I returned to my house that was unoccupied for about 2 months and found one large section of engineered hardwood flooring with appears to be raised grain or ridges accross the width of the boards. Wood has an unnatural sheen to it as a result. No apparent water damage was evident and AC was set to 77F. Any ideas?

Can you post a picture? Sounds like moisture damage. Perhaps something happened then it dried out. Did anyone have access to the home? If so, ask them if they have any info. Are you on concrete? Where is the area located? Near exterior wall/door? Near laundry room? In kitchen? Near bathroom? Just trying to find location of moisture damage. Do you have clear skylights? Are they above the affected area? Get back to us with these answers.

That is moisture from the substrate, in a specific area. May be a plumbing leak(slow)

Or just because you turned the HVAC to a different setting, it altered the vapor emissions through the flooring.


Every time I have seen this in a newly installed floor, it was always in the bathroom around a sweating toilet.

It is adjacent to laundry room and I suspect the condensation line from AC may have dripped and possibly run under the flooring outside the door. The Bruce flooring is on concrete and there is clear skylights nearly above the area. Not sure how to post PICS but can tell you it looks verticle raised lines that can be clearly felt when run your hand over the wood. These raised lines catch the light and looks almost like an oil was applied to those areas because of the sheen. There is no change in coloration of the wood however. If water damaged, is there any way to cosmetically treat the area other than replacing the pieces?

Clear skylights, OK now I'm seeing a picture... The skylights have a lot to do with what your seeing.

What happens when you set a cool glass of water out in the sunshine??

If it is a real cold glass and a real hot day, you will even see the vapors coming off.

It could be that the skylights have some condensation going on. I have seen this before. It's not real common but it does happen. Since you were away perhaps the air wasn't circulating as much and any interior humidity trapped on the skylights would turn to liquid when the skylights cooled down at night. Then you get drip, drip, drip. If this had been going on awhile, I suppose it could damage the floor. A screen and recoat should fix it.
http://www.hardwoodinstaller.com/hardwo ... screen.htm

I really do not think skylights come into play here as much as either high humidity or actual water running from condensation line under floor although the floor has not lifted and there is no cupping. Screening? Is that sanding? If not, please explain. I have Pics but do not know how to post them here.

Is this a new floor? How old was the slab it went over? The last time you were in the house before you left did you have the doors or windows open? I have seen this in some of the newer highly energy effeciant homes. if it is primarilly used for vaction, or any extended period being unoccupied you lock all that water vapor in the home. Could be from an outside source(leak) or from the house drying out all the wet trades that were in the house proir to completion. You may have "poped the grain", a screen and recoat should take care of the problem. Make sure to have the installer check for moisture I still belive it is getting some from some where.

House is 3 years old with floor over slab. I may have had the AC set too high as this is a "high efficiency" house with little outside air intrusion. Did not have the problem last year but I may have had the AC set to hold a few degrees lower than the 77F this time. What is screening?

Screening is the process of slightly abrading the surface of your floor(usually done with a buffer) to knock down the raised grain and give the exsisting finish a tooth to insure the new coat of finish bonds correctly. Much less intrusive than a total resand. People in my area do this for less than a buck a foot for oil poly.

Thanks for explanation. The raised grain however is actually slight ridges so may call for sanding. I will have it evaluated and proceed accordingly.

Tompass:
Something you said in your last post got my attention. You said something about "ridges".
Are you sure that your floor isn't delaminating? To me, ridges implies something elongated. The finish would actually start chipping off if it was just the finish with ridges.
Charlie

Elongated ridges it is with no apparent change in color. If I know how to post PICS, it would be worth a few words. I could send you a PM with PIC if you want.

Tom:
Sure. Though I'm a "touchy-feely" kinda' guy. But maybe a visual will help.
Charlie