Hire national wood flooring inspector, keepfighting.

Stayaway from Shaw company good luck

My floor is bad too, can we not all get together and call our attorney general with all the complaints? ??

Oh my god I am just reading this. I was about to pick one out of two hardwood flooring colors from their Royal Collection for my new home. I am so shocked to read these reviews. The builder who is building our home also offers other brands like Anderson Flooring and Mohawk. I think now I have no choice but to go with these other brands instead of Shaw

My neighbor has Mohawk. It looks great and appears to be solid. I have Shaw and I would not use it again, ever. I am cureently looking into replacing with Bruce engineered prefinished flooring from Lowe’s. It has a full 1/8th inch top layer. Whereas Shaw has a microscopic layer. Pricing is about same.

I can not believe all the people that have been treated so unfairly by such a inferior product,as iam also by Shaw flooring ,the installation was bad,the product is horrible,in the process of getting in contact with our Attorney General,I e-mail Channel 3news,I have not gotten a response as of today::May 5th. I stop the work cause things were not good,filed a complaint with the ROC Board,got the report last week,denied::::cause I stopped the work,now how a##anine is that,can we all get together some how and file a suit against Shaw::my e-mail is janicedmaisey@gmail.com also,there’s a bait and switch,they Matt the store owner won’t let me see the sample board that I chose from,he never has it in the store since February 8th how convenient is that,like that one person on here said ,the picture on the board is one thing and you get something else.we had Bruce Floors down all over 15 yrs we had a flood,should have gone back,never buy Shawl,nothing,hope to hear from you.Janice

We just moved into our brand new home May 1st that has Shaw Hickory level 4 Leesburg 5” 5003 peppercorn and from the very first day we had issues. These have to be the worst engineered flooring I’ve experience. Splintering that went into my feet and my children’s feet. (we do not wear shoes in our home). When I got down on the floors to inspect further, I noticed more splintering in areas as well as bubbling in the middle of planks and chipping from the ends. A lot of planks have spots where the stain did not take and look white. I immediately contacted our builder AshtonWoods who came out to look at our floors immediately and is currently ordering replacement planks. I understand that with wood and engineered woods their will be some planks that splinter but why is SHAW boxing them and shipping them out? There is a huge QC issue as well as a poorly made product By SHAW. I was not here on installation of the floors but whoever installed them should have had the integrity to put those planks aside. We have lived in many homes with many different types of wood flooring and this is by far the worst experience! I have been in the home for 12 days. What will it look like in one year? I am thankful that our builder is changing out the planks however, this is just a temporary fix to what i believe is an inferior product that should not be on the market. I am more than disappointed in the quality of these floors and will see about who to contact further.

We just purchased a home in November that has Shaw engineered flooring. It already has scratches despite very deliberate care. Is there somewhere that I can purchase a filler or stain?

Update - two years later. We had splintering at the beginning along with some really bad planks that were pictured above, they were replaced or repaired. I was initially furious and scared to death that I'd have to replace my entire floor.

Because I had read the reviews I made sure I got it all in writing that they would stand behind the lifetime warranty and that included the business that installed the floors. I really think a big part of installing these wood floors is the company you purchase the floors from along with the Shaw company. They both said they would stand behind these floor and so far they have. I have had them out probably three times to fix and or repair my floors and even replace a plank later on that was lifting and add a few nails to a squeaky plank. I did also purchase a $400.00 dollar humidifier they told me I didn't need, yet that was the first thing they asked when they came out to inspect them. They were thrilled I had one.

I try to be reasonable and wait until I see a few problems (as to not be a pain in the but). It is less often now and they are holding up quite well. I did have to buy a wax pen which I was angry about in the beginning, as I felt a little like the floor repair guy, my sister was the one who mentioned it. She purchased with a different company and had similar issues. I also use the marker when I an I see a small splinter and then the was pen. So far so good. Home deport has plenty of options. I've not had issues with scratching, but I'm sure they have a solution.

I really love these floors and hope they hold up. I will continue to call my floor guy and the Shaw company with big issues.

I will also mention I am a particular person and feel overall happy at this time.

Get your own ITS Certified Inspector. Shaw tried to assign the inspector, but we hired our own so we knew they were impartial.

Update: an independent inspector has come out to inspect the floors and took pictures, tested for moisture and found numerous planks(more than I had originally counted) with issues. These are just a few pictures of what I’m dealing with. Top layer continues to split apart. We continue to get splinters in our feet. One that I can’t get out of my foot currently. The report won’t be ready for about two more week. Waiting for this to be resolved.

I read this threa about 6 months ago because we we’re purchasing a home that had Shaw Leesburg SW539 (builder name for Epic) installed. These are installed in all of the homes around by the builder and I’ve visited a lot of them.

I hate to hear of all of the bad reports, but this specific model has been very good. In a 3200 square foot house with nothing but this flooring we’ve replaced only 3 planks because of delamination that happened right off the bat. I‘ve visited several neighbors homes that are a few years old and the flooring looks great.

Also, and this may not be important to some, but I REALLY appreciate that Shaw has their wood Greenguard certified. That means you aren’t huffing all of the nasty chemicals that other manufactures use in the glues to make the MDF or HDF. For anyone rolling their eyes, people did the same about flame retardants in mattresses a few years ago and those were later proven to be carcinogenic, so...

Anyway, totally happy with this particular model of Shaw flooring so far.

Also, You should have two touch up solutions - The Minwax stain pen in the closest color (or two colors if you have a high variance stain) and then some matching wood putty for the occasional big ding from dropping something heavy.

I agree with HU-783266057 the puddy pen works really well on the few slivers to not snag with socks on and make it worse. I originally had to do that in the main walk areas on a few planks and was quite annoyed, when they were first installed, but it seems to have stopped.

Fingers crossed. I also have only had three or four planks replaced.

I’m talking about brand new floors, straight out of the box. And not just 3 planks, we’re talking over 30 Planks! I could understand after years of use but puttying new floors is unacceptable! the Consumer should not have to putty floors or marker them up that claim to have a 50 year warranty on them! The inspector found over 30 planks with problems and they continue to delaminate. These problems are not from anyone dropping anything. They are splitting on their own for some reason and my kids and I have splinters in our feet that bleed and some I couldn’t get out of their feet!! We have only been here since May 1st on these floors and no family should have to go through this in a brand new home!

Carolyn, I in no way was minimizing you or anyone else's situation with these floors. Believe me if I had had several planks like you and had the splinting not stopped - I would be asking for them to be replaced. I was quite angry when I initially was told to buy a marker and putty ."as they are new Right". But it seemed to in the end stop happening and they look great. I'm not sure if they were splinters initially from the banging them into place. Now it is not happening but once every three months, and they are tiny splinters. I'm not sure if that is even normal, but the thought of tearing them all out was another nightmare to deal with.

I would hope Shaw would stand behind the warranty they sell you on. Good luck everyone.

I didn’t realize how big of a decision this would be. I had the Extreme Nature Inspirations Hickory in mind in Majestic until I started reading these reviews. I am curious to know if anyone used this line.

@Rosalie Carter - I live in Houston where we have a little more than our fair share of heat and humidity but after weeks of deliberation at various reputable retailers/installers, I have decided on Shaw Epic Plus - Grant Grove 2000 Pacific Crest. i absolutely love the look - no other sample has come close. However, after reading the horrible reviews, I am reluctant to proceed. I am replacing 1600 sq ft on the fir level of my home which includes my kitchen.

Overall, how would you rate your experienc/floors? This is a big investment and the reviews are startling. It appears that many of the commentators are homes with the same installer which leads me to believe some of their problems are due to botched installs. However, peeling and warping sound like a defect. What are your thought? I’m preparing to install over the next two weeks.

Everyone - Other than Shaw Epic Plus, which product would recommend as an alternative? Durablity is equally as important beauty.

We installed Shaw solid hardwood - Townsend Wheat Field. Looks great and has been holding up well so far (been in house for 2 years now)

Cynthia Jefferson- just want you to know that we installed the Shaw Epic Plus Sequoia in the 6 3/8" planks (Canyon color) 3 years ago and they still look like new. The finish is extremely tough and has not dented even with cans from the pantry falling on it. We like the floors so much that last month we took the carpet out of our bedrooms and installed the same Shaw floor in those. (My husband installed these floors himself.). There were some planks that were split out of the box which we cut and used for short pieces. Since we installed ourselves, we could control which pieces to use and which to set aside.

Cynthia Jefferson, I love my floors. I have them on the main level about 1500 sq. ft. also in my kitchen. Originally they did replace 3 planks and I feel the installers were lazy and should have pulled those out. Between the planks there were a few slivers when first installed and I was petrified. That lasted about a month or two and then it just stopped. I did use a putty pen at that time as well. I've not touched them other then to wash them and they are extremely durable.

I had a painter knock over a short latter and nothing. I've been living on them just like my old tile -no issues. I live in Utah where it is dry and did purchase a humidifier so you may want to find out the temperature in your home. I do think that can play a part with issues.

I would definitely buy them again. I will say the installer plays a big part and a reputable company that will warranty the install along with wood.

Good luck, any other questions happy to answer.

I'll add some not so great pics.

Still looking for furniture, but just an idea.

I'll add better photos when the lights out, ha ha.

Thank you so much for the feedback, @Rosalie Carter!! I’m glad you are pleased with your investment. Your floors are gorgeous and I love your kitchen! I can not tell you how relieved I am to hear positive results from an actual customer. My installer along with other local stores insist its reliable and swears that Shaw Epic is top notch, but they’re also sales😅. I meet with my guy this Friday to sign paperwork and schedule the start date. I’m so excited to remove carpet. I’ve always preferred hardwood floors . I’ve lived in my home for 16 years and this is my first major home improvement project. I will send pics once it’s installed🥰

We are building a home. They just installed our shaw flooring, im disgusted

I was told by the builder “ this is what you chose, and the back of the sample states that there is high color variances!!!!”

this is 3 different colors!!!!!!!!!!!! So upset

That does look strange. Could you clean the dusty foot, prints just to able to see the floor better? But, it does still show the wild color variation. What style color did you choose. Name of floor.
We looked over our boxes of flooring, and then somewhat watched over the installation job to avoid this kind of bad board selection by installers.

Yea that doesn’t look good. color variation to me is the shade of the wood varying a bit. Some darker, some a bit lighter. Yours isnt just shade, the actual tone of the stain is different as well the shade.

here’s the high Color variation that I have, they should all be in Harmony with one another, like these pics. https://shawbuilderflooringsf.com/flooring/hardwood/details/leesburg-2-5in-hw606/cinnamon

Yes, I did make sure the color was similar to my choice, there was a somewhat color variance. Yours does look like they used two different colors.

Although, my floors vary in color and I love them.

Rosalie - Beautiful! What style and color of floor is this? We are looking at the Shaw Grant Grove Canyon right now and this looks similar.

Hello there, yes it is the Grant Grove. When we originally looked at it it was called Sequoia. When it arrived it said Grant grove. It was a little thinner and they said they'd improved it. I was a little skeptical and ended up sending it back and getting the Sequoia. The coloring and all is the same though. I saw it in model home and just loved it. It's held up great!

I have samples at my house and some say Grant Grove and some say Sequoia Hickory. They all look the same, but that is interesting to hear. Is yours the Canyon color or Pacific Crest? I'm trying to decide between the two! I figured it's probably one of those. Thanks for getting back to me!

@joel2736 did you get any resolution?

We built with Pulte and closed in June 2020. not even one day in and we have damage. It gets worse and worse. They sent an inspector who told us we weren’t doing anything wrong, to keep caring for it like we were. It took 3 months to get a copy of the report, and all we did get was a snippet saying 13-15 planks should have been culled prior to installing and one plank had a poor repair at the factory. They have not yet sent the full report, which I have asked for 3 times.

I have photos of the install and dates - so I know the weather, and that the HVAC wasn’t on. The edges of our planks are chipping, we have dents and dings. We painted, and they moved the fridge - it dented the floor. Seriously? I can’t even move my fridge out if I were moving because I’d damage the flooring?

They tried to mansplain what the snippet of the report meant, and that they would help us out by replacing a couple of planks...which they already did the week we moved in.

Our challenge is that we lived in another state during the build process. We have built 5 houses, and have had both site-finished and engineered floors...neither of which behaved as these do!

I have some sort of Shaw engineered wood floors in my tract home that was built a year ago. I forget the product line though. The floor I have is not all that great. Plenty of edges where the finish has just peeled off. No kids in the house, just me. If the product can’t live up to just me, I’d hate to see what happens with a family. If this was a long term house for me, I probably would have replaced these floors already.

@amore427 No resolution but at least they haven't gotten too much worse.

I have been considering putting in Shaw Natchez (also called Brushed Suede) in a new construction home through a very reputable and large builder I am working with. I have been doing plenty research on the product as well as following this and other threads with people that have had issues with their flooring and others that love it...just like on this thread. What I have just found out and is maybe why you are seeing some love it and some having issues is that it appears that the Shaw product builders use is "builders grade". I have found on-line that Shaw Brushed Suede is offered in "premium grade" and then also 'builders grade"...exact same product 2 grades...the second being half the price. Sure enough when I look at the label on the back of the builders sample it says " Builder Flooring"right on the Shaw label. When I look at the "builders grade" of the product this is what is noted...Note: Shaw Builder grade products are considered factory second".

Maybe this explains the difference in peoples experience....builders are using one grade while people who installed on their own are using the regular or "premium" grade of the same exact product.

How can you tell if you are getting builder grade vs premium grade? Is it by product type or do they make both in both grades? We are looking at SW597 Landmark Hickory Scraped in the Canyonlands color. Have a sample from ProSource but it doesn't indicate the grade. The stated price on the Shaw website is $11.19/sf but the sample has a price of $6.08/sf on it.

@Cynthia Jefferson I'm in Houston and in the process of researching these Shaw Epic Plus floors. Did you wind up with these floors? If so, how did they turn out and what vendor did you use? I'm looking at a bid from Floors for Living.

Hello, I have no complaints whatsoever! My floors are Shaw Epic Plus and the color compliments my home decor very well, not too dark and not too light. They’ve gotten many compliments from friends and many. I have a puppy and the floors have held up exceptionally well with his tiny paws, zero scratches. Ironically, Floors For Living installed my floors too!!! They didn’t an EXCELLENT job from beginning to end! I received a competitive quote from them a couple others were comparable but I appreciated Jarrett’s transparency.

@Cynthia Jefferson Good to know and thanks for your detailed respI sent!! I was very impressed with them as well as well as their lifetime warranty on their work and the floors. this would mean I wouldn’t have to deal with any warranty headaches. They are definitely a serious contender. I had been looking at the Cali Fossilized Bamboo floors as well.

We purchased the hickory engineered flooring and I would steer clear of Shaw engineered wood floors. We are in the battle of our lives to get it replaced by Shaw. We started having issues 6 months after moving in in December 2019. Fast forward to today and still nothing has been done. Shaw claims one plank, out of one box out of a pallet of this flooring has a manufacturing defect. Please see my pictures.

Other than one board which looks like a clear manufacturers defect, it looks to me like you have a lot of dirt and dust buildup. Could this be construction dust? It also appears the installation was not great. Some boards are too close together