Hi Frank, I am new to this forum and am not very knowledgeable about construction. I would usually be the person asking questions rather than answering them. I just wanted to give you a little nudge toward finding someone who is expert in your friend's area that can determine whether the GC did what he should have done. Something just doesn't seem to be adding up. For a problem to be so bad that your friend can't use the room, something is not right at all. No smells should be coming in the house. From your response to the previous poster, that you were hoping for some tip to feed to the contractor, it sounds like you still trust him. I hope you get more responses, but from the few you have already gotten, it seems there are three things that the contractor has done that are in question. The noise coming from the ceiling, possible application of tar or some other wrong construction of the roof, and not putting the vents in the first place. What about a building inspector from the town? Were there permits that had to be pulled for this work? If so, I would think the town inspectors would have to have the level of knowledge you need. Or if you don't want to go that route, what about calling the office of an architect locally to see if they can refer someone to you that would have the level of expertise you need. Maybe a structural engineer might be overkill, I'm not sure. It seems that might be the area to focus on, is trying to pinpoint who really knows his stuff, to come out and look at what's been done and be able to tell you exactly whether something was done wrong and what to do to fix it. More expense I'm sure, but if the GC has no idea what to do and he has no one in his network of friends and fellow contractors, inspectors, etc to go to about this, then I don't see what choice you have. And just the fact that he is stumped might suggest that he doesn't have the breadth and depth of knowledge he should have to do this work.

Find out the wear layer for the engineered hardwood. That will help determine which is the better deal and product for the $$. Annied75 is right in that pine is a soft wood. It is not as hard as oak flooring. However, with that being said, all hardwood is susceptible to wear and tear and will show it over the years. The reason I ask for the wear layer is because it will help us determine how many sandings this engineered floors can withstand. The engineered floors we provide for our customers have a wear layer the same size as solid hardwood and therefore can withstand the same amount of sandings before reaching the tongue of the hardwood. If your engineered floor has a thin wear layer, the solid pine flooring just may be the better product for the money you are going to be spending since the pine floor will be able to withstand several sanding and refinishings. However, I read that you are going to be installing this over a slab floor in Florida. Since that is the case, engineered flooring is the way to go unless the pine flooring is going to be milled in an engineered version. Ask Hardwoods for Less if they can send you some samples before making the large purchase.

Laura, I'm just seeing your post and realize it was years ago, but I'm curious as to what you decided to go with in regards to the flooring. We have a similar tongue and groove "yellowed" pine ceiling, darker stained trim throughout so NO interest in the time and money to "change" those. Our flooring is what we are looking at right now. Did you have the planks go the same direction as the ceiling? What "species" and stain did you decide on your flooring. We are looking into floating LV options.

I have used a bamboo flooring on the ceiling of an accessory building and the higher heat at that level caused the adhesives to soften and start to move out of the bamboo. Don’t know if this would happen with an engineered wood product, but I would stick to solid wood. Also, drywall and paint first to stop moisture from moving into the ceiling trusses. The Stack Effect is a powerful force and any cracks or joints in the ceiling will allow water vapor into your attic insulation and trusses.