We have just had our hardwood floor refinished as part of a kitchen remodel. We were originally told that the refinish work was done but we told the contractor that we thought it needed another coat because you could still feel the grain and none of the floors in other rooms felt that way. It also looked very flat. After some discussion, he agreed to have the subs come back and do another coat of polyurethane. This was done while we were away. When we returned four days ago the refinishing had been done, but we immediately noticed that the floor was full of scuff marks and scratches. It looks more worn than the wood floor that is the same color that was installed in adjoining rooms five and a half years. We walk on that flooring without rugs daily. Also, We noticed that there are areas that appear to have been gouged and a soft, gummy material has been used to fill them in. Can anyone tell me what you think might be wrong with our finish? I'm wondering whether they just put wax down rather than polyurethane.Does that seem like a possibility? Also, can anyone comment on the standard for repairing gouges? I would think those boards should be replaced. Does that seem right? We are meeting with the contractor Friday morning, so would really appreciate any thoughts. Thanks!

So, if I understand correctly, you have HW, sticky stuff, carpet; and these are the options after taking off the carpet: 1. Put new carpet down 2. Scrape whatever it is off and refinish the old HW floor 3. Remove old HW floor and site install new HW What would be the impact and the cost for each option if it were asbestos/if it were not? For instance, 1. if you knew it were asbestos, would you put a carpet on top of it? Or would you want to remove the asbestos? 2. How much work would it be to remove the stuff, sand, refinish the old HW, even if it were not asbestos? If it were asbestos? 3. If it were asbestos, could the old HW floor be easily removed without disturbing the asbestos? If yes, I'd probably do that. Basically, if you don't mind living with asbestos but are worried about liability if it were asbestos and don't plan to remedy it, the way to go would be to just put new carpet on top and never remove it --- unless option 3 would work. I personally would do a test and then figure out what to do. In terms of logistics, the guys in our house did the whole 500 sqft in two days. I was amazed how little dust and smell there was. Here is a link that might be useful: asbestos test kit with lab fee

Denatured alcohol is also known as "rubbing alcohol". You can find it in any drug store for about $2/litre (quart...depending on where you live). Polyurethane doesn't mind alcohol. The "use it sparingly" is more for the homeowner and not the floor. The fumes of alcohol can cause people to feel dizzy. So a squirt onto a clean cloth and then a quick rub of the area and you are done. As for "cleaning" a hardwood floor, that's pretty easy. Sweep/vacuum 1-3 times weekly. A barely-damp (water only) microfibre mop every week. And a "cleaning" with a pH neutral hardwood floor cleaner (watch out for POLISHES that state "Revives the look of you Floors!"....they are hell on floors) about 1-2 PER MONTH. That's it. That's all. Nothing exciting. Nothing harsh. Nothing difficult. And remember: with hardwood you can OVER CLEAN! So stick to the basics. You'll be fine.

The areas that are darker were because they didn’t sand those areas during the redo, they only buffed them for the final coat of poly, from what I understand. We sent photos to the PM (before they stained!) of them leaving those areas instead of sanding the entire floor and he assured us it would blend “seamlessly”. I really hate this because the crew did work hard, but the crew leader is the one that told them to not sand everything. He will not be getting paid now which will probably mean the workers won’t get paid which truly sucks IMO. The PM finally responded saying they’ll be there Monday morning to fix it. We replied saying it needs to be a different crew, the best they have and to have his manager contact us as they began the floor refinishing a month ago and now we are having to pay an extra month of mortgage and utilities in our current home. Regarding the current state of the floors, it appears they need a complete sand and finish correct? I’m not sure I trust anyone they send out to only fix those areas. They also sanded so deep in a hallway it’s about an 1/8” difference from where they had left the previous finish. (3rd photo) Thank you all for your advice.