ᐅ The hardwood flooring is warping in two places after refinishing.

Hello everyone,

I hope you can help me or offer some advice.

About five months ago, we bought an apartment. Around three weeks ago, the parquet flooring in the living room and kitchen started to noticeably warp in certain areas (there is underfloor heating installed).

Before the purchase, the floor was completely sanded and resealed.
The contractor now says that the damage is due to an installation error from about 15 years ago and therefore there is no warranty.

However, this doesn’t sound quite plausible to me, since both affected areas only started warping several months after his work and almost simultaneously. Could this possibly be related to the sanding and resealing?

I have uploaded two photos of the affected areas.
The warping is not visible in the images, but I included the marked spots in case they are relevant.

What would you do in my situation?
Are such areas repairable, or is it really necessary – as is often suggested – to replace the entire floor?
Would you take action against the contractor, or could he be right?

Thanks in advance for your assessment!

I don’t see any damage, but I’ll ask anyway... the spot by the sink—could some water have unnoticedly spilled onto the floor there?

And the other spot in the living area... does that lead to the balcony? What is usually placed there?

How did the parquet flooring look when you moved in? Apart from apparently needing to be sanded down?

kbt09 schrieb:

I can’t see any damage, but just asking... the spot near the sink—is it possible that water might have gotten onto the floor there unnoticed?

And the other spot in the living area... does it lead to the balcony? What is usually placed there?

What condition was the parquet floor in when you moved in? Aside from apparently needing sanding?

The bowing isn’t visible in the pictures, but it is clearly noticeable—it rises by almost one centimeter (about 0.4 inches).

I have already checked under the sink; everything is dry there.

In the living area, there is a balcony door, but we don’t use it—only the left side is used. At that spot there is just the carpet covering the floor, and a table leg and chair are standing there.

I can’t imagine that this could result from sanding and resealing, but we actually have our forum expert for questions like this, @KlaRa, whom I hereby summon.

Was the furniture arranged the same way at the previous owner’s place? In my first apartment, I worked too precisely, and the laminate flooring warped. It varied more or less depending on the season. Temporarily, placing a flowerpot on the warp helped. Eventually, I used a plunge saw to widen the gap along the wall. Check how much space there is between the laminate and the wall.

tomtom79 schrieb:

Were the furniture arranged like that with the previous owner? In my first apartment, I was too precise with the installation, and the laminate started to warp. It varied depending on the season. A flowerpot placed on the warped area helped temporarily. Eventually, I used a plunge saw to widen the gap by the wall. Check how much space there is between the laminate and the wall.

Unfortunately, I don’t know if the furniture was arranged like that. I also don’t know whether it’s floating parquet or glued parquet. I suspect it’s glued.

However, I don’t believe in coincidences. Why would the adhesive fail in two spots exactly after 15 years, shortly after the flooring was repaired by a contractor?

I am considering hiring an expert. Does anyone know approximately how much that would cost in the Munich area?