I Make Grown Men Real Mad, Too

Sometimes I make men cry. Sometimes I just make them real mad. I inspected a model home last week that had cupped floors and some buckling and squeaks near walls. Comments were flying that the crawlspace was too wet, the subfloor was too wet, and the subfloor was defective. Everybody and her brother had looked at the floor, and sharp fingers were being pointed.

As I was inspecting the floor, the installer was there unloading replacement flooring. He was going to remove and replace the flooring as soon as I left. Of course, I just had to poke some of the new boards with my moisture meter as he was piling them in the house.

In my report, I concluded that the primary culprit was flooring installed too dry. (Another case of improper acclimation.) The OSB subfloor was weaker than some alternatives, but not defective. I also indicated that the replacement floor would likely do the same if installation continued as planned, because it, too, was too dry.

Following a big meeting late last week, the flooring contractor pulled me aside and told me that I really needed to be careful what I say in a report, because it had cost him his job with this builder. My reply was, "All I did was lay out the facts. You need to learn more about acclimation."

As a professional installer, he does need to know about acclimation. At the same time, he needs to work to the wood's schedule and not the builder's schedule. He needs to be able to tell the builder that the wood or job site is not ready, and that problems will occur. Or he risks his job.

But as an inspector, I also need to be careful doing my job. I need to work with facts, not suppositions or client wishes, because what I say can have a big effect on someone's career.