Hardwood Flooring Reeks

July 26, 2011, by Debra Lynn Dadd

Question from thedavisfamily

Hi Debra, Thanks for creating this Q & A. It has been a lifesaver for YEARS!!

I have a question of my own this time. We recently bought a new home, tore out the carpet, and replaced it with engineered hardwoods (a week ago) that had to be glued down because part of our split-level is on a concrete slab.

This company has installed hardwoods for us on three other occasions without issue. But this time, the floors smell AWFUL. There is a very, very strong chemical odor (at first I thought it was the varnish they used on the steps to match the floors (I had NO idea they'd be doing that, as I just assumed they'd use the same wood as on the floors...came home to find otherwise), but the smell is in every room the floors were laid and glued (three bedrooms and a basement family room).

I have a 3-year-old son, so we stayed at my parents' for a week to let the floors air out with fans and open windows. It is very humid here (Maryland) and in the 90s every day right now. But it just smells so terrible.

The floor people used DriTech adhesive (he told me it was water based and a greener choice than most.I am stupid for not insisting on something completely safe).

Would the glue still smell a week in, or do you think it is the finish on the floors?

Debra's Answer

So this is a good lesson, once again, that you need to specify every material and watch what they are doing because most people don't understand about toxics at all.

My best guess is what you are smelling is the adhesive used to glue the flooring to the floor. Engineered flooring is made up of layers of wood stacked and glued under heat and pressure. The heat helps the glue outgas. I've smelled samples of engineered flooring and they just smelled like wood. If the flooring is prefinished, the finish is baked on, so mostly outgassed.

The DriTech adhesive is solvent-free and VOC-free but still made of plastics. It's "low-odor" so you may be smelling that.

I would suggest ventilating the house as much as possible and running fans in the area.  A good air purifier can also help.