diff --git a/cmd/mesh-controller/replay867_test.go b/cmd/mesh-controller/replay867_test.go
index 879713e3..5cbb47e9 100644
--- a/cmd/mesh-controller/replay867_test.go
+++ b/cmd/mesh-controller/replay867_test.go
@@ -46,6 +46,11 @@ func replay867(t *testing.T, recheck bool) {
 	if _, err := exec.LookPath("go"); err != nil {
 		t.Skip("no Go toolchain on this machine to build a judge with")
 	}
+	// The check's floor of free space (novox/hq issue 1834) reads the disk the test runs on, which is none of this
+	// replay's business: a build node under the floor failed every mesh-controller check here (issue 1834, note 12).
+	wasFree := builder.FreeBytes
+	builder.FreeBytes = func(string) (uint64, error) { return 500 << 30, nil }
+	t.Cleanup(func() { builder.FreeBytes = wasFree })
 	r := theGroupOfIssue867(t)
 	for _, c := range []struct {
 		what, repo string