Help!!! Poorly Refinished Wood Floors

chocoholic · 07-17-2008, 05:56 PM

We are having our oak floors refinished, and so far I have been pleased with the outcome of the sanding and staining process. The guy told me that he put down 2 coats of polyurethane today, several hours apart, and not to step inside.

I just got home from work, and am horrified to see miniscule bumps / bubbles all over the floor. Don't know what the problem is, and I am not the kind of person who will fight about it, but it is truly unacceptable . I picked at one of the bumps and it popped out.

What went wrong here?

Schmoomcgoo · 07-17-2008, 06:01 PM

I don't know what happened but I'd sure ask the guy.

emeraldkity4 · 07-17-2008, 06:04 PM

you do not put down two coats on the same day.

We applied Floorfin to our 100yr old fir floors and they look great.
Floor Finishes & Deck Care : DALY'S : Paint and Decorating / Wood Finishes
Not a Swedish finish process though

If you are using polyurethane- you have to sand inbetween coats, which means- dry first.
After it dries- he can sand them out & then just add one coat at a time.
It's probable that sanding and one more coat will be plenty- but he should have let them dry at least a day between coats

toledo · 07-17-2008, 06:08 PM

Sorry to hear that you have a problem. I've had my wood floors refinished and just had a new floor installed.There were 24 hours between the first and second coat of polyurethane and 48 hours between the 2nd and 3rd coat. All my rooms turned out great!

He may have to sand again if the bubbles don't disappear. Buffing could take care of the problem, too, so don't panic just yet.

barrons · 07-17-2008, 06:10 PM

Poly is very prone to small bubbles. Maybe he could sand it off and just stain it or use something else to protect it.

Tips & Advice - Restore Wood Flooring

chocoholic · 07-17-2008, 06:43 PM

Aaargh, I am just so upset.
We had factory finished poly floors before, that were really smooth and lovely,(but not the right color for our new kitchen, and a little dinged). I am so sorry for doing this

violadad · 07-17-2008, 06:48 PM

Agreed that 24 hours between coats of a solvent based (not water based) poly is the industry standard. Scuff sanded and vacuumed between coats is the norm. A few minor bubbles are acceptable; my guess is the floor was not properly vacuumed, the poly was agitated, applicator or poly was dust/debris contaminated, or the application rushed.

Do not pay for an unprofessional job.

Lukester · 07-17-2008, 06:48 PM

Don't accept the floors as is from your refinisher. It isn't rocket science. He should and can do a better job. Stay on top of him. Agree with the other posters, a light sanding will bufff out the current bubbles, then he can reapply another coat of poly and it will look great.

chocoholic · 07-17-2008, 06:52 PM

Violadad,
I'm pretty sure that ours is a water based poly, as it feels completely dry already. I think its debris, that was not properly vacuumed.

violadad · 07-17-2008, 06:54 PM

Quote:

We had factory finished poly floors before, that were really smooth and lovely

A field applied finish will never match a factory finish, which is applied in a controlled environment, by machine, and subjected to heat curing as well.

That being said, a proper refinishing job executed by a skilled pro should yield extremely good results.

violadad · 07-17-2008, 06:58 PM

With a water based poly, three coat application is the norm, although personally I am not a fan of water based products for floor use. I would ask (check your written estimate/quote... it should specify) your contractor if he had planned on a third application.

toneranger · 07-17-2008, 08:47 PM

there should be NO bumps. We had two water based coats - our wood floors are as smooth as glass and beautiful. An oil based coating smells for weeks (made me sick the last time we did it) and I see no difference with the water coat.
Don't settle for it the way it is. This is not the way it should be. He will likely have to sand and recoat.
Hope it works out for you...

chocoholic · 07-17-2008, 10:15 PM

The water based is actually an upgrade, as it makes for easier spot-refinishing down the line. Because we had oil based befire, the entire 1000 s.f. had to be redone. Hopefully in the future, we can just fix small areas as needed.
For now, I have to be brave and face the contractors tomorrow, as my H is away.

There are 3 coats specified in the contract.

mom60 · 07-17-2008, 10:54 PM

chocoholic- my sister had the same problem. Her's was caused by the workmen trying to speed up the drying process by turning on the heat. All the sawdust that was in the ducts came back up on the freshly sealed floor. Her contractor wasn't happy but he ended up having to redo the entire floor. Her's was insurance work so she had contracted the insurance company who would not pay the guy till it was redone.
Be strong. He needs to redo the floor or at least the sections. You are not asking for anything but a quality job.

PackMom · 07-17-2008, 10:59 PM

Same thing happened to us last year, The guy tried to speed up the job by doing both coats of poly in one day. We had little bubbles everywhere. We called him and told him we were totally unsatisfied. He came back, did some sanding and reapplied the poly. To be honest, it's still not 100% perfect but it's way better than it was.