Yes very common. The sanding takes off 1/64 or so so any paint etc comes off with that process. You are welcome to pay to have them covered by ramboard but it’s not needed. Hopefully you have climate control so the I side conditions now reflect what the conditions will be once you move in

Thank you very much for your response. :)

" Now, I went the house and can see the oak wood has been delivered. It’s scheduled to be installed next week. "

How does it acclimate all stacked like that? Have they checked the moisture level in the wood? Subfloor? HVAC running for a month or so?

Space out the bundles to allow more air flow around it.

Aw. Thanks for jumping in. The AC is not installed yet, nor any heating. All the rooms have stacks like that, and I was wondering if they are supposed to be. I read that they should be crossed/stacked so the air can get at them?

You can cross stack or put slats inbetween the bundles. Air needs to flow on all six sides for faster acclimating.

Print this out for your builder and installer. Mandatory compliance with documentation.

Atelier-Series-Installation-Guidelines.pdf (duchateau.com)

Moisture and Humidity The NWFA and The Hardwood Plywood and Veneer Association (hpva.org) state that wood flooring performs best and will have normal movement when the interior site environment is controlled to stay within a relative humidity range of 30% - 50% and a temperature range between 60 ºF -80 ºF. Warranty coverage requires that these jobsite conditions MUST be maintained for 3 days before, during and after installation and for the life of the floor. The use of humidification or dehumidification in some areas may be required. Failure to comply with these requirements may result in structural damage and void related warranties and may cause gaps, splits, splintering, cupping and checking to become visible. Flooring formats such as wood-based composites- engineered construction while offering advantages in stability and installation options, will shrink or swell outside of these conditions and are not considered a defect.

Jobsite Conditions Wood flooring should be one of the last jobs completed on a construction project. Your professional installer should evaluate the site and ascertain it is within the requirements before the wood flooring is delivered. Do not deliver or install wood flooring until the appropriate humidity and temperature conditions have been met and maintained for 3 days. It is the sole and joint responsibility of the installer and owner to conduct a quality inspection of all the flooring prior to installation. All pieces of flooring should be examined for quality of manufacture, finish, grade, and character/ color acceptance. If the product quality is deemed unacceptable, it should not be installed. Do not deliver or install wood flooring until all concrete, masonry, plastering, drywallespecially any sanding of drywall, texturing and painting primer coats are completed. In other words, after ALL wet work has been completed. Basements and crawlspaces must be dry. Crawlspaces must have no standing water and have a vapor barrier installed and have sufficient ventilation in accordance with local building codes or adhere to NWFA guidelines. Exterior surface drainage should be in place directing water away from the house. Sub Floor Preparation • All subfloors must be dry, structurally sound, clean and free from debris and contaminants such as paint, old adhesives, exposed staples and nails. • Subfloors must be flat to within 1/8” in 6’ or 3/16” in 10’. Eliminate or correct dips or crowns not meeting this measurement. • Knowing the subfloor moisture content is critical to the performance of wood flooring. Duchateau Hardwood Floors accept no responsibility nor does it ever warrant issues that arise from too little or excessive moisture, regardless of the source. • Our hardwood flooring products should only be installed over a wood subfloor when the difference between sub floor moisture and moisture content of the flooring is 4% or less. For cementitious subfloors, the moisture should not exceed 3lbs per ASTM F1869 Calcium Chloride test or 75% rh per ASTM F2170 or a suitable moisture mitigating system be used. • Document the average moisture content of both the flooring- 40 readings per 1,000 sf and the subfloor- 3 per 1,000 sf and 1 every additional 1,000 sf for concrete and 20 per 1000 sf for wood subfloor. Installer should use the included form to document pre-installation moisture content readings. • If plywood is used as a sub floor, the moisture content difference should not be more than 4% between engineered wood floor and plywood sub floor. Plywood for sub floor is suggested to be ¾” x 48” x 48” with an 1/8” gap between panels for expansion. • If new flooring or subfloor products are directly adhered to existing flooring such as but not limited to Stone, Ceramic, Cork or Linoleum and they are adversely impacted for any reason whatsoever, there will be no consideration under warranty for any additional costs utilizing this installation method.

The HVAC being operable and being used is a requirement for all trim, floors, and cabinets. The home has to pull all of that moisture out of it for at least a couple of weeks first. https://nwfa.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/JobSite-Checklist2.pdf

Thank you everyone. I tried to have a word with the contractor first thing morning, but he sent me an email saying he’s sure that whatever I want can wait. I went over to the house and some guys were already installing the oak. 😮‍💨 It looks like someone slightly separated the bundles yesterday, so that should help. It’s 72% humidity right now, and has been rainy and humid all weekend. I hope my 1 year warranty with this guy holds up, as I would really prefer to not be seeing him again.

You have a disaster on your hands. You will have large gaps in the winter, as the wood is swollen and the widest it will ever be at the moment. You HAVE to have climate control modulating the interior humidity, and you MUST take moisture readings of both the subfloor and the wood. You have ZERO WARRANTY for any of this. ZERO WARRANTY. That wood might as well be firewood that you have lit on fire. You will just have to redo it. The install goes against all industry standards. https://nwfa.org/technical-guidelines/

Go back to the house now and tell the workers to leave. You're not going to get customer service from this guy. He blew you off already this morning. Take the minor hit now and get it done correctly only once.

Samuel needs to stop going lightly and stand up for his cash!