Poorly installed skirting by flooring company - who's in the right?

[Louise Vernon]

We recently had our entire 1 bed flat re-floored with engineered wood. Part of the quote included the installation of skirting boards, with the caveat that this would not include decorating & finishing. However, we are appalled with the final results. We have been doing most of the reno work ourselves (including full bathroom refitting) so we are pretty handy, but we feel given the price we've paid for this particular project, this is not up to standard.

The flooring company said we need to get a decorator in to finish it off - but there are parts where the adjacent skirting boards are not level at all; areas where the skirting sticks out from the wall by about 2cm, huge gaps along the floor, and parts where the wood has been forced in so has split. They have also been installed inconsistently, with some corners being cut at angles and others running straight into each other.

I've attached a few pictures. Are we within our rights to ask someone back to tidy up the job?

 

[crazydaze]

Not much can be done about the floor gaps IF the skirts are level, however, the fitting of the skirtings and the finish/mitres etc is clearly not acceptable.

 

[opps]

Not much can be done about the floor gaps IF the skirts are level, however, the fitting of the skirtings and the finish/mitres etc is clearly not acceptable.

If the same outfit fitted the floor and skirting, surely they should scribe the skirting to follow the floor?

I do agree with the rest of your post though. The end scribe in image 1 is pants. I am a decorator. The only way of making that acceptable would require me to use a very sharp chisel to remove the mess. If I used two pack filler, that corner would take about 15 minutes to sort out.

Again, image number 1- if they used screws rather than a pin gun, they should/might have been able to reduce the gap.

I would not be happy, and as a decorator, the cost to fill the gaps to high standard will probably cost more than the labour paid to fit the skirting...

 

[Louise Vernon]

If the same outfit fitted the floor and skirting, surely they should scribe the skirting to follow the floor?

I do agree with the rest of your post though. The end scribe in image 1 is pants. I am a decorator. The only way of making that acceptable would require me to use a very sharp chisel to remove the mess. If I used two pack filler, that corner would take about 15 minutes to sort out.

Again, image number 1- if they used screws rather than a pin gun, they should/might have been able to reduce the gap.

I would not be happy, and as a decorator, the cost to fill the gaps to high standard will probably cost more than the labour paid to fit the skirting...

Yes, my husband did our bathroom skirting boards and scribed the skirting to follow the floors and that was without any proper tools, so we were quite shocked he left it like this despite having all the right equipment at his disposal.

 

[Louise Vernon]

Update, I spoke with the company today and they're sending the guy back around. They're arguing still that the under-flooring and walls are probably uneven which means there's only so much they can do. However they used levelling compound... and we spent time removing the old skirting and tidying up the walls so it was nice and easy for them to put back on.

It's just really awkward now having to let the guy back in and tell him his job isn't good enough. Yes we are meticulous but surely even someone who isn't wouldn't be satisfied with that job...

 

[opps]

Yes, my husband did our bathroom skirting boards and scribed the skirting to follow the floors and that was without any proper tools, so we were quite shocked he left it like this despite having all the right equipment at his disposal.

The tradesman only fired the brads into the top of the skirting, not the lower parts. There may be a reason for that. What kind of walls do you have?

edit- I posted this after you replied.

 

[Louise Vernon]

Brick exterior walls / cement interior walls with skim.

He trimmed the lower part of the walls before flooring installation, carved out maybe 2 inches from the bottom of the walls around the whole flat (maybe 1/4 inch deep?). Assume that was to get the flooring in? I don't know anymore!

 

[opps]

I think it was more likely that he trimmed the underside of the door frames to accept the flooring. Doing so will allow the flooring to run under the door frames- it is a plus.

Image number 1- screw and plug would have probably pulled it in. It is brick, you should be able to get a decent fitting.

You seem to have had a guy using a 15 gauge pin gun to fire brads (read: nails into the wall). I have previously used a pin gun in similar circumstances.

They used brads/pins which will hold the skirting is place as the adhesive sets, but they are unlikely to pull the timber into the wall (whereas a screw and fitting would).

I would not be happy.

 

[Louise Vernon]

Thanks for all this, really helpful! Do you have any advice for us? The guy is coming back tomorrow to re-assess. Couple of things:

- I've only paid a 75% deposit, am I within my rights to withhold payment until the job has been done up to standard?
- The line in the quote reads: "Remove existing skirting and fit new after flooring installation" (we actually removed all the old skirting ourselves to prep the walls for them)
- My worry is he's doing to say the floors are uneven so gaps are inevitable. We don't want to caulk everywhere - it's messy. What should I say if he says this?
- Am I being unreasonable to ask that all corners/joints are consistent or at least lined up?

 

[kp00110]

Would be much better if you picked a taller and nicer skirting in my opinion

 

[Louise Vernon]

It's a one bed ex-council flat, we have 30mm architraves and radiator pipes running along the top of the skirting level so our choice here was quite deliberate...

 

[opps]

I

Would be much better if you picked a taller and nicer skirting in my opinion

That really isn't helpful.

 

[kp00110]

Yes apologies. Unfortunately many tradesmen see existing condition and environment and adjust what they can get away with, rather than apply a high standard. That will do approach

 

[Louise Vernon]

The thing is, you can see from our flat that we have put a hell of a lot of love and hard work into it. It's not some worn down old property. It's beautifully looked after and a LOT of time has gone into making it look nice. He should have been able to see that.

 

[mrrusty]

You pay pros, you should expect a (close to) flawless finish. That's a lot worse than my DIY. The gaps in the floor-skirt are IMHO unacceptable. If they used levelling compound the floors should be level!. If the skirt is straight the flooring isn't!! Have a look at the spec sheets from your laminate supplier - I have a feeling that gap/hump is outside their spec, in which case the joints are stressed. They will probably be OK, but doesn't look great and it's more leverage. For example, Quicksteps flatness tolerance is 2mm/1m or 1mm in 20cm. That looks like 2-3mm over 500mm. If it's out of spec, it hasn't been installed properly.

They could have scribed the skirt. As to that internal coped joint! I think you are quite within your rights to withhold the final payment until it's corrected.

Next time, if you're handy, I'd DIY it - laminate and skirting is well within the capability of a handy person. If you're a perfectionist (like me - OH calls me the "mm police") then definitely DIY it!