Due to water damage I had about 2000 square feet of engineered floor
replaced. The original floor was affixed solidly to the concrete
subfloor with a "one-step" glue down product. I was away when the
sub-contracted installer started and could not prevent the use of a foam
membrane which was glued to the concrete before the hardwood was glued
on top of the membrane. The individual planks were not glued to each
other. It proved very difficult for the experienced installer to adhere
to the concrete. He was unhappy with the product his boss had selected.
There were many visible bubbles which were patched. After the
installation, I removed and replaced a defective plank and observed that
the foam had adhered perfectly to the wood but had absolutely no
adherence to the concrete. The bottom of the foam looks as clean as
when it was fresh.
Walking on the floor results in many snaps and crackles. Not at all
what the original solid glue down floor was like.
Contractor says give it time.
Time has passed and floor still pops and crackles.
Contractor says he can drill small holes and inject epoxy to fix this.
I don't want a series of small holes but neither do I want the turmoil
of ripping this out and staring over.
Contractor has not been paid anything.
How much, if any, popping and crackling is acceptable?
Any one try the drill/injection fix?
Any other solutions come to mind?
Thanks for comments.

John Keiser wrote:
Due to water damage I had about 2000 square feet of engineered floor
replaced. The original floor was affixed solidly to the concrete
subfloor with a "one-step" glue down product. I was away when the
sub-contracted installer started and could not prevent the use of a
foam membrane which was glued to the concrete before the hardwood was
glued on top of the membrane. The individual planks were not glued
to each other. It proved very difficult for the experienced
installer to adhere to the concrete. He was unhappy with the product
his boss had selected. There were many visible bubbles which were
patched. After the installation, I removed and replaced a defective
plank and observed that the foam had adhered perfectly to the wood
but had absolutely no adherence to the concrete. The bottom of the
foam looks as clean as when it was fresh.
Walking on the floor results in many snaps and crackles. Not at all
what the original solid glue down floor was like.
Contractor says give it time.
Time has passed and floor still pops and crackles.
Contractor says he can drill small holes and inject epoxy to fix this.
I don't want a series of small holes but neither do I want the turmoil
of ripping this out and staring over.
Contractor has not been paid anything.
How much, if any, popping and crackling is acceptable?
Any one try the drill/injection fix?
Any other solutions come to mind?
Thanks for comments.

Hate to say it but injecting epoxy or any other glue ain't going to work .
Make him tear it up (yeah , I know it's not your first choice) and replace
it with the same thing you had originally . Properly installed direct glue
will not snap and pop . I think if you let him try to repair this you're
just going to be chasing your tail and will never be satisfied .
(16 yrs as a flooring installer)
--
Snag

On Monday, May 9, 2016 at 1:14:03 PM UTC-4, John Keiser wrote:
Due to water damage I had about 2000 square feet of engineered floor
replaced. The original floor was affixed solidly to the concrete
subfloor with a "one-step" glue down product. I was away when the
sub-contracted installer started and could not prevent the use of a foam
membrane which was glued to the concrete before the hardwood was glued
on top of the membrane. The individual planks were not glued to each
other. It proved very difficult for the experienced installer to adhere
to the concrete. He was unhappy with the product his boss had selected.
There were many visible bubbles which were patched. After the
installation, I removed and replaced a defective plank and observed that
the foam had adhered perfectly to the wood but had absolutely no
adherence to the concrete. The bottom of the foam looks as clean as
when it was fresh.
Walking on the floor results in many snaps and crackles. Not at all
what the original solid glue down floor was like.
Contractor says give it time.
Time has passed and floor still pops and crackles.
Contractor says he can drill small holes and inject epoxy to fix this.
I don't want a series of small holes but neither do I want the turmoil
of ripping this out and staring over.
Contractor has not been paid anything.
How much, if any, popping and crackling is acceptable?
Any one try the drill/injection fix?
Any other solutions come to mind?
Thanks for comments.

First thing is what do the install instructions from the manufacturer
say about how it's supposed to be installed? Was it installed to thos
directions? Have you contacted the manufacturer?

I'd be very skeptical that a drill/injection is the solution, something
is clearly wrong. After the above, next step might be to get in a
pro for an opinion as to what is wrong, someone that installs the
specific product that was used.

On Mon, 9 May 2016 12:21:27 -0500, "Terry Coombs"
wrote:

Hate to say it but injecting epoxy or any other glue ain't going to work .
Make him tear it up (yeah , I know it's not your first choice) and replace
it with the same thing you had originally . Properly installed direct glue
will not snap and pop . I think if you let him try to repair this you're
just going to be chasing your tail and will never be satisfied .
(16 yrs as a flooring installer)

+1 I've not seen any wood flooring that had "foam" glued down on
concrete and then wood glued to it. Foam is used in a "free-floating"
floor, where no glue is used. Was the flooring acclimated to the rooms
before install? Wonder if the installer allowed for expansion and
contraction on edges along the walls? Things sure don't sound right.
The contractor is trying to wiggle out with a Band-Aid.

Make him fix it or file a formal complaint to the state contractor's
board. That will may put a fire under him and put a skip in his step

:-)