Badly Made Floors

Cotswold Manor House

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It is generally considered bad form to critisize other contractors and competitors. We do not think we are infallible nor the only craftsmen who can carry out excellent work. Nonetheless, we are fed up seeing so much very poor workmanship in our trade, much of which has been dearly paid for by innocent customers.

So here are some photographs and critiques that may help you to avoid the worst of the nightmares.

For this floor, if you had paid nearly enough to buy a small house do you think you would be delighted? This disgrace was sold and fitted by a large and very well known hardwood flooring company with an international reach. Described as an 'original face' ancient oak floor it is nothing short of fraudulent. It is ancient oak, but the boards have been sawn from old beams, then ground with an angle grinder in a poor imitation of worn boards. It is so bad it desrves a page of its own. Click here to see our replacement floor.

Wide Oak Boards

Why is there a joint in the hearth surround? Why is there a board approximately 1" long? (5th board along from the left hand end of the hearth surround.) Why are the head joints so close togther in the 3rd and fourth rows from the left.?

It is difficult to fit boards neatly and accurately to rough cast stone but this is ridiculous. It is made more ridiculous by the fact that further along , out of shot, there are sections where the fitting is much closer.

Not So Wide Oak Boards

As we see here, the boards are cut in quite close to the rough cast stone - but against the dressed stone there is still a huge gap. What is that all about?

As if just to prove he could cut the floor in tight to the stone, on the opposite side of this doorway to that above here is one that is cut in tight. however, lest we think he is improving he has allowed the threshold to run beyond the corner by 3/4" !

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