The coats may not have dried and if there is a problem, instead of multiple layers, there are 1 or 2.

Please read your product installation, they often contain disclaimers.

Without knowing what product was installed, under weather and climate conditions, any internet response would be speculation or self serving.

Can you provide more information?

Water based poly will stay sticky for only so long (some allow recoating after 2 hours, others 4 hrs and others require 6-8hrs). The effect is pretty immediate. And there are only 2 coats allowed PER DAY. Regardless of the recoat time, you are only allowed 2 coats per day. So don't try to do all 3 on the same day. It won't work. It will delay the cure time by several days. It isn't worth it.

Your first coat will be too 'grabby' and turn from 'smooth, clear and colourless' to 'rough, hazy and white'. It happens pretty much with the first stroke and continues until you stop trying to coat the floor.

I would describe the texture of the finish like a 'popcorn ceiling'. There is no mistaking this type of an oopsa.

What product are you working with? Photos?

beckington , have you seen any actual problems with the finish?

We haven't moved back in yet but my husband just walked on the floor (almost 24 hours after final coat) and the floor was crackling the whole time. Is this normal? There was no crackling before the stain and finish went on.

He didn't see any specific problems, so does that mean we are safe? I will look more closely when I get there. I'm worried about long-term durability if drying time wasn't sufficient.

When you mention "crackling" are you talking about the SOUND or about the look of a crackled finish? Both are possible with a wood floor. I'm just trying to figure out which one your describing.

You also need to check to see if the HVAC system was up and running before, during and after the install of the wood AND the application of the finish.

Wood is hydroscopic which means that it expands in the presence of moisture. A freshly finished hardwood may have expanded a snick because of all the moisture evaporating off of the wood (increased Relative Humidity because of extra moisture in the air). It is important to get the A/C or the whole-home dehumidifier running while the floors cure.

Maybe flooring dude turned AC off because humidity was going too low?

You will have to ask him/her. Your move in date will be a few days away so you might as well go in and get the AC up and running as if you were already living there.

And if the noise (I'm assuming noise?) doesn't correct then you REALLY have to start asking questions: how long was the wood allowed to acclimate BEFORE it was installed? Did the installer do proper moisture testing of ALL materials at time of delivery, during acclimation and at time of install (should have a cool sheet with plenty of numbers on it...which should be handed over to homeowners once project has been completed)?

There are SOOO many reasons why a wood floor will make noise. And the most likely cause is a change in humidity levels. What was the humidity (RH) in the house BEFORE the floors were installed (the smart homeowner will keep track for a week or so before install)? What was the RH reading during install? Was AC turned off during install? Was it turned back on every night? What was the weather like during poly application? Was AC off during application? Was it turned back on at night?

Soooo many questions. Feel free to print this off and take the questions to your installer. How much payment has been withheld?

It's normal to hear crackling with a water base finish after it has been applied. The MC increases and the flooring expands. Once it is cured and the MC goes back to normal, the noise goes away.

Thanks everyone. It's good to hear the crackling noise could be normal - and it seems to be going away, so I'm less concerned about that now.

Now that we are moved back in (not to the part of the house with the new floors - still staying off that as much as possible) we can see - or rather feel - that quite a lot of the floor is rough. The grain more that the rest, but even the non-grain wood in places. And there are places where the grain isn't rough - though you can feel a slight difference between the grain and non-grain bits - so it's certainly possible for the floor to be smooth! I know water-based finishes can raise the grain, so it seems like he either didn't do enough coats or didn't sand as needed between coats? Could there be any other reason?

OK got some photos and more details.

Here are two overview shots of some of the space.

About 700 square foot in total, plus stairs. All new birch except the stairs - old prefinished birch that they refinished. Minwax Provincial stain plus Finitec Ex-Hybrid water-based finish, three coats. I know Finitec is not as good a finish as some of the top brands, but I couldn't find anyone in my area that uses those and I didn't want them experimenting on my floors! We were going with an oil-based until the schedule really needed the quick-drying water-based.

Finitex says 4-5 hours between coats for Ex-Hybrid. The flooring guy did three coats in about 6 hours. I don't see how that's possible. Obviously he didn't leave 4-5 hours, but he says the floors were dry before he recoated. How long would it take to apply finish to 700 square feet?

Before anyone asks, he is very experienced - 30 years+ - and comes well recommended. But...

The floor is very rough in places. Like I said in my previous post, I know water-based finishes can raise the grain, but he has used this product many times before and should surely be able to compensate for this? Surely leaving it rough isn't OK? The stairs are really rough, and I think there are some edges he hasn't even finished. The living room is overall more rough than the rest of the floor (other than the stairs) and you can feel the difference as you walk from one room to the other. The grain is rough in many places throughout the whole level - but not all, so I know it's possible for the grain to feel fine! We can see a few pieces of 'stuff' stuck in the floor but that's pretty minor and I'm hoping there's a way to remove it safely?

Other things I'm wondering about...

Not sure if this is clear in the photo, but in one area there are white streaks or stripes down the middle of the planks (not in between). Any idea what is causing that and how to get rid of it?

More in next post...

In the next two photos, the stain by the edges is darker than the rest of the floor. Is this considered acceptable?

On two of the stairs we can see scratches from, I assume, the sander:

I've been in touch with the company and hope to get someone out soon to assess.

If, we tell you that the job is not acceptable, would you really trust the contractors 30 + years of experience? They did not follow the mfg instruction, do you still want to trust what they have to say?

I don't really understand your comment, G & S? I'm trying to assess what is normal and reasonable and get an idea of what can be done, so that when I'm talking to the company tomorrow (not the person who did the floors) I have good info and know what 'battles' to pick. For example, the darker stain on the edges - is that considered acceptable? And if not what can be done? What might the white marks be?

Do you think a screen and recoat will fix the roughness or does it need proper sanding?

It will only fix the roughness in the finish.

But a screen and recoat will fix the roughness? It doesn't need a full sand for that?

I am not sure what can be done about the excess stain along the edges. Most of it will be covered by furniture though so maybe we can live with it.

I'm not sure what to think about the white streaks but maybe that will go away with a new coat?

As for the rushed job affecting the long-term durability, well, I guess I'm hoping a recoat will help with that???

I've used Finitech before. It's a nice product. It is a water-based product that has ALL the same requirements as all other water based products = max 2 coats per day with light abrasion before the LAST coat.

If this person REALLY DID to 3 coats in 6 hours (which is WRONG, WRONG, WRONG, WRONG) then I can guarantee your floor did NOT get the light abrasion before the last coat.

And if you have raised grain, then the light abrasion did NOT occur after the FIRST coat either. Oh dear. And it is up to FiniTech to tell you whether or not MINWAX is allowed with their finish (not the flooring refinisher). The guys at FiniTech are really nice. They are passionate about their product and they are SUPER PROUD of what they do. Go ahead and reach out to them. They will be happy to help.

And your floor is splotchy. Birch is hard to stain (kinda like maple). The edges of the floor are an excellent indicator of the level of skill this person has = limited.

A buff and coat will knock down the roughness. It will NOT correct the incorrect application time. And it will NOT speed up the cure time. Too many coats put down in a single day = EXTENDED CURE TIME. Like 7 - 10 days LONGER to cure than if the guy had simply waited to apply the last coat the next day.

I think this is a redo...but if you can live with the *possibility of adhesion failures then you might want to try the buff and coat with a caveat stating that if adhesion issues happen in the next 10 years, the company will come out and fix it = full sand/refinish.

the surface finish needs to be smoother for this specie. The grain needs to be sanded close and then re-open by water popping to minimize the blotches. Your white lines is caused from the big machine. The sand paper had clogged, worn or damaged grits in the sandpaper, which causes burnishing. Which should have been removed with the buffing process. 3 coats within 6 hours will cause a system failure.

The owner was just here. They are going to buff and recoat everything. He agreed about the roughness but didn't think the application time was an issue - same 'been doing this for 30 years' speech. We will live with the stain issue by the edges because we don't want to go back to bare wood and restain and most of it will be hidden by furniture anyhow. Not perfect but will have to do.

I'm still not thrilled with the rushed application and am concerned about the long-term durability. I will try what you suggested, SJ, thanks Again not ideal! :(