And I thought I had problems before
Fri, 10 Dec 2010 68 Comments 
You have to laugh or you'd start crying. That is my lovely old floor after my painters started "painting". Not what I was expecting. It's a long and involved story that can be summed up simply ... they were cowboys. A supposedly reputable firm sends a cowboy crew to my home to "paint". First they didn't start in the room they said they would (the bedroom which we had stripped of furniture). They decided to start with the office and spray it (I was not informed this was how they were going to "paint"). I have seen rooms that have been professionally sprayed and they can turn out OK ... if the room is cleared of furniture, heavy drop cloths or plastic used, lots of masking and taping and covering up everything that isn't to be sprayed. This is what I found when I got home. I don't need to explain the carnage.
Painters had gone home for the day but quick as a flash I was on the phone. I remember threats and profanities were used by me and profuse apologies by the painter. "We'll fix it! I promise." I wanted to sack them then and there but they had the keys to my house and I was worried that they would take "payment" by way of computers or TVs when we weren't home. With trepidation I let them come back the next day to clean up. They were there when I got home. It was worse!
The floors that were covered in paint spots and a fine mist of white paint which they tried to wipe off turning it into a "whitewash" were now splotchy and discoloured. They had used methylated spirits, sponges and a scraper and preceded to ruin my floors even further if possible. "Don't worry we'll fix it with varnish." It was at that stage I screamed at them to get out :)
I have spent a day trying to fix the problem but I'm admitting defeat for the moment. My 150 year old cedar floors had been shellaced at some stage of their lives and the metho had removed the finish. Worse still it softened the finish and mixed it with the remains of the paint producing muddy white clouds of now reset shellac/paint all over my floor. The beautiful thick waxy finish is stripped away and well you can see the results. Wine helped last night and jam and cream donuts have made today's efforts a little more bearable but it's f*cked. Want to see what it was like before?
It was never perfect. There were some areas of slight discolouration, some scratches but there was also this lovely richness, a thick, smooth and silky finish underfoot darkened with age. Like a lovely old piece of furniture you have polished over and over. It was what I loved about these rooms. People have said sand it back, refinish it and most likely I will have to but what I will be losing is the history. The boards are cupped with age. You can see shallow trails worn into the timber over 150 years where people have walked the same path from door to door or door to bed. I love that. Now I'll have to rip its history away with a belt sander and have a "brand spanking new floor". I think I need another donut! Here's my before video. Goodbye floors. I miss you.
Reader Comments (68)
I hope you'll file a plainte against this *painting*-company ! this is so unprofessional.
Jo, These guys are not painters. There equipment & paint brands are that of an ametuer. I regulaly spray homes with tiles & polished floors but u need to know what your doing. The unit they used is no more than a glorified vacuem cleaner worth about $300. pro's use AIRLESS equipment worth over $5k with spray tips worth as much as their whole unit. A good tradesman using a quality airless with quality paint will create negligble overspray.
I've been a trade rep for 3 different companies & been a painter since 78 & it all comes down to "You only get what you pay for"
Maybe in your case you've been signed up by a salesman & subbied out to a cowboy, in which case you've probably paid fair money.
Get in contact with Brett delman or Louise Cahill at paint Place Ippy, they'll give you the right advice.
Cheers, Ken (RFT Painting)
It makes me sick that people think they can come into some one's home and treat it like this. SICK. I feel heart broken for you. But I think that you are going to have to bite the bullet and get someone in to strip it back and build it up to a similar colour as before. But then there's that whole trust thing, isn't there...trusting some one else to come in. And yes, take it to fair claims. There is no way that these people should be allowed into anyone else's house! And no way that paint should be sprayed!!! It's a horrid method which gets paint everywhere. Most paint drips can be carefully scrubbed off wood floors (I know, because I'm not the most careful painter), but spraying paint makes such a fine mist, that it behaves totally differently. We all feel for you.
omg. You need to sue those incredibly horrible people. Sue them for all they're worth. First get your keys back; then change the locks. Then sue them! That is one case where a lawsuit is completely justified. My heart goes out to you.
Hey Jo, jen Ramos here.
We are on a similar road there....however, I thought i was feeling bad, then I saw your floors and I all of a sudden feel lucky. I just posted early this morning about an incident im having with some (professional contractors) redoing the painting in my kitchen. Im fuming as we speak. I sent about 10 pics of the craziness (peeling paint) to the owner and he then came straight to my house . ....so that tactic worked.
He wrote everything down and agreed to have all repaired. So now its just a waiting game for us - AGAIN. I swear I hate dealing with contractors, something always happens and they're never on time.
I posted a couple pics today....and a reader had told me about your situation....sorry that they did that to your floors...i dont blame you for going balistic.
I need to get this right and will stand by like a hawk while they are here, even if i have to wear a GAS MASK while they're spraying!!
Good luck - xoxox
Jen Ramos
Oh. My. God.
As someone going through their own renovation - I can understand your freakout over a feature that sold you on the house!! I CANNOT believe the mess they made!!! Not that this is an excuse - but did they think the floors were going to be scrapped anyways? I have a feeling that besides not knowing what the heck they are doing, they were not properly briefed on this job. Holy crow.
I'm really sorry for your loss - those were awesome floors but honestly you are an awesome designer and I know you will turn this around!
Dear Jo
First time commenter, long time admirer. I hope you get some satisfaction dealing with Fair Trading. But, even if they do step in, there may be little they can do, I think, to force your painters to fix the job if said dodgy painters really want to dig their heels in and drag this on for years. Hopefully, however, your painters don't know that. So perhaps you should get quotes from three places for floor sanding and finishing (reputable, long-standing firms) and ask the painters for the average of that money by way of compensation, threatening that you are prepared to follow this through to the end with OFT and Small Claims Tribunal, which could tie them up in legal processes for years. However, you may also just want to cut your losses, agree not to pay for the painting, get your keys back and spend your amazing energy on something else. I feel for you. I am concerned, however, that as this firm has employed cowboys, they will continue to act like cowboys.
My.Worst.Nightmare. I'm outraged on your behalf.
Hi Jo, We visited Ipswich last night....did you hear me shout out HI JO, HI KELVIN, ha, xx Katherine
Oh my! That's terrible! I'm so sorry, it was beautiful oak!
I am so sorry about your beautiful floors being ruined....you should sue the painters asses off!
omg jo --- i am so, so sorry to read this. gosh. we had a similar snafu with our flooring (in the form of sealant, though, not paint) and wow. i feel so horrid for you!
anything we can help with from over here across the pond? :(
WOW, that is outrageous. I'm really just so sorry for you, and I do hope the company pays for your floor to be refinished to however you want it to be. God this is so seriously awful, they were such beautiful floors :(
I didn't read all the other comments, but I wonder if a citrus-based paint stripper would work and then re-stain? It would preserve the cupping and wear...I would hope. I don't know...I don't have experience with this, but I understand your desire to keep the history. Good luck...I really empathize with you...so frustrating and sad.
Thanks again everyone for your thoughts and suggestions. Things are moving slowly (as they always do in cases like this) but they are moving. I am having a furniture restorer come round to throw around some ideas and test some patches together. I'm getting caught up in the idea of tackling this job myself, at least the "stripping" back stage before restaining and finishing. I think I may be kidding myself but I want to see the job done properly and somehow doing it myself seems the only way. This crazy idea will probably change by the time Christmas is over or my knees give out whichever comes first :)
I am screaming blue murder in my head...silently cursing. Our floors were hidden under a nasty carpet, and would have been perfect after stripping the carpet except for some morons paint job!!! (Yes I know the feeling) and some million carpet staples. We had it sanded and varnished with a semi matt, and they have come up nicely, but not with that same aged feeling. They are a little too red in tone for my liking - so maybe when you get to re-doing them, do a sample first of the varnish/wax/stain...whatever you use.....
I don't know if you have already begun work on your floors, but there are two national companies that do stripping of floors to remove the finish. They do not sand.
http://www.mrdustfree.com/
http://www.mrsandless.com/
It might be worth looking into. They do put a finish on the floor normally, but it seems like they could be hired just for the finish removal.
Best wishes with your project!
Be sure to research non sanding methods of restoration before you commit to anything. You probably cannot not save the patina in the finish but may be able to save the lovely wear to the wood. Cedar is a soft wood so be very careful what methods are used to restore the surface. I am sorry I don't have actual recommendations except to say gentle cleanings with light solvents may be able to removed enough of the paint to reach a tolerable point.