Who should pay and how do we fix it...

[jimandthom]

Do they try to match the floor and just replace the buckled part? I ask because we have an open concept kitchen/family/living room, all with the same floor. It was a very expensive floor originally and is probably 4K sq ft of flooring. It seems excessive to have the entire first floor replaced, but I’m not sure how they match it if they don’t. What a mess.

Really shouldn't need to replace the whole floor. Fully sanded and refinished maybe.

If your 4k of floor was prefinished at install, not every piece was exactly the same woodgrain or even the exact color as even a subtle change in the grain will affect how well the stain took. A good installer pulled from 1/2 dozen of so boxes as it was being installed. This created a "random uniformity" and yes I realize the contradiction but that's the best description I can give.

Your biggest issue with refinishing etc, is that sun, floor cleaners/etc have also stained/faded /altered the wood tone elsewhere in the 4k area. You may be in for a surprise in some areas that have not had as much sun or more sun than areas should you move an area rug, piece of furniture etc.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

Agree. If you are 30 years with the same company, you started over paying about 28 years ago.

I do comparison shop insurance and have not found any better rates. I'm not sure why you made your comment first without knowing or asking if we had comparison shopped insurance rates.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

30 years claimless doesn't mean much to an insurance company. Every year starts a new policy contract. You don't get "stars" for no past claims. It's a numbers game with insurance. A few claims and you get the shaft.

So having zero claims over 30 years is not better for rates than having a few claims over the same time? I'm not sure I understand your point.


Edited to add - I looked it up and this site says "Various factors go into insurance scoring models, including the number of homeowner claims you file, and the number of claims on your record can make you more of an insurance risk. The length of time a claim shows on a report varies, but averages between five and seven years." So I would think not having any claims other than the leaky piper over the previous 5 - 7 years might have mitigated any premium increases for us.

 

[tb001]

I just wanted to check back in and say that so far Home Depot has been fantastic. Adjuster came out today and said much of the floor will need to be replaced and the rest sanded down and refinished, as runningbum said. We’ll see what happens when we get the quote and go through the full process, but at this point we’re so glad we used them. (other than the leak in the first place!)

As we got a closer look, someone tightened the clamp too hard around the air gap and it broke clear off. Was a totally clean cut, which is why I thought it had just come loose.