Everyday we deal with a multitude of problems, each of them different; you’d be surprised. This issue is important because so many installation failures are caused by substrate problems. However, the responsibility of the flooring dealer or contractor is not to repair the substrate but to prep it for installation. Repairing requires work that is not part of the installation and most often is supposed to be done by someone other than floorcovering people. That said I’ll share with you part of my communication with this flooring dealer.
“I would love to see an article that defines floor prep to the general contractors of the world. When I say define, I mean the difference in prepare vs. repair.
I view floor preparation exactly as it reads: preparing the substrate to receive floor covering. This includes patching minor holes and saw cuts, sanding, sweeping, and cleaning the substrate to insure proper bonding of the material being installed. I view floor repair exactly as it reads: grinding, filling, topping, leveling etc. to qualify the substrate for floor covering. For whatever reason we (flooring dealers, contractors and installers) are expected to repair and prepare and never blink an eye. I certainly agree that there is a certain amount of prep that goes with the install as we will never walk into an installation and immediately start installing the product. However, if the substrate contractor does not properly do his job, how does it become the floor covering installer’s responsibility to prepare/repair?”
Floor prep means preparing the floor to receive flooring material. Depending on the material the amount of floor prep can vary. Vinyl sheet goods will require a more finished substrate that carpet installed over a cushion. Vinyl will telegraph every little irregularity in the floor. Carpet over cushion will hide a multitude of sins beneath it. So, depending on the flooring material, the installation site, the condition of the substrate, the amount of floor prep will be dictated. But, as our flooring dealer states, where do you draw the line? Flooring dealers, contractors and installers are not substrate finish men. They aren’t supposed to, nor should they be required to without compensation, put the substrate in a condition to receive the flooring material. Floor prep means what our dealer said patching holes, doing some minor leveling, and general cleaning up to allow the flooring material to be installed. When the substrate requires major work involving overall leveling, grinding, etc., that’s where the game changes.
It should be discussed up front what’s to be done to the substrate. If you’re replacing carpet for carpet in a home, then you’ll have no concerns, but if you’re working on a commercial job or even a main street commercial job, you have to establish the ground rules for what’s to be done. This is especially important if installation crews are working at night or on weekends, when they have to make a decision and have no one to turn to.
Floor prep then would be simple and basic requirements employed daily, as a routine and a standard of care, to facilitate the installation of whatever flooring material is to be installed. Floor repair means a concerted and specific effort to repair a substrate that is not in a condition for installation without making major modifications. Let’s say it this way; prep is painting the walls with very little done to them other than filling nail holes and some dents – things the painter does. Repairing the walls would require patching large holes or replacing sections of dry wall; this is work for the drywall contractor. If the painter has to do it, he gets paid for the extra work. It’s no different for the flooring guys.
Author: Lewis G. Migliore
LGM and Associates – The Floorcovering Experts