Konecto Casa edges coming apart

stullis · December 8, 2009, 12:47 PM

It's a product failure.

Most of these guys have never seen the stuff much less worked with it.

Their installation instructions are nothing more than cut and paste mumbo jumbo that the company uses to attempt to wiggle out of any warranty claims.

BrianM · December 8, 2009, 02:05 PM

Lifsabsurd said

1. Is there something special that occurs during the first 48 hours of the glue bond so that it then can withstand 55 degrees instead of 65 degrees? If I had to guess, and being as honest as I can be, some of these planks probably made it the first two days above 65 degrees, yet they virtually all seemed to separate.

2. If one jacked up the thermostat or if one rented heaters so as to raise the temperature for several days, and if the subfloor temp got above 65 degrees, could one re-roll these planks and leave the temp up for another 48 hours. Would they then withstanad somewhat lower temps.?

3. If the tests indicate (as I think will happen) no apparent moisture problems, will the repair glue (apparently some form of crazy glue) hold these planks together even at St. Louis basement slab temps?

Sorry the post is so long. I don't think in TV sound bites.

****************************** **********
1. Yes, when the bond is established at normal temperatures the whole floor can then expand and contract without too much stress on any single joint. If you do the assembly under substandard conditions some of the joints will bond and some wont. When the floor is subjected to normal swings in temperature those poorly established bonds will fail.

2. Heating the heck out of the area to the point that the SLAB and FLOORING get warm enough to bond well is you only hope for repair. I wouldn't guarantee the job but I don't see any alternative either.

3. If you have a moisture problem that opens up a whole 'nuther can of worms. It's unlikely that moisture had time to cause this failure. Krazy Glue ain't cheap! That sounds like an expensive way to go.

Make sure you don't start tearing into this repair project until you've exhausted your options with the retailer and manufacturer. They often will stand behind their product out of good will even when the recognize some degree of consumer/installer error. They're not all a bunch of sleazeballs, idiots or creeps. It's small potatoes to them and they often respond based on larger concerns than the small details like a few degrees off standard in your basement. Then again, there's no sense replacing the flooring if it's unlikely to perform well under those conditions.

Good luck.

Floorguy · December 8, 2009, 09:42 PM

Lifsabsurd said

The online retailer, Indiana Flooring, is not responding to my phone calls or e-mails.

Hugh, strikes again....

Everyone remember Hugh?

Lifsabsurd · December 9, 2009, 04:55 AM

Whoa. For the record, if you read the whole thread, I did reach Hugh Scott by phone and he has agreed to institute a warrranty claim if I wish to do so. He was very cooperative. I get the impression that some in this group either do not like or do not trust the man. I could be wrong, but, if this is so, perhaps someone should explain to me why.

rusty baker · December 9, 2009, 05:40 AM

Halstead International Some people have had luck contacting them.

Floorguy · December 9, 2009, 06:56 AM

Lifsabsurd said

Whoa. For the record, if you read the whole thread, I did reach Hugh Scott by phone and he has agreed to institute a warrranty claim if I wish to do so. He was very cooperative. I get the impression that some in this group either do not like or do not trust the man. I could be wrong, but, if this is so, perhaps someone should explain to me why.

Your not curious to know, how we know Hugh so well?

Lifsabsurd · December 9, 2009, 07:14 AM

Floorguy said

Your not curious to know, how we know Hugh so well?

I am curious to know why some seem to dislike him. If knowing how you know Hugh so welll is part of the answer to that question, then, yes, I am.

Lifsabsurd · December 9, 2009, 07:17 AM

Is Halstead the company that makes Allure for Home Depot? Do they also make the Casa collection for Konecto? I have called Konecto, not Halstead, and been told that I needed to initiate a claim through the retailer.

rusty baker · December 9, 2009, 07:24 AM

As I understand, Halstead is the biggest distributor. Konecto, Allure and Tarkett Fibrefloor all come out of the same factory. The name Balta is associated with them. Don't know if that is the MFG. name or a place. I'm sure someone will know.

Tandy Reeves · December 9, 2009, 07:31 AM

Does airing dirty laundry about someone on this thread help correct any problems with this floor. I see no advantages and a lot of disadvantages of going down this path.

rusty baker · December 9, 2009, 07:33 AM

Tandy Reeves said

Does airing dirty laundry about someone on this thread help correct any problems with this floor. I see no advantages and a lot of disadvantages of going down this path.

Besides, personal attacks are forbidden by the rules.

TFP Admin · December 9, 2009, 07:36 AM

Lifsabsurd said

I am curious to know why some seem to dislike him. If knowing how you know Hugh so welll is part of the answer to that question, then, yes, I am.

Hugh Scott may not be able to defend himself here, so no discussion of him will be permitted on the public message board. If individuals want to talk via our Personal Messaging feature, that's up to them. We won't be gossiping about him on the forums though and any such messages will be deleted.

TFP Admin

kylenelson · December 9, 2009, 08:01 AM

And...that's why this is a classy place

Lifsabsurd · December 10, 2009, 02:55 PM

Regarding this question of whether one is to use room temperature or subfloor temperature as a guide for installation, it seems clear to me now that one should measure subfloor temperature before ever considering using Konecto. That probably means a DIYer needs to buy an infrared thermometer if there is to be an installation in colder weather.

But I find the following information from Konecto to be inconsistent on this matter to this day. First of all, I have already quoted the instructions I received in the boxes. Those instructions do NOT say that subfloor temperature should be above 65 degrees. They say that "subfloor room temperature" should be above 65 degrees. Also, when one goes to the Konecto website:

Konecto - Installation

one finds both an Installation Checklist PDF and a Plank Installation Guide PDF file (which indicates it was revised on Oct. 8, 2009).

I invite readers to find the comments about temperature in those two sources. In the Plank Installation Guide the comment is on p. 3 where one finds the clear statement:

Temperature: The room temperature and the sub floor temperature must be between 65°and 85 ° Fahrenheit. Maintain proper temperature for 48 hours before and after installation. The building’s heating and air-conditioning system should be turned on at least one week before installation. Failure to follow these guidelines may result in an installation failure (i.e. flooring may expand or contract resulting in gapping). Konecto is an interior product only, and must be installed in a temperature controlled environment, maintained between 65 and 85 degrees F. Please keep in mind a concrete floor can be up to ten degrees colder than the actual room temperature.

But in the Installation Checklist one still finds this:

What is the temperature of room?
Flooring and subfloor room temperature should be between 65° and 85 ° Fahrenheit. Maintain proper temperature for 48 hours before and after installation. The building’s heating and airconditioning system should be turned on at least one week before installation. Failure to follow these guidelines may result in an installation failure (i.e. flooring may expand or contract resulting in gapping). Konecto is an interior product only, and must be installed in a temperature controlled environment, maintained between 65 and 85 degrees F. Please keep in mind a concrete floor can be up to ten degrees colder than the actual room temperature.

One can note the difference in the statements. The Installation Checklist to this day uses the same phrase I found in the instructions that came in the boxes with the planks. (Note that the distributor told me that these planks were made in August of 2009) It adds one line (which is not on my box instructions) at the end concerning slab temps. being lower than room temps. - like this isn't common knowledge. But it still uses the same phrase, i.e., "subfloor room temperature," and NOT the phrase "subfloor temperature" when stating what should be above 65 degrees.

It rather seems to me that this company is a work in progress. They may have recently learned that it is very important that the slab temp. itself be above 65 degrees and not just the room temperature. They appear then to have updated their Plank Installation Guide to reflect this, but failed to update their checklist. And the online Plank Installation Guide was updated about 1 month before I actually placed an order for the stuff. It is very possible, although I cannot swear to it, that I read the online guides before Oct. 8th, since I spent some time considering various types of flooring for the basement.

stullis · December 10, 2009, 03:01 PM

Checking subfloor temps, while a good idea, are not part of typical installation instructions. Unless of course that is how the company can wiggle out of honoring it's warranty.