory agency or by way of a law suit - I'm pissed that they ran off w/o doing any cleaning & that he didn't show up to fix it or look at it

I can understand anybody making a mistake - even an expensive one

[KFC911]

I helped my neighbor put in a similar floor several years ago, and the following year his a/c leaked out into the hallway ruining a slightly larger section. His homeowners insurance paid to replace the whole floor, both materials and labor...might be worth a shot.

ps: When I did the install for my neighbor, there was no way to replace a section as we'd interlocked the whole first floor of his house FWIW.

[RWebb]

ok, the guy just showed up and looked at the damage - said he wants me to turn on the heat and we'll see - said he'd check back with me

that was not I'll come by in a little bit in my way of tracking time, but at least he showed up to take a look

[willtel]

I have those floors on a concrete slab and a saltwater aquarium that has leaked significant amounts of water over the years. I've had several leaks that would cause water to squish up out of the joints up to 12 feet away from the tank. Even with all of that water I only have two boards that are cupped, they are very resilient.

I also think you should turn on your AC to remove the moisture, not the heat. AC does a better job of pulling moisture out of the air (and eventually the boards) in the form of condensate. The heater will just make it hot and steamy.

[dipso]

Put a weight on it, so it doesn't warp, and just let it dry out. Your most likely screwed, but if you get lucky it won't be that noticeable.
The only other option is to replace those pieces. You'll never find an exact match unless you saved a few.
Dry it as soon as you can.

You might be able to suck some of the moisture out with a vacuum. Don't even think about sanding and refinishing with engineered wood. Not in that one spot only.

It will probably come out O.K. and you'll be the only one that notices it.
If the wood has no stain, and it looks like it doesn't. The water stains will not be that visible.

Wax your floors ASAP. The wax will seep in the joints and seal the ends, as well as seal the joints. It will prevent things like this from happening in the future.

[RWebb]

don't have a/c

re wax - don't the panels move from temperature & humidity changes?

no more panels of that floor - installer did not leave any

any way, we'll see what happens; good to hear chance of cupping is not high

I was thinking you'd have the whole room sanded and then re-sealed or stained


plaster guy also left my gate open and my dog got out...

[red911sc]

Was looking back through my subscribed threads and wondered whatever became of this?

[RWebb]

The pic just shows one area - there were 5-8 such areas. Most remained discolored and the edges warped when they dried out.

I had a company sand and then re-seal the floor (actually 2 coats: sealer and some kind of top coat). They were not sure that would take care of it, but the cost to replace the flooring was $,4000 to $5,000, so I told them to go for it. It turned out pretty well, tho not back to where it was before.

I sent the $1,300 receipt for sanding & sealing to the plastering co. (one guy and his worker bee AFAIK) and he was unhappy. I then sent him the required notice to take him before the CCB (Ore. admin. agency designed to handle these things out of ct. and to mediate disputes). His ins. co. (bond) called me and said he'd take care of it. He then paid me a check for the damage, but of course, not for the hassle or the months spent unable to occupy that entire floor of the house.

I moved the furniture back in a few weeks ago, and the inhabitants of my house are now about as happy as they are going to get. The dog is unaffected; humans have reduced the static generation to the point that I am now contemplating replacing the sliding glass door and 2 windows in the adjacent room...