Laminate flooring unevenness issues

We bought a property not long ago and had 9.5mm laminate floors (Quick steps) installed by a builder. The laminate was installed on top of existing timber floors and I don't believe any leveling was done prior, as such the floor is very uneven. Walking through the home the floor dips, is firm in some areas and then sags elsewhere. It's very uneven and I'm quite unhappy with the result.

I've uploaded a video of probably the worst section which I'll be asking to be redone, but there are some other areas of the house which sags almost just as much.

The builder was one my father-in-law recommended and so I'd trusted his judgement. Should the builder have measured how level the floor was beforehand and informed us that it's not level enough for a laminate? While he was working I did drop in a few times but he never used any levelling tools (laser or spirit leveller).

I'm also wondering what options I might have with the floors. I am ready to accept it might just be something I'm going to have to live with for 10 or so years but wondering if there are some viable options I can consider and what things I can reasonably suggest that builder must rectify.

 

Did they use some kind of underlay? I theory there is a tolerance for unlevel surface, but it's minimal. Best to use a levelling compound or chipboard.

If it sags, it will wear faster.

 

Who's idea was it to lay laminate over an existing timber floor?
Yours...?
Was there a contract/specification for the floor work?
What was wrong with the existing floor?
You do need to spend time/money getting it all to within 5mm for it to work well.....
You may have to consider relaying it....

 

What was the issue with the existing timber floor that you decided to lay another floor on top?

why did you get a builder to lay the floor and not a flooring person?

 

Underlay was used but there were leveling issues beforehand. I didn't think too much of it. I trusted my father-in-law and the builder to advise me if something was wrong but...lesson learnt. The floor is fairly uneven and I seem to notice more of it every day, and likewise with cracks in the rendered walls outside, so I'm considering getting a structural engineer(?) to see if there are any structural issues I should be aware of. But if you think it's not needed would be keen to hear your thoughts.

 

Is laying laminate over existing timber a bad idea? Should laminate never be installed on top of timber? Honestly, we didn't think twice about it and I would've assumed the builder would've said something.

The wife didn't like the appearance of the existing floor so she wanted to get laminate installed. The builder did spend time prepping the floors but it's definitely not within 5mm...

I do hate the feel of the floors and have been considering relaying it, but it feels like there are some large leveling/structural issues that might need investigation.

 

Yeah good question...my father-in-law wanted to pay for the labour as a gift, and used a builder he knew. I assumed/trusted the builder knew what he's doing.

Would floorers have specialised skills in this area?

 

I've been considering getting someone in to check for any structural issues that might be causing general unevenness and bowing in the floors. Would a B&P be the right person to call for this or a structural engineer?

 

I’m on a FB reno forum and half the people say you can’t lay on top of floorboards and half say you can.

 

You can lay on them but it requires a skim coat or heavy sand to get them level, by which time you're better off staining/whitewashing the original timber to suit the colour preference.

 

Not much can be done now unfortunately. If the subfloor (original timber frame) is out of level, its possible to jack the framework up from underneath and install packing to footings.

Should have been looked at and raised as an issue before starting.

 

OP should have noticed any uneven floor beforehand. It wont just show up when a new floor is laid over it.
When laying over existing floor boards, need to lay masonite "underlay" and smooth out the lumps and bumps.
If really bad then a compound is needed to iron out the unevenness.

I have this problem right now and will be doing just that.