Datatable columns problem- extra columns

[Eric Lee]

We are using h:dataTable (also tried x:dataTable) to render four columns 
 whose data are supplied by bean properties. This is what it is 
supposed to look like (the number column is a link button):
---------------------------------
| Number | Name | Date | Status |
---------------------------------
|  _x_   |   x  |   x  |    x   |

When we run this application, it works correctly the first time. On 
subsequent visits to the page with the dataTable, some of the first 
columns render twice and some don't render at all (and have no data in 
the column). As a result, the link button does not work anymore. It 
seems to be random as to which columns it wants to render again and 
which it doesn't want to render. Clicking the page a few times renders 
the page like this (note that columns without the x do not have data):

-------------------------------------------------
| Number | Name | Number | Name | Date | Status |
-------------------------------------------------
|        |      |   _x_  |   x  |   x  |   x    |
---------------------------------------
| Number | Number| Date | Name | Date |
---------------------------------------
|  _x_   |  _x_  |      |   x  |  x   |
---------------------------------
| Number | Status | Name | Date |
---------------------------------
|  _x_   |   x    |   x  |  x   |
The JSF tags used to render the table are below:
<h:dataTable border="0" value="#{pipeline.items}" var="items"
    binding="#{pipeline.selected}" styleClass="table"
    headerClass="tableHeader" rowClasses="rowOdd, rowEven"
columnClasses="columnLoan,columnBrwrName,columnCreateDate,columnStatus"
    cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1">
    <h:column>
        <f:facet name="header">
            <h:outputText value="Number" />
        </f:facet>
        <h:commandLink action="#{pipeline.go}" value="#{loan.no}">
            <f:param name="source" value="servicing" />
        </h:commandLink>
    </h:column>
    <h:column>
        <f:facet name="header">
            <h:outputText value="Name" />
        </f:facet>
        <h:outputText value="#{item.name}" />
    </h:column>
    <h:column>
        <f:facet name="header">
            <h:outputText value="Date" />
        </f:facet>
        <h:outputText value="#{item.date}">
            <f:convertDateTime pattern="MM/dd/yyyy"/>
        </h:outputText>
    </h:column>
    <h:column>
        <f:facet name="header">
            <h:outputText value="Status" />
        </f:facet>
        <h:outputText value="#{item.status}" />
    </h:column>
</h:dataTable>
Any help would be greatly appreciated, this project is due very soon!
Eric