A Compilation Of Hack Jobs

[Ernesto]

So how's that XP holding together? Rumors have that installers are pulling the clips on the end joints due to difficulty of them engaging properly. Some shops have refused to install XP. And consumers have complained of bare feet vetting pinched.
I hated it last time I installed XP.

 

[Nick]

We used acetone to remove the finish around the ball returns . Great stuff.

 

[Ken]

So how's that XP holding together? Rumors have that installers are pulling the clips on the end joints due to difficulty of them engaging properly. Some shops have refused to install XP. And consumers have complained of bare feet vetting pinched.
I hated it last time I installed XP.

There is definitely a trick to it but I never pull the plastic pcs. They are there for a reason. You cant smack the stuff together. If you are gentle with it you wont have any problems.

 

[ws6owner]

I never have to pull the plastic either. Xp always goes down well for me.

I see that finish issue on the edges of pergo all the time as well.

 

[zannej]

I'm going to throw in my own contribution from the hall of shame-- not for finished flooring, but for a botched self-leveling flooring job. The mix was too old and is no longer even sold as far as I can tell. It did not require a primer-- I read the instructions and it said to use 2 bottles of the liquid in the mix (instead of water) to help it bond better. When we poured the powder into the bucket it had clumps, so I said to my friend "We need to break these clumps up first" but he said "Nah" and started pouring the liquid in. It ended up being like slightly runny peanutbutter and I tried to spread it in place. My friend bailed because the smell of the mix got to him, but it didn't seem all that bad to me. I tried to smooth it out but then he needed me to give him a lift home because his wife was nagging the hell out of him in text messages. It hadn't been quite as bad when I left but when I got back it was too firm to manipulate. The bumps were worse-- and were actually somewhat sharp. It wasn't even level. The only good thing it did was bridge the slight height difference between the old floor and the luan I put in to replace the ruined floor.

I've since been told that I didn't need self-leveling flooring for this and that I should have used something else. Hindsight. LOL.

I tried to see if I could chisel up the stuff to fix it but it is rock solid. I tried to sand it to smooth it out but it just tore the sandpaper... I did dull some of the sharp points at least. I put an underlayment under my vinyl sheet to try to diminish the bumpy affect, but it still didn't work. I sort of thought that it wouldn't.

Oh, and the cardboard tore off in the mix..

I'm not proud of this job. LOL.

More pictures of my hack job: http://www.flooringforum.com/forum/f6/my-bathroom-floor-project-2901-new

 

[Ernesto]

looks slightly rough from my house.

 

[zannej]

It doesn't look as rough as it actually feels. My brother described the sensation as feeling like "dog shit".

I'm wondering if I really need any lath with the new mix since there is very little wood exposed that will need to be covered and it only said to use lath over the wood...

 

[havasu]

Nope, lathe would be an overkill for your purposes.

 

[zannej]

Nope, lathe would be an overkill for your purposes.

Ok. That's what I was thinking. Thanks.