Eric, that's great that your tiler was willing to take the time and care to rearrange tiles when necessary. I think my tiler did a great job of putting together the jigsaw puzzle that was my bathroom (a couple of outside corners, transitions from half-height to full-height, etc.), but he definitely didn't have the patience to pop off and replace individual tiles. As a result, I have a few places where the border isn't as "mixed" as I would like. I agree with you about porcelain vs. travertine. My field tile is porcelain, and I love not having to worry about it. I liked this travertine random brick though, and I decided I wasn't going to fret about care of a small amount of border tile. I like the way it feels when I run my fingers across it, too - very silky. ;-) If I had seen yours, though, I probably would have gone for it. Your bathroom's going to be beautiful!

annz - I want to do the reverse but I have to find someone with a miter saw because my table saw max is 45 degrees. If I can do a 50 to 60 degree miter I can snuggle the riser right up to the far side of the corner radius (trial and error). 45 or less leaves an unpleasing gap between the wall, corner, baseboard. It's wonky!. brickeeye - That approach leaves the floor at the curved corner of the wall bare - a very small triangle with no tile (too small for a piece of tile and too big to leave bare). I need to either extend the riser past the corner (miter the riser the opposite way of the picture) or do it this way and bring the baseboard around the corner. Or see if 1/4 inch plywood could be used instead of the 3/4 inch pine riser, which pretty much will allow me to replace the original piece of baseboard and quarter round that went around that corner. Thinking, thinking, thinking. Time away for a week may help!

Can you take another photo from a different angle? How many planks have this issue? Is it ONLY on the stairs? This looks like it might have something to do with a chemical reaction. Like something is/was eating at the surface. If this is ONLY on the stairs, then the question about the adhesive used and the CLEANER used to wipe of the adhesive. The single (odd angle) photo you show has a "drip" pattern...which is an indication of some sort of corrosive liquid either dripping or been applied to the surface. On a stair installation, the most common liquid is adhesive. The second most common is the "cleaner" used to remove the extra adhesive that hits the surface of the plank. Keep going with your concern. Keep contacting the retailer. The manufacturer USFloors should be supporting the retailer. Which means the retailer has to get in touch with USFloors. Please post more photos and tell us how many planks are affected and are they only on the stairs.

Ouch...too many gaps to count. The installer needed to select a different plank for those areas that are gapping. Some boards fit nicely with one another and others don't. Just like building something from Ikea, if the first screw you tried doesn't really work, pick up another one. It will likely work (99% of the time it works beautifully). Factory finished hardwood is the same. The installer should have realized the two pieces weren't really working together and should have grabbed another plank. It would have saved everyone a lot of concerns. I'm sorry you are going through this. Home Depot is notorious for lower quality work. It is sad but it is the truth. In all honesty, this floor is an NWFA Certified Flooring Inspection waiting to happen. If you feel you need an inspection done (because HD isn't standing behind their installation) then you are welcome to visit the website listed below: www.nwfa.org And no...I wouldn't want putty used on a factory finished floor. It is acceptable if this was a site-finished hardwood (where the sand and finish everything in the space) because the poly will hold the putty in place. But a factory finished hardwood is another animal.