Floor board movement?

So in your opinion does that sound right or wrong?

Your Ground floor should not move at all, Not even a little bit. Trouble is there are Two ways of sorting your problem, One way will last just until the guarantee has run out & the other will last a life time.
 
If you're worried call a structural engineer or get under the floor and have a look. There should be an access somewhere on the ground floor to get underneath, it's a new build so you might find some still fizzy Irn Bru whilst you're under there.

As malc30 says it shouldn't move, at least not noticably. You could try a spirit level (iPhone has a nice digital one you can set and watch for changes after you move away.)
 
What are the different ways? More importantly which is the lifetime way? :D

Depends what kind of floor it is to start with but as halfmad says there should be an access hole somewhere where you can remove four screws & look underneath. Once you know what kind of floor you have then we can chat, I can take a Sharp intake of Breath, Shake my head a bit & then give you the Disastrous news. :D

In Truth I've silenced peoples floors with bits of scrap wood I've found about the place on the floor etc. :p
 
Hi bloodline76 your joists normally shouldnt have much give in them, given the span of the room i assume that there will be at least one sleeper wall under the centre of the joists 1 either the sleeper wall could be slightly too low. 2 there isnt a sleeper wall. 3 the joists used had an adverse camber if so this will work itself out in time. Either way get the builder out to have a look and get his opinion if you do not get any joy contact their insurer ie NHBC these are the most common ones used ,your builder should let you know. If you do not get any satisfaction repost and i will try to help
 
Hi bloodline76 your joists normally shouldnt have much give in them, given the span of the room i assume that there will be at least one sleeper wall under the centre of the joists 1 either the sleeper wall could be slightly too low. 2 there isnt a sleeper wall. 3 the joists used had an adverse camber if so this will work itself out in time. Either way get the builder out to have a look and get his opinion if you do not get any joy contact their insurer ie NHBC these are the most common ones used ,your builder should let you know. If you do not get any satisfaction repost and i will try to help

Thanks. I will try that.
 
Ok I have finally got someone in to take a look at the floor boards and they tell me it is a "floating floor". I have taken a quick look on the internet and can only see this relating to flats.

My house is a four/five detached house. Would they use something like that in a big house? Should I be contacting the NHBC as they wouldnt do anything about it as its designed that way apparently.

I also have an issue with my shower (yes great builder :rolleyes:). It has had the lower tiles replaced four times now and each time the water has seeped through to the kitchen ceiling which is below it.

Would they be ok simply replacing the tiles or would they have to rip it all out and replaster the walls and do it all from scratch? I am thinking the latter of the two.

Any advice on the two subjects would be greatly appreciated as I do not know if what they are telling me is correct.

Thanks
 
:D I know it's not funny when people have spent hundreds of thousands but Honestly new builds are built about as well as rabbit hutches these days & No I am not kidding.
Wooden frames, A few bin bags & the rest is MDF. :p:p:p

When I did Property maintenance for my mates firm down Chelmsford way we would go in a 450 grand house, The owner would say I want Exactly the same fittings, We would say No prob mate, When we went out to B&Q the same fittings were in the Bargain bin, Yes they were the Cheapest you could buy just like Everything else used to build the house.
It really is Criminal.
The above is not just One story it is Every single New build I have ever been in I just don't tell people as they are better of not knowing. :(

Noticed the same thing with a 3 million pound flat in Hampstead. Belonged to a prominent Icelandic businessman who had no end of troubles with a terrible build. The floor and doors was visibly skew and the wooden floor was like a trampoline after a while. Most new houses these days are nothing more than a slap bang job with the cheapest materials and given a £500 cosmetic job to have it appear 'expensive' and of good quality.

To the OP, yes, it should move a bit, but not visibly and by feel only.
 
Noticed the same thing with a 3 million pound flat in Hampstead. Belonged to a prominent Icelandic businessman who had no end of troubles with a terrible build. The floor and doors was visibly skew and the wooden floor was like a trampoline after a while. Most new houses these days are nothing more than a slap bang job with the cheapest materials and given a £500 cosmetic job to have it appear 'expensive' and of good quality.

To the OP, yes, it should move a bit, but not visibly and by feel only.

Do you know what a "floating floor" is? Should that be used in a room that big? He said its normal to have that.

The floor moves even when my 3 year old walks on it and she weights nothing. The best way to describe it is its probably like a gymnastic floor where there is extra give/flexibility.
 
Ok I have finally got someone in to take a look at the floor boards and they tell me it is a "floating floor". I have taken a quick look on the internet and can only see this relating to flats.

My house is a four/five detached house. Would they use something like that in a big house? Should I be contacting the NHBC as they wouldnt do anything about it as its designed that way apparently.

I also have an issue with my shower (yes great builder :rolleyes:). It has had the lower tiles replaced four times now and each time the water has seeped through to the kitchen ceiling which is below it.

Would they be ok simply replacing the tiles or would they have to rip it all out and replaster the walls and do it all from scratch? I am thinking the latter of the two.

Any advice on the two subjects would be greatly appreciated as I do not know if what they are telling me is correct.

Thanks

It's best doing it over again mate. The tiles and bonding are probably of such crap material that it would fall out anyway after time. Builders aren't interested in doing a good job anymore, get it done, grab the money and get the **** out as quick as possible before it inevitably comes down.
 
It's best doing it over again mate. The tiles and bonding are probably of such crap material that it would fall out anyway after time. Builders aren't interested in doing a good job anymore, get it done, grab the money and get the **** out as quick as possible before it inevitably comes down.

So how do I get them to do it correctly?

What about the floor?

Im off to bed now but I would greatly appreciate all your views on the subject. For both the floor and the shower.
 
So how do I get them to do it correctly?

What about the floor?

Im off to bed now but I would greatly appreciate all your views on the subject. For both the floor and the shower.

This is more serious than an internet forum in my opinion. Pay a professional surveyor to come out and assess the situation. If you can get a written opinion that the work is not up to required standards then maybe you can send that to Trading Standards and / or get legal advice as to issuing proceedings against the builder.

Alternatively make sure he fixes your tiles properly (as long as the visible paintwork and plaster are ok I wouldn't worry about the dripping) and just suck up the springy flooring.
 
This is more serious than an internet forum in my opinion. Pay a professional surveyor to come out and assess the situation. If you can get a written opinion that the work is not up to required standards then maybe you can send that to Trading Standards and / or get legal advice as to issuing proceedings against the builder.

Alternatively make sure he fixes your tiles properly (as long as the visible paintwork and plaster are ok I wouldn't worry about the dripping) and just suck up the springy flooring.

The house is still within warrenty so I feel I have the right to demand certain things but as I dont have any building experience I am not sure what it is that I can demand.

Am I in the right to demand they strip off all the tiles to inspect the damage underneath? If so what would I be looking for, would I just need to test the strength with my hand or is it softness I would be looking for?

And is the floating floor an acceptable form of ground floor structure for a big house and large room? He said that there were no supports underneath the entire middle of the floor. Im not expert but that doesnt sound right?
 
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