Gaps In Laminate Flooring

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RJ
Posts: 13
Joined: Sun Jul 02, 2006 1:54 pm

Gaps In Laminate Flooring

Post by RJ » Sat Feb 03, 2007 3:06 pm

I have a 1996 single wide Belmont. Laminate flooring {locks in place} was installed throughout except bathrooms, master bedroom and laundry area.

Flooring was layed and paid for by vendor I bought home. From the beginning, there were gaps in new flooring. These gaps has continuely gotten wider and new gaps appear. Vendor has finally agreed to have someone else correct this problem. The new repairman says, "Laminate flooring will do this {in mobile homes} becasue of mobile home floors expanding and contracting". So he proceeds to put clear caulking in gaps. I feel this is just putting a bandaid over the problem.

I'm not buying this explaination. Am I wrong to feel I'm being fed a line of BS?

I feel this home has been; flooded or in a flood or unlevel. Do you think incorrect amount or wrong type piers would have an effect?

I don't want him to do anything else to the floor until he can tell me what the real problem is.

Am I being too critical?

trmimo
Posts: 202
Joined: Tue Sep 12, 2006 9:54 am

Re: Gaps In Laminate Flooring

Post by trmimo » Sun Feb 04, 2007 6:19 am

You are being fed a line of bull. The laminate floor simply wasn't laid correctly, based on what you described. Laminate floors contract and expand a great deal, much more than the floor of your house. That is why they are not nailed or glued down. And why there should be a moulding around the edge of the floor to hide where the laminate pulls away from the wall when it contracts. It sounds like they may have glued the laminate down or not properly locked the panels together so the laminate would move in one piece. Properly installed laminate is free floating with a thin pad between the subfloor and the laminate.
If your home had been water damaged or improperly installed you should be seeing other problems, not just with the laminate.

admin
Posts: 327
Joined: Thu May 25, 2006 6:36 pm

Re: Gaps In Laminate Flooring

Post by admin » Sun Feb 04, 2007 7:59 am

I agree with trimimo... unless there was some other problem like prior water damage or if your manufactured home is out of level. you should be able to enjoy any floor cover type used in any other homes. I live in a 1980's vintage Fleetwood and have Italian tiles on my kitchen floor. As in any other home with a plywood floor as a base they installed tile board as a base under the tile, over the plywood. That was 14 years ago and we have had no problems that would not be expected in any site built structure. The biggest problem has been replacing a tile that I cracked accidentally when I dropped my hammer on it ten years after the installation.

The problem could very well be that your home is still settling and out of level. Most structures, manufactured or site built continue to settle... it a result of the law of gravity. The majority of settlement of manufactured homes, in most parts of the country takes place in the first six months, depending on soil conditions.

If you want an easy method to determine if your home is out-of-level, and if so, how much. There is an inexpensive product on the market called the WatrLevel. It provides instant readings, can be used around obstacles, and only requires one person to operate. It is the perfect tool for determining the level of manufactured homes. You can get details from the the WatrLevel web site

If you think there has been prior water damage or that the floor system was not installed correctly you might want to hire an independent expert that you select to make an evaluation of the problem.
David Oxhandler
mailto:[email protected]

RJ
Posts: 13
Joined: Sun Jul 02, 2006 1:54 pm

Re: Gaps In Laminate Flooring

Post by RJ » Mon Feb 05, 2007 2:01 am

TRMIMO & ADMIN: For some reason, I can't view your replies. Error message is
XML Page Cannot Be Displayed The system cannot locate the object specified. Error processing resource 'http://mfdhousing.com/phorum5/DTD/xhtml1-transiti...

I don't know what to do. Maybe AOL can help me.

RJ
Posts: 13
Joined: Sun Jul 02, 2006 1:54 pm

Re: Gaps In Laminate Flooring

Post by RJ » Mon Feb 05, 2007 3:13 pm

There is another problem. The floors are wavy in; livingroom, kitchen and hall leading to master bedroom. I was told there's a new piece of flooring {not entire floor} in master bedroom.

Is this a sign?

trmimo
Posts: 202
Joined: Tue Sep 12, 2006 9:54 am

Re: Gaps In Laminate Flooring

Post by trmimo » Tue Feb 06, 2007 5:46 am

If the floors are wavy, that is a sign that the subfloor has gotten wet. It should have been replaced before laying the laminate. Also, if they used the pad with integral vapor barrier, that can cause wavy floors because it traps moisture against the particleboard subfloor.

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