Hardwood Flooring Blog Archives | Page 2 of 5

5 Bedroom Flooring Ideas that Aren’t Carpet

November 21, 2018 by My Affordable Flooring

The carpet boom of the 1950s and 60s still lingers in many bedrooms around America. Soft underfoot and warmer than wood or tile, stepping on a fluffy carpet first thing in the morning seems like the height of comfort.

But did you know that carpet can irritate allergies and trap pathogens like E. coli and staph? In fact, carpets are so good at harboring nasty things that they’re 4,000 times germier than a toilet seat!

Do you want a fresher start every day? Consider these great bedroom flooring ideas to get inspired.

modern bedroom with vinyl flooring

1. Hardwood

Hardwoods are the ultimate in high-end flooring. They’re so long-wearing that wood floors from the 1800s can be refinished and restored to their centuries-old glory.

They also provide a depth of natural beauty that you’d be hard-pressed to find with any other flooring. The variations in wood-tone and grain pattern add interest and class to your bedroom. There’s such variety with hardwoods that you’ll be able to customize yours to your exact tastes.

2. Luxury Vinyl Tile

Vinyl has come a long way from linoleum. Luxury vinyl tiles—LVT if you’re in the know—can mimic the look of about any style you’re going for. There are wood-look planks, marblelike square tiles, ceramic, slate, and even travertine.

Its three-layered composition makes it durable and water-resistant. If you’re looking for the best flooring for a bedroom in the basement, you can’t go wrong with LVT.

3. Ceramic Tile

Ceramic tile, like vinyl tile, can be made to look like wood planks. Or you can go bold with a geometric or Moroccan tile. Your bedroom is your private haven, so make it what you want.

Even a simple tile laid in a chevron or herringbone pattern adds visual interest and elevates your bedroom style.

Tile is colder than wood or vinyl. If you’re down South, that’s a good thing. If you live up North—like in Milwaukee or northern Illinois—you’ll want to position a rug under your bed to lessen the morning chill. You’ll still get your fluffy, warm comfort that way.

4. Cork

Though cork floor tiles are nothing new, they are often overlooked. The Coolidge Auditorium at the Library of Congress, built in the 1920s, has a cork floor.

The natural substance is warm, springy, and soft. It offers insulation from noise and heat. Cork is anti-microbial and doesn’t stain if properly sealed. The nice thing about cork is that individual tiles are replaceable as they become damaged.

5. Painted Subfloor

If you’re looking for cheap flooring ideas for your bedroom, consider painting your subfloor. For real! After you remove the carpet and tack strips, give the subfloor a deep clean, sand the rough spots, and paint.

You can tape down a design or use stencils for more impact. The nice thing is, you can paint over it again or install a whole new floor when you’re ready to make that change.

Get Inspired by Bedroom Flooring Ideas

The alternative to carpet doesn’t have to be something cold and uninviting. There are bedroom flooring ideas that offer warmth and personality without sacrificing style and cleanliness. Are you ready to rip out your carpet yet?

If your bedroom needs a refresh, we can help! As flooring installation experts, we have a large selection of hardwoods, vinyl, and tile to offer, and the expertise to install them correctly. Call us for an in-home consultation.

The 5 Most Durable Flooring Options for High-Traffic Areas in Your Home

October 24, 2018 by My Affordable Flooring

Most Durable Flooring Options

There’s something special and exciting about customizing your home to the exact way you want it. But before you start fawning over every flooring sample you can find, you need to make a list of must-haves.

For low-traffic areas of your home, aesthetics can be the deciding factor. When it comes to high-traffic areas like hallways and living rooms, though, you also need to look for the most durable flooring options. That is, unless you want to go through the whole process again in a few years.

In the long run, choosing one of the more durable types of flooring for your home can end up saving you considerable time and money.

Various decorative tiles samples

Most Durable Flooring Options for High-Traffic Areas

Whether your floors will face kids, pets, high heels, work boots, or a little of everything, your best bet is to go with one of these options:

Natural Stone Tile

Tile floors are known for their clean look and long-lasting quality. Keep in mind that some materials are harder than others, though, so your best bet is to look for natural stone tile floors like travertine.

Bamboo Hardwood

As beautiful as hardwood is, most types are best suited for low-traffic rooms. Bamboo, however, is a wonderful exception. The adhesives and coatings manufacturers use make bamboo a force to be reckoned with when it comes to scratches.

For the most durable bamboo hardwood flooring, look for options that are strand-woven. Stick to high-end, high-quality varieties as well.

Laminate Hardwood

If you love the look of hardwood floors, another durable option is laminate flooring. It’s more scratch-resistant than natural hardwood, so it will stand up against paws and claws. However, keep in mind that laminate is susceptible to moisture damage. So, it’s not often a good choice for bathrooms and other high-moisture areas.

High-Quality Vinyl

Before you dismiss it as an outdated choice, today’s vinyl flooring is nothing like your grandmother’s kitchen floors from the 1970s.

Modern vinyl comes in higher-quality options. It’s also available in a nearly endless array of styles. For instance, some of the most popular choices are made to mimic hardwood flooring and tile floors.

Berber Carpet

It should come as no surprise that carpet isn’t as durable as its harder counterparts. Still, we recognize that some homeowners love the comfort and warmth they get from a carpeted floor.

If you have your heart set on carpeting but you want durability, go for Berber carpet. This style uses short loops for a clean and flat look. It’s easier to clean and holds up better against high traffic than high-pile carpets too.

Choosing Your Flooring With the Future in Mind

In an ideal world, you’d be able to choose your favorite flooring options based on looks alone. The reality of homeownership, however, is that unless you have an unlimited budget, you need to find options that will hold up against the wear and tear of daily life.

The good news is that today there are plenty of great-looking options available in durable and low-maintenance materials. With the ideas above, you can get started finding the most durable flooring for your home.

For more guidance in your flooring design, contact our home flooring experts, who can recommend the ideal options for each room of your house. We have a long history of creating gorgeous, durable floors in Wisconsin and Illinois.

How to Brighten Up a Room in 5 Simple Ways

October 17, 2018 by My Affordable Flooring

It drives you crazy: That one room in your home that has so much potential to be a cozy spot, but it’s just too dim or too bland to draw your family to spend much time in it.

So, how do you take a could-be-cozy spot and turn it into the family’s favorite room? Try these five simple steps to brighten up a room, and see what happens!

Bright living space with modern look and hardwood flooring

1. Paint Purposefully

Did you know that colors can literally affect your mood? It’s scientifically proven!

Even hospital and prison architects are aware of this, so they choose paint colors that promote healing, wellness, and calm. That’s why painting purposefully is one of the top ways to brighten a room and entice your family to enter.

It may be helpful to first think of what type of mood you want friends or family to feel when they spend time in that particular room. For instance, do you want them to feel calm, relaxed, and comfortable? Try painting a wall a soft blue. If you’d rather it be a lively room for laughing and fun, however, choose a paint shade of creamy yellow or mustard.

Whatever you choose, freshening up a room with a new coat of paint is a surefire way to brighten it fast.

2. Jazz up the Floor

Surprised by this one? Don’t be.

Just think about it: Would the Siena Cathedral be quite as remarkable without the stunning inlaid marble under your feet?

Customizing your floor is a fun way to make a room unique and to give it a little extra something. Distinctive patterns, decorative inlays, and varying types of hardwood are all ways to draw the eye and create interest in a room.

Especially when it comes to hardwood, having unique and beautiful flooring will set the tone of a room and make it a more lively place to enjoy.

3. Add Mirrors

This may seem obvious, but what do mirrors do? They reflect light!

There’s no doubt that adding a few tastefully placed mirrors to a wall brightens up a room quickly. Not only do mirrors brighten a room for you, but they also have the added benefit of making rooms seem larger.

By helping to expand the space, mirrors can make a room more aesthetically pleasing and comfortable.

4. Update Your Decor

Sometimes adding something as simple as a colorful rug or throw pillow can work miracles for a space.

If the room you’re worried about needs some brightening, bring in some lamps to add class, interest, and (literal!) brightness to a room.

A carefully selected accent piece like a chair can do wonders for adding appeal to a less-than-charming room. It’s also a cheap and easy way to brighten a room that requires much less labor on your part.

5. Tidy Up

Less can truly be more when it comes to making a room bright and refreshing. For instance, getting rid of unneeded clutter helps a room feel more spacious and calming. And de-cluttering serves to make a room feel larger.

It’s helpful to do a truly thorough tidying by getting your carpets cleaned. Sometimes a room’s dinginess is merely the result of too much foot-traffic dirtying up the floors.

Final Thoughts on Brightening up a Room

Now that you’ve got some killer ideas on how to brighten the rooms in your home, why not start with the kitchen? Kitchens are often focal rooms homes and families in southeastern Wisconsin and Illinois, so starting there makes great sense. Begin by choosing the flooring that is best for your lifestyle, tastes, and needs, and keep going from there.

And if you’re long on inspiration but short on ideas, check out our blog. We’ve got some great ideas on making your kitchen a dream space too.

Solid vs Engineered Hardwood Flooring: What’s Best for Your Home?

September 12, 2018 by My Affordable Flooring

New flooring offers you a way to reinvigorate a room or a new home. But even if you settle on hardwood, it’s not quite a done deal yet. That’s because when it comes to wood, solid hardwood flooring used to be your only choice. Now, you can choose between solid hardwood or engineered hardwood flooring.

It’s not an obvious choice either. Each offers some benefits but also brings some pitfalls. So, let’s jump in and take a look at some key considerations that will inform your choice.

Engineered hardwood flooring planks laid out to be installed

Cost

Cost is a major factor in most remodeling projects. In many cases, it means choosing between what you want and what you can afford.

That isn’t the situation with solid hardwood and engineered hardwood flooring. All other things being equal, they cost about the same amount per square foot.

You can, of course, get less expensive versions of either kind of flooring. The catch is that you’ll probably end up with floors you don’t like. The hardwood won’t look as nice as you hoped or the engineered flooring won’t hold up well.

Refinishing

Diamonds might be forever, but the finish on hardwood flooring isn’t. If you live in the same house for a long time, you’ll start to see the wear and tear on the finish. Here’s how the two compare:

Sanding is a key step in refinishing wood floors, which gives solid hardwood the advantage. You can sand and apply finish to solid hardwood over and over again without trouble.
By design, only the top layer of engineered hardwood flooring is actual hardwood. It typically runs around 1/8 of an inch thick, though high-end versions offer somewhat thicker top layers. That means you can only sand it down once or twice before you replace it.

Installation Limitations

For all its longevity, you can only install hardwood in low-moisture areas of your home. That means areas like bedrooms, hallways, and living rooms.

Put it in a high-moisture area—like a kitchen or bathroom—and the wood soaks up the moisture and expands. In the best case scenario, the floor buckles. In the worse case scenario, the wood rots and damages the underlayment and joists.

This is where engineered hardwood wins: Engineered hardwood flooring stands up better to moisture because most of the layers in the flooring consist of plywood. Plywood doesn’t absorb water as readily, so it doesn’t expand or rot the same way.

While not ideal, you can install engineered flooring in kitchens and basements.

Solid or Engineered Hardwood Flooring?

Deciding between solid hardwood and engineered hardwood flooring depends on several factors. Ironically, for once, cost isn’t one of them.

A factor that does matter is how long you expect to live in the home, however. For instance:

If you plan on living there for the foreseeable future, solid hardwood flooring is the right move. This is because you can refinish it again and again without concern.
If you expect to sell the house within 5-10 years, engineered hardwood flooring offers more benefits. This is because you get the look and feel you want for now. And engineered flooring generally proves easier to remove. That can serve as a selling point for future buyers.

My Affordable Flooring specializes in flooring solutions in the Milwaukee area. For more information about a flooring type or a free estimate, contact us today.

The Different Types of Wood Flooring Explained

September 5, 2018 by My Affordable Flooring

If you’re thinking of installing hardwood floors in your home, you’ve made a great choice. Hardwood flooring not only looks great in just about any room, but it also adds value to your home. There’s a reason it’s one of the most coveted flooring materials out there!

There are, however, many types of wood flooring, so if you’re interested in installing it, you’ll want to do some research. Follow along to learn all about the different types of wood flooring, so you can find the one best for you and your home!

mixed species wood flooring pattern sample

Types Of Wood Flooring

Unfinished Hardwood

If you’ve ever watched a home improvement episode on HGTV, you’ve probably heard this term being thrown around. Unfinished hardwood flooring is exactly what it sounds like: it’s beautiful hardwood floors that are not yet finished. This means you can apply custom stains to create the perfect color for any room or to match any existing hardwood floors.

Unfinished hardwood floors are a great option for kitchens, since the protective finish that’s applied after staining seals the seams between the boards, preventing any water from seeping in.

Finished Hardwood

On the other hand, prefinished hardwood is more convenient in terms of timing and ease of installation.

It comes pre-stained, pre-cut, and ready to go from a factory, so it only needs to be installed. With finished hardwood, there are no harsh odors from stains or sealants, and you can begin using your new floor right away!

Solid Hardwood

Solid hardwood refers to pure, natural wooden floors. They have beautiful kinks, knots, flecking, and grain variations that are indicative of their natural state. This type of hardwood floor can change over time, making it a top-grade material.

This type of flooring comes in 5/8 to 3/4 inches thick. And, since it’s a solid block of wood, it can be sanded and re-stained many times. (Seven times for the 3/4 inch slabs, to be exact.)

Keep in mind, however, that solid wood is affected by humidity, so it’s not recommended for basements or extremely humid environments.

Engineered Hardwood

Engineered hardwood is a veneer of organic wood glued to several layers of other types of wood, like plywood.

This type of flooring is becoming more and more popular due to its lower price point. It’s very stable over time and is appropriate for any area of your home, including your basement!

Parquet Flooring

Originating in 17th-century France, parquet flooring consists of handmade geometric pieces of hardwood combined into beautiful designs.

They are cut, glued, sanded, and finished to create sophisticated mosaics of durable flooring. They are easy to care for, like any other type of hardwood floor. You may not believe it, but parquet flooring is also pretty easy to install!

Finding the Right Wood Flooring for Your Home

It’s no wonder people covet hardwood floors! If you’re interested in installing beautiful wood flooring in your home but have questions, don’t hesitate to check us out. We are here to help you choose the best type of flooring for your home.

And don’t forget: We offer flooring services as well! So, if you’re ready for new floors, give us a call. Our hardwood flooring services are available in Milwaukee, Racine, and northern Illinois!

Laminate vs. Hardwood Flooring: Which Is Better?

August 22, 2018 by My Affordable Flooring

Slippery, cool, dark, and handsome. What is it? Hardwood floors! But did you know the wood floors you might be standing on could actually be laminated floors?

What’s the difference and which is one is better? Read on for some pro tips on how to choose between laminate vs hardwood floors.

New laminate oak parquet slats in different colors

Pros and Cons of Laminate vs Hardwood Floor

Both laminate and hardwood floors have pros and cons. And which one is better for you depends entirely on your lifestyle and budget. Here are some factors to consider:

Appearance

In the earlier days, laminated floors ran the risk of developing creases and weird bumps when they were not made or installed properly. Thus, it was easier to tell them apart from hardwood floors.

However, due to better technology today, manufacturers have gotten better at designing prints that look more realistic, making it harder for most to tell the difference. Still, some would argue that there is nothing like the real thing.

Construction

Hardwood floors, as many of us already know, are made from real wood cut from harvested trees. Laminate floors, however, are made from composite wood that is then covered with a manufactured print that emulates real wood.

Price Point

Due to the difference in material and the manufacturing process, the price point between hardwood and laminate floors is quite different.

The price of hardwood floors can be a bit more or a lot more depending on how rare the type of wood you choose is. Laminate floors, on the hand, can be up to 50 percent less than hardwood floors. This is because not only is the material cheaper to make, but it also is easier to install.

Durability

Natural wood is more susceptible to wear and tear, such as scratches and fading from the sun. But in the long run, it is stronger and can take more damage. If well taken care of, a hardwood floor can last up to twenty-five years or a whole lifetime.

Laminated floors, on the other hand, do not hold damages as well. So, if you live in a household with heavy traffic, a laminated floor will most likely need to be replaced before you sell it if you want to maintain or increase your house value.

Repairs

Generally, hardwood floor is easier to fix than laminated floor because it can be sanded down or refinished easily.

If one part of your laminate floor is damaged, you have to replace that particular area with a whole new board. In the beginning, the new board might also stand out more from the rest because it’s newer and shinier.

The Bottom Line

The best way to go about picking laminate vs hardwood floor is to think about how much traffic your house gets. And, don’t forget: It’s not just feet. If you have kids, elderly parents, or pets at home, then think about chairs dragging, wheelchairs, and tiny paws as well.

And lastly, think about the amount of time you’ll be in the home. If it’s only for a few years, then perhaps laminate floor might be enough. But, if you plan on staying for a long time, then hardwood floors might be worth the investment.

For more advice on hardwood floors and flooring services, please visit our blog!

And, don’t forget: If you are interested in new laminate flooring or hardwood floors, call us. We offer a full menu of high-quality flooring services throughout Milwaukee, Racine, and northern Illinois! Contact us today by calling 262-653-1120 or filling out our online contact form.

How To Find A Reputable Flooring Contractor

July 23, 2018 by My Affordable Flooring

Flooring is no small job, so when seeking the help of a professional contractor, you want to find someone who will do things right the first time around (friendly customer service and industry-leading craftsmanship don’t hurt, either). Yet, conducting a search for a dependable and trustworthy contractor can be an arduous and finicky process. Thankfully, a few key principles can help you find the perfect match.

To find a reputable contractor to help with your floors or other home improvement project, follow a few simple steps, including:

Consider Your Budget: A crucial first step in any contractor search is knowing what you are willing to spend on their services. Start by considering what is most important to you: is it experience or availability, popularity or availability? As the old saying goes, you get what you pay for, so be realistic about the cost range you can accommodate.
Ask About Speciality: Some contractors bill themselves as flooring experts, while others simply include the service in their menu of general interior home repair. Neither option is necessarily superior, but it is important to hear from the company itself about how well-versed it is in the tasks you need accomplished. If this is the contractor’s first time with a certain type of hardwood, for example, you should be aware of the experiment you are getting into.
Check the Portfolio: Many flooring contractors will offer visual examples of their work, such as photos, videos, and written project descriptions. Does their work pass the eye-test? What you see is likely what you will get.
Read the Reviews: You won’t find a more honest description of a contractor’s services than from customer reviews. While it is true that every customer’s experience will be different, you should expect to see a lot of stars and glowing praise.
Reference and Background Checks: For the sake of due diligence, you may want to ask your prospective contractor for references that you can contact directly. To take it a step further, you can use the Wisconsin Circuit Court website to complete a free legal background check on a company’s owner and employees.
Proof of License and Insurance: It is impossible to overstate the importance of choosing a flooring specialist that is both licensed and insured. Licensing ensures that the contractor has foundational experience in the field, while insurance protects both you and the contractor from the liability of damages and accidents.
Compare Quotes: You never want to put all of your eggs in one basket, so when finding the perfect contractor for you, it is important to shop around. A general rule is to get at least three different quotes. That way, you can get a feel for each contractor’s unique style, offerings, availability, and price.

Why Choose My Affordable Flooring LLC.

If you follow the steps we have outlined for selecting a quality contractor, you will find that My Affordable Flooring LLC. checks all of the boxes. Locally-owned and operated, we are proud to serve the flooring needs of homes and businesses across southeast Wisconsin. With a reputation for being friendly, affordable, and thorough, My Affordable Flooring LLC. offers a full menu of high-quality flooring services. For a free consultation and estimate, contact us today by calling 262-653-1120 or filling out our online contact form.

The Dangers Of Epoxy Flooring

July 9, 2018 by My Affordable Flooring

As popular as epoxy flooring may be for flooring and other commercial uses, its hazards to human health outweigh any benefits by a large margin. Before hiring a flooring specialist that utilizes this substance, it is prudent to fully understand the risks, including:

Respiratory Damage: Inhaling epoxy fumes or dust can create long-lasting negative impacts on the human respiratory system. Because they attach themselves to the mucus lining, ingesting epoxy particles often leads to inflammation and irritation of the throat, nose, and lungs. When frequently exposed to large quantities of the chemical, the chances of developing asthma and sensitization are greatly increased.

Sensitization: In many cases, exposure to epoxy can lead to the development of an epoxy allergy, an effect also called “sensitization.” Unfortunately, this outcome is possible regardless of the frequency or duration in which a person inhales the substance. Once sensitization occurs, allergic reactions can occur from even the most miniscule amount of epoxy, making it incredibly dangerous to be around. On top of that, there is no known cure for the allergy.

Asthma: Aside from the possibility of developing allergies from epoxy, it is also common to experience asthma, whether it is a brand new issue or an exacerbation of an existing condition. Those who suffer from epoxy-caused asthma often encounter symptoms including difficulty in breathing, wheezing, and tightness of the chest.

Dermatitis: If your bare skin comes into direct contact with epoxy, it is possible that you will experience dermatitis, which is most easily recognized by blistering, itching, and swelling. In extreme cases, epoxy-caused dermatitis can lead to long-term skin conditions, such as eczema.

Chemical Burns: Because epoxy is a corrosive substance, it can cause burns on human skin. Most often, these chemical burns initially seem rather mild and innocuous, only to gradually worsen over time, leaving discoloration and scarring in its wake. To make matters worse, epoxy is often very fast-drying, so once it touches the skin, it can be very difficult to remove.

Contrary to popular belief, epoxy is not only dangerous in its uncured dust or fume state. Even after the two-week-long process of curing, epoxy still emits airborne particles that can negatively impact anyone within proximity.

For all of these reasons, My Affordable Flooring LLC. strongly discourages our loyal customer base from choosing epoxy for their flooring systems. Luckily, we offer epoxy-free alternatives that provide all of the same benefits without the toxic byproducts. For a wide selection of greener flooring options and outstanding customer service, get in touch with My Affordable Flooring LLC. today! You can receive your free, no obligation estimate by calling 262-653-1120 or filling out our online contact form.

5 Key Hardwood Floor Repairs You Need to Know About

October 29, 2017 by My Affordable Flooring

Hardwood floors are a quintessential class act when it comes to interior decorating. But they come at a cost, and that cost is wear and tear.

professional sanding hardwood floor

Whether it’s from shoes, furniture, pets, or household accidents, the tragic reality of hardwood is that it degrades. But, with a little love and a lot of know-how, you can repair, refinish, and replace hardwood floors for an effect as good as new. Here are a couple of strategies for hardwood floor repairs:

Sanding

Sanding is usually the first step before making another, deeper repair or refinishing your hardwood floor, but it deserves some mentioning.

Using a belt sander with a lightweight sandpaper, you can remove deeper scratches along the grain of the wood.

A word of warning though: Make sure you know how to sand safely before you start. There’s a process to this, and if you make any serious missteps, the damages could cost more than the sanding is worth.

Wood Filler

Sometimes, a small ding or scratch is just not worth the time or effort of taking to your floor with a full-sized sander.

Whether it’s small holes from nails and furniture corners or larger dings from speaker cables and pet claws, a little wood filler goes a long way.

Depending on the damage, you may need to combine this filler with further sanding or even board replacement. Overall, though, this is a surprisingly versatile repair option well worth the investment.

Water Damage: Dehumidifying

In the case of a leak or extensive water damage, the best option is to just do everything in your power to dry that floor out as much as possible. Once it’s dried up, you’ll be able to make an assessment on how to repair or replace your hardwood floor.

Here are a few practical tips:

Stop the source of the water. If it’s a leak, block it. If it’s a spill, mop and clean it up completely. Any remnants are going to keep soaking into your floor, so make sure you get it all.
Put out an electric fan and point it at the wet area. If you have a dehumidifier, put that out as well. Anything that promotes airflow and sucks moisture out of the air can only help.
If you have any devices for promoting humidity, turn them off as a matter of precaution. That’s freestanding humidifiers, as well as ones attached to furnaces.

Replacing Wood Panels Entirely

In a situation where the damage to a hardwood floor is extensive and repairs aren’t enough, be honest with yourself, and replace it.

As a precaution, identify the problem and act as soon as possible. If you can isolate the damage, you may be able to replace only a few boards, instead of the entire floor.

Cleaning

Our last point may seem obvious to you, but simple cleaning can often be enough to repair minor scratches or marrings on a hardwood floor.

Depending on the finish, cleaning can involve warm water and a towel, a floor polisher, or a sponge mop. Chemical cleaners can be effective as well, but make sure to research their effect beforehand, in case they can stain or bleach your floor.

Take Your Hardwood Repairs to the Next Level

There’s one very important reason hardwood floors are so popular: They look great.

When you have an accident and something spoils those good looks, there are options for repairing your cherished wood flooring.

Interested in refinishing, installing, and prepping your hardwood flooring in Milwaukee or Racine? Get more walk out of your wood today with My Affordable Flooring.

How to Know When it’s Time to Refinish Your Hardwood Floors

October 22, 2017 by My Affordable Flooring

Hardwood floors can last forever, but only if you take care of them.

Most floors need to be refinished every 10 years or so to make sure they stay in good condition, but you may need to do it sooner depending on your circumstances.

maple hardwood flooring

So, how do you know when its the right time to refinish floors? This refinishing guide will answer all your questions.

How It Works

When you refinish your floors, a thin layer of wood gets sanded off to remove any scratches, stains, or water damage. Then the wood gets a fresh coat of finish that protects the floor and gives it a nice shine.

Not all floor damage requires a full refinishing job. If your hardwood floor only has a few light scratches here or there that haven’t pierced through the finish, you may just need to screen and recoat your floor.

Screening your floor is very similar to a complete refinish, but instead of sanding the wood itself, you also sand through the old finish and replace it with a new coat. When you can get away with it, a screen and recoat is definitely a better choice, because it is much better for the floor. Most floor damage, however, needs a full refinish.

Here are a few ways to tell if your hardwood floor needs to be refinished.

1. Lots of Scratches

This is probably the most common reason people refinish floors.

All floors get scratches, but most of them are only on the surface of the wood and can be sanded away without a problem. If you find deep scratches, like places where the wood has been split, you will have to replace that section of floor entirely.

But remember: Scratches on the floor are common, and not every scratch means you need to refinish your floor. A few light scratches are nothing to worry about.

2. Discoloration from the Sun

Flooring under windows or in rooms with sliding glass doors often fade under constant exposure to the sun. Sanding the wood will remove the discoloration so it matches the rest of the floor again.

3. Water Damage

Not all water damage can be fixed with a refinishing job. If there are large gaps between floorboards or if some of the floorboards have popped out of place, you will have to replace that section of floor entirely.

But you can refinish floors with less severe water damage.

If the wood is just starting to warp or cup, you can usually sand it flat again and reapply a new finish.

4. Grey Floorboards

When your floor has turned grey, you need to refinish your floors quickly.

Grey floor means all the finish has worn off and the wood is absorbing water. This isn’t necessarily spilled drinking water. It can be water tracked inside on shoes, water from your pet’s feet, or even water from normal cleaning products.

You can refinish a grey floor, but when it turns black, you have missed your chance. Any black floorboards will have to be removed and replaced.

Don’t Put off Taking Care of Your Floors

You should never put off refinishing your floors, because the damage could just get worse. If you aren’t sure whether you should refinish your floors or not, try the water test: Pour a tablespoon of water on an area of floor that is used a lot and see how the water reacts. If it beads up, your finish is still good, but if it absorbs into the floor, you need to refinish the wood.

Do your Milwaukee or Racine hardwood floors need to be refinished? Contact us and we’ll get them shining again!