Came out to 47 miles of material laid down and that's without counting the 8,000 square feet of tile I did for that church in Akron back in 2010, anyone else ever do the math on their career totals?
I was checking out a new build in Phoenix and noticed one crew laying glue-down LVP while another was doing floating click-lock in the same house. The glue-down guys said their method lasts longer in the heat, but the click-lock guys argued it's easier to replace damaged planks. Which way do you guys think holds up better in a dry climate like Arizona?
Had a chat last Tuesday with an old timer named Don at the supply house in Tacoma. He said I was losing money on callbacks from floating floors shifting and that I should try glue-down. I argued with him for like 20 minutes before he just handed me a trowel and a bucket of adhesive. Tried it on a 1,200 square foot job last week and not a single complaint from the homeowner about clicking or gaps. Has anyone else made the switch and had better luck with glue-down over floating?
Used to push floating LVP for everything in my shop in Columbus. Switched to full glue-down after redoing a house in 2022 where the floating floor was clicking and popping after 6 months. Anyone else ditch the click-lock for glue on residential jobs?
I was working a small bedroom job near South Congress and totally messed up the first two rows of laminate. Had to pull it all apart and start over with a pull bar instead of my tapping block. How do you guys handle tight spots near door frames without damaging the boards?
I was super skeptical when I grabbed a $40 vinyl cutter off Amazon last month for a small bathroom job near Austin. Been using my heavy duty shears for years, but that little thing zipped through 12 planks without a single chip or crack. Has anyone else tried one of those budget cutters and been surprised by the results?
I used to grab the expensive Wagner meter every time I walked into a job, but last week on a basement install in Cleveland I ran out of battery and had to use my buddy's cheap pin-type. Thing found moisture in three spots the Wagner missed completely because the concrete had a sealer on top that threw off the pinless reading. Now I carry both and use the cheap one for the baseline sweep before I break out the expensive one. Any other installers had issues with pinless meters on sealed floors?
So I was doing a 400 square foot basement job near St. Louis last week. Concrete slab had some low spots, maybe a quarter inch dip in the middle. I went ahead and mixed up two whole buckets of self-leveling compound. Threw it down, waited overnight. Next morning I realized I could have just used a patching compound for that depth. The leveler went everywhere, got under the door jambs, and I spent another hour cleaning up the overflow. Now I'm out $85 for the extra material and half a day of work. Anyone else learn this lesson the hard way or am I the only one who grabs the wrong product?
I used Bona Traffic HD on a job in Austin last week and skipped the full cure time because the homeowner needed the fridge back in place. The finish lifted right off where the rubber feet sat. Has anyone else had a request like this mess up a job?
I used to just use self-leveler straight over old glue residue for years, but after a $3,000 bathroom floor cracked in 6 months I switched to full mechanical scraping and primer every single time. That change came when my supplier made me watch a video showing how leveler delaminates from contaminated slabs. Has anyone else had to completely rework their prep sequence after a big failure like that?
Picked up a used pneumatic flooring nailer for $60 in Portland last month. Figured it was a steal since they go for $200 new. Got it home and the thing misfired on every third nail on the first job. Spent four hours messing with the air pressure and cleaning it out. Finally gave up and bought a new one from Home Depot for $210. So I basically wasted $60 on a paperweight. Anyone else fall for a cheap used tool that just caused headaches?
Was putting down LVP in this big open basement in Columbus and kept having to run string lines for the layout. After like the 5th time checking if my line was straight I finally caved and bought a cross line laser from Home Depot. Got the job done in half the time. Has anyone else had a tool purchase that just clicked for them?
I installed glue-down LVP in one half of a 900 square foot basement in Dayton and used floating click-lock on the other side to compare over six months. The glue-down sections stayed flat and quiet, but the floating stuff buckled in two spots near the sump pump area even with the recommended expansion gap. Has anyone else had a similar outcome with these two methods in below-grade spaces?
I was having a rough week with a bad glue job that took forever to scrape up. Then on Thursday I got a call to do a quick 200 square foot laminate job in a living room in Phoenix. The subfloor was perfectly level, the planks clicked together like butter, and I finished in 4 hours instead of the 6 I budgeted. The homeowner even handed me a cold Gatorade and said my cuts around the door frames looked cleaner than the last guy's. Has anyone else had a job that just felt too easy and made you nervous about what you might have missed?
My crew and I installed this LVP in a basement in Denver about 2 months ago, looked perfect. Last week the homeowner called saying the edges were curling and it smelled musty. Turns out we skipped the moisture test on the concrete slab because we were in a rush, and the subfloor had a reading of 8% moisture. Had to tear it all out, let the slab dry for a week, and reinstall with a proper vapor barrier. Has anyone else dealt with moisture issues on a slab that seemed dry at first?
I showed up last Thursday to a new build in Phoenix and found a gluedown LVP job waiting for me. The general contractor swore up and down the slab was flat, said he checked it himself with a 6 foot level. I pulled out my straightedge and found a 3/8 inch dip right in the middle of the living room, plus a high spot near the sliding door. He stood there watching me check and told me to just float it with extra glue. I told him flat out that's not how it works and walked off the job. He called me back an hour later saying he'd bring in a self-leveler crew. But honestly it makes me wonder how many times guys just cover up bad work. Has anyone else had a GC fight you on subfloor prep only to back down when you actually showed them the problem?
I had to sand down some high spots on a slab in Denver last week and figured my old Rigid shop vac could handle the dust. Nope. The filter clogged solid in under 20 minutes and I was blowing more dust out than I was picking up. Learned the hard way that you need a HEPA-rated vac or at least a dust separator for concrete work. Anyone else make this mistake or know a good budget vac that actually works for this?
I was reading a technical bulletin from RFCI and found out that over 60% of glue-down LVP failures happen because the subfloor moisture wasn't checked properly before install, and that really hit home after I did a job at a diner in Phoenix last spring where the tiles started curling within 3 months, has anyone else run into moisture issues with restaurants?
I was scrolling through some OSHA site last night and saw that luxury vinyl plank can release phthalates for way longer after install than I figured. Like, I always knew it had some VOC stuff going on, but one stat said levels can stay elevated for up to 14 days in a sealed room. That got me thinking about how we never crack windows after we finish a job. Do any of you guys air out rooms after installing or do you just send it and move on?
Had to tear out 600 sq ft of someone else's job last month because they pulled the planks way too tight against the walls. No expansion gap at all in some spots. The floor was already popping up at the seams and you could feel the buckle walking across the room. I know everyone wants a tight install but LVP needs room to move with temperature changes. I always leave at least 1/4 inch gap and cover it with baseboard or quarter round. Has anyone else seen failed floors from over tightening?
I pulled up their bedroom carpet and found original 1970s hardwood in good shape underneath. Who does that and why not just refinish it in the first place? Any of you run into this waste of material before?
I used to just eyeball everything on floor leveling jobs, thinking my eye was good enough after 5 years. Then a guy named Hank on a job in Phoenix pointed out how I had a 3/8 inch dip in a 12 foot span I totally missed. Now I use a 6 foot level on every single run before I start, and it's cut my callbacks way down. Anyone else get humbled by a simple tool like that?
I had a job in a basement last year where the planks started lifting at the edges. Customer was mad, I was stumped. Turned out the concrete slab had a moisture reading of 8% but I only checked it once. I stopped using a pin meter and switched to a calcium chloride test. Now I always wait 3 days for the results before I lay anything down. Anyone else have a job go bad because you rushed the moisture check?
I've been thinking about that week last June in Austin where I was running glue-down vinyl plank in this old church, and the subfloor was way more unlevel than the patch job showed. First two days were a nightmare with lippage everywhere and I had to rip up 400 square feet after the third day. Anybody else have a week that was just a total disaster because of something you didn't catch upfront? Or do you think sometimes bad luck just happens no matter how much you check.