Anyone else ever hear of this problem?
http://ottoblotto.blogspot.com/2009/08/allure-flooring-stinks.html
http://ottoblotto.blogspot.com/2009/08/allure-flooring-stinks.html
Allure Story
- Thread starter Floorist
- Start date
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I have heard of other inspectors getting calls on this. I have installed plenty and not noticed it, cept for that new vinyl smell. Course that should be expected.
You never know if it is just the person that is more sensitive to odors or there was a batch problem eg; mixing of ingredients properly or perhaps going over a filthy substrate and moisture issue.
You never know if it is just the person that is more sensitive to odors or there was a batch problem eg; mixing of ingredients properly or perhaps going over a filthy substrate and moisture issue.
I know at one time they sold some with a bad adhesive and fought replacement. They offered a super glue to repair but charged for it.
the blog makes for some great reading
It's really hard for me to believe some of those posts aren't fabrications by very creative authors. I read somewheres that fraternities and sororities at Yale used to compete to see who could write the best phony letters to Ann Landers and Dear Abby. Getting it published was the prize.
I'm calling BS on about a quarter to a third of those stories-----------even if the posts are authentic. You see, people are pretty F'n crazy in general and almost universally ignorant of science----and the law. So even where someone has a GREAT story to tell of coughing, eyes watering, blisters, rashes it's a real challenge to preclude hysteria and psychosomatic causes.
What makes it even harder to separate the wheat from the chaff is that we might easily assume people's environmental and product safety complaints are driven by greed and corrupt lawyers. Fact is that people were crazy, ignorant and driven by irrational fears long before there were millions to be made off the racket.
It's really hard for me to believe some of those posts aren't fabrications by very creative authors. I read somewheres that fraternities and sororities at Yale used to compete to see who could write the best phony letters to Ann Landers and Dear Abby. Getting it published was the prize.
I'm calling BS on about a quarter to a third of those stories-----------even if the posts are authentic. You see, people are pretty F'n crazy in general and almost universally ignorant of science----and the law. So even where someone has a GREAT story to tell of coughing, eyes watering, blisters, rashes it's a real challenge to preclude hysteria and psychosomatic causes.
What makes it even harder to separate the wheat from the chaff is that we might easily assume people's environmental and product safety complaints are driven by greed and corrupt lawyers. Fact is that people were crazy, ignorant and driven by irrational fears long before there were millions to be made off the racket.
I read a little more of the blog;
"Before loading the boxes in my car for the return trip, I decided to open one of the boxes to take a sniff. I leaned down (box was on floor) and took a sniff with the left side of my nose nearly coming into contact with the plank. Smelled "chemically", which just re-affirmed that I did not want to install vinyl flooring with a chemical adhesive in my home.
"My husband schlepped the boxes out to my car, while I sat down to read the paper. Not 15 minutes after taking a sniff of the Allure flooring, as I'm sitting on my couch reading, I start bleeding from my left nostril. I never get nosebleeds. I was "floored" by this. This is too much of a coincidence. I believe the Allure flooring caused by nosebleed. Plus, now that I reflect on the past week, and all the headaches and eye strain I had, which are very uncommon for me, I also blame on the Allure flooring that was sitting in our living room."
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one sniff and her nose is BLEEDING!
OK, I have to reconsider my cynicism. This has to be true. No one could make this crap up.
"Before loading the boxes in my car for the return trip, I decided to open one of the boxes to take a sniff. I leaned down (box was on floor) and took a sniff with the left side of my nose nearly coming into contact with the plank. Smelled "chemically", which just re-affirmed that I did not want to install vinyl flooring with a chemical adhesive in my home.
"My husband schlepped the boxes out to my car, while I sat down to read the paper. Not 15 minutes after taking a sniff of the Allure flooring, as I'm sitting on my couch reading, I start bleeding from my left nostril. I never get nosebleeds. I was "floored" by this. This is too much of a coincidence. I believe the Allure flooring caused by nosebleed. Plus, now that I reflect on the past week, and all the headaches and eye strain I had, which are very uncommon for me, I also blame on the Allure flooring that was sitting in our living room."
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one sniff and her nose is BLEEDING!
OK, I have to reconsider my cynicism. This has to be true. No one could make this crap up.
I don't know about this story, but they have a poor history with complaints. I remember one lady who had heard of their poor response but liked the look of the product so she videotaped her husband installing it. When she turned in a complaint, they swore it had not been rolled. She sued and produced the video of it being rolled. She won it court but it took a long time.
I used to scoff at many chemically sensitive people. But you know, being an installer who's been on the floor for over 35 years we get pretty INsensitive to chemicals. So I can't really say one way or another.
I've had carpet rolled out for weeks, then installed in a CSP's house and they still had it ripped out becuse it smelled to them. This was way after they stopped using formaldehyde.
I do know that new car smell or vinyl curtin smell isn't just because it is new!It is off gassing.
I've had carpet rolled out for weeks, then installed in a CSP's house and they still had it ripped out becuse it smelled to them. This was way after they stopped using formaldehyde.
I do know that new car smell or vinyl curtin smell isn't just because it is new!It is off gassing.
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Exactly. You can never distinguish outright scams, innocent hysteria, bad attitudes and genuine hyper-allergic persons.
I blame all this hysteria for virtually eliminating commercial installations in open businesses during normal working hours. If it's not the smell it's dust, noise or even trivial inconveniences for the customers or employees.It's virtually impossible to enter a working facility, do ANYTHING and not have one of the employees looking to take the rest of the day off with pay and possibly milk that for weeks, months---------99 weeks if they play that card.
But I've learned that there's no sense trying to separate the good from the bad from the ugly. I have some hypochondriacs in my own close circle. They don't ever consider anything to be psychosomatic and they can't see themselves objectively, year after year claiming ten zillion symptoms and twenty zillion diagnoses. It would be funny if it weren't so sad.
Polestretch
Well-Known Member
When I put new carpet in our church, one old lady left the church because she claimed she couldn't handle new carpet smell. She left the week before I did the carpet. Some people will find some reason.........................
Anyone can make a video, and fake a time date stamp. I can't smell very good so if anyone asks if I smell something, I say "cookies"??
I installed tile in a shower in a hospital room addition. The corridor was closed but the room was immediately adjacent to the main nurses desk. The GC had the new corridor closed with a Visqueen barrier and a zipper door.
One pregnant nurse could smell the thinset I was using and said it was making here ill. Yes, thinset does have a slight odor when water is added. But the thinset odor is not near what the odor of the cement board was and no one complained about that. This nurse had to go home.
Once the first nurse had allegedly fallen ill to the odor of mixed thinset another pregnant nurse stepped forward and was even worse and she too was sent home. Before I could stop work and move the thinset outside about three or four more employees got sick and asked to leave work.
I can't say one way or the other what the deal was but in all my years this is the only time anyone has complained about the odor given off by thinset.
I was then required to work nights and weekends to complete the other nine showers, each one getting further down the corridor.
Of course when they got the invoice reflecting the night-time and weekend hours the chit hit the fan and the GC would not pay the premium-time-charges.
I suppose I'm lucky I wasn't sued over the deal. Not that there was a "deal" to begin with.
Maybe the complainants had a legitimate complaint as a result of smelling the thinset, maybe they didn't - hell who knows.
In years past and with all of the potent chemicals and V.O.C. adhesives we used to use routinely I never had anyone make a big deal out of odors I was generating.
Would it be insensitive of me to say they were all cry-babies looking for some time off, with pay?
One pregnant nurse could smell the thinset I was using and said it was making here ill. Yes, thinset does have a slight odor when water is added. But the thinset odor is not near what the odor of the cement board was and no one complained about that. This nurse had to go home.
Once the first nurse had allegedly fallen ill to the odor of mixed thinset another pregnant nurse stepped forward and was even worse and she too was sent home. Before I could stop work and move the thinset outside about three or four more employees got sick and asked to leave work.
I can't say one way or the other what the deal was but in all my years this is the only time anyone has complained about the odor given off by thinset.
I was then required to work nights and weekends to complete the other nine showers, each one getting further down the corridor.
Of course when they got the invoice reflecting the night-time and weekend hours the chit hit the fan and the GC would not pay the premium-time-charges.
I suppose I'm lucky I wasn't sued over the deal. Not that there was a "deal" to begin with.
Maybe the complainants had a legitimate complaint as a result of smelling the thinset, maybe they didn't - hell who knows.
In years past and with all of the potent chemicals and V.O.C. adhesives we used to use routinely I never had anyone make a big deal out of odors I was generating.
Would it be insensitive of me to say they were all cry-babies looking for some time off, with pay?
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Thin set?
Yeah, that's exactly what I was talking about.
Facts and common sense don't matter.
One good thing about being union when this happens though is that I'm not going to get screwed out of a night shift premium. I'm MORE than happy to let another installer take over all the 2nd and 3rd shift work. Funny thing is nowadays we come in nights or weekends and they STILL give us this kind of idiocy where there are any employees left on site.
I'll pass.
FloorMaven
Well-Known Member
I don't think so; and for every one person that can there's probably one that can uncover evidence that it was done. Perjury is a felony that deters the practice.
