Hardwood and Laminate Terms

Independent Floor Inspection Services such as The Weinheimer Group LLC a nationally known Certified Inspection Service provide on site testing to identify the cause of flooring problems and assist in claim remediation. These trained flooring experts are experienced in the inspection and failure analysis of hardwood, laminate, woven carpet, broadloom carpet, resilient tile, cork tile, solid vinyl, resilient sheet vinyl, vinyl composition tile and specialty flooring products. Members of NICFI National Institute of Certified Floorcovering Inspectors are qualified experts and an excellent source when looking for an inspector in your area.

There is not a single cause of floor covering problems or flooring failures. With any installed floor product the condition of concern may be due to a manufacturing error, faulty installation, site related conditions, maintenance related conditions, improper specification or a totally different cause. When the cause is not obvious, there is a dispute or a third non-bias party is needed to determine cause companies such as the Oregon based Weinheimer Group LLC are often called in to investigate a claim, provide research and make necessary test to determine the cause of a flooring problem.

A Certified Floor Covering Inspector is a flooring expert that is trained and Certified to inspect floor failures. A person Certified to inspect laminate, resilient or carpeted floors may or may not be trained or Certified to inspect hardwood floors or specialty floor covering product and the inverse is true. Nationally known experts such as Terry Weinheimer and Kevin Weinheimer are often Certified Flooring Inspectors for multiple types of floors. Commissioning parties should inquire as to an inspectors training and certification for these inspectors prepare reports that render expert opinion.

Moisture vapor is a leading cause of flooring failure. When flooring products are installed over concrete most manufactures require adequate testing to ascertain that a slabs moisture content is within an acceptable range for the product. There are a number of tests available such as Calcium Chloride – ASTM F-1869, In-situ – ASTM F-2170, pH/Alkalinity Testing – ASTM F-710 and Moisture Meter testing in which no ASTM standards apply and the measurements are made to form an opinion on the condition of a slab / subfloor and determine if a quantitative test should be conducted. To learn more click here.