Carpet Fiber Charisma

By Annette Callari, ASID; CMG

It’s been a while since we’ve talked about the nuts and bolts of carpeting—the fiber carpets are made from.  Fiber technologies continue to evolve and amaze us as to performance. So I thought I’d put together a little refresher course on the different types of fibers available for you.

Although wool carpets have the longest history of use in carpets, nylon fiber carpets have been around for decades. They came into high fashion during the 1950’s when it was a luxury to have wall-to-wall carpeting.  You have no idea how many hardwood floors went undercover for years with the advent of that trend.  Manufacturers tried round fibers, triangular fibers, and then finally found that a rounded trilobal fiber was the best configuration for performance and soil-hiding.

Two types, Nylon 6.6 and Nylon 6, are typically used in carpet. Nylon can claim the ability to produce a stunning array of color harmonies; a luxurious soft “hand”, excellent resiliency, durability, abrasion resistance and texture retention. Just as importantly, consumers benefit from nylon’s significant resistance to stains and soils.  As a matter of fact, it has become an expected feature for carpet to have superior stain resistant properties–and mills continue to deliver on those expectations. Solution-dyed nylon, in particular, has proven to offer excellent color fastness and increased stain ‘clean-ability’.

More recently, nylon fiber developments have focused on soft-handed luxury.  Stainmaster Tactesse and Shaw/Anso Nylon’s Caress are leaders in soft-engineered carpets.  At the same time, manufacturers have been attentive to sustainability and recyclable polymers–a significant direction that continues to gain momentum. In this instance, consumer consciousness is driving this direction of R & D, demanding responsible manufacturing and post-use accountability.  Sustainability is a multi-faceted frontier and it will be extremely interesting to see where R & D takes fiber technologies over the next decade.  Overall, when you weigh the advantages of nylon’s durability and resilience against other fiber types, it’s not surprising that nylon still claims the largest percentage of carpet sold in the United States.

It’s a fact that forward-thinking R & D is a necessity for mills to bring something unique to the marketplace. As a result, we have seen some creative fiber types emerge.  Mohawk Carpet Mills introduced SmartStrand® carpet with DuPont™ Sorona® renewably sourced polymer about eight years ago. In a partnership with DuPont, this carpet offers fiber made with Bio-PDO™ (the key Sorona® ingredient, also known as TriextaÒ).  SoronaÒ is produced from corn sugar. By utilizing this new ingredient, 37 percent of Sorona® is being made from renewable resources. The end result?   A luxuriously soft carpet that offers durability and stain protection, while making less of an environmental impact. The Carpet and Rug Institute had this to say about TriextaÒ: “…Features include a luxurious soft “hand”, excellent colorfastness, bright colors, inherent and permanent stain resistance… durability, resistance to fading, clean-ability, texture retention and resiliency.”

Mohawk’s Karastan division features SmartStrandÒ products in their Color Choicesdisplay unit.  Color is the key magnet attracting consumers to this display, but the “hand” of the carpet and the warranties that back SmartStrandÒ are the features that close the sale.  Even though SmartStrandÒ is still in its infancy compared to nylon, it has made a strong impact in the marketplace.

It would be impossible to write about fiber types and not dedicate a paragraph toOlefin (polypropylene) carpets.  Olefin has especially found its niche in the realm of commercial carpeting.  Its versatility in styling and amazing colorations accounts for a big part of its popularity.  Just as attractive is the competitive pricing olefin carpets offer.   Turn key installations benefit from both the aesthetics and affordability.  Olefin features include permanent resistance to water-based stains, colorfastness, and resistance to static electricity. It’s inherently resistant to moisture, making it the primary fiber used in indoor/outdoor carpets. We are seeing these well-styled carpets transitioning from the commercial world to residential, as consumers are embracing more tailored, well constructed styles.

Polyester carpets have always garnered mixed reviews.  The luxurious hand and incredible face weights make this fiber type a strong draw.  70 oz., 80oz. and even 90 oz. face weights are not uncommon, and compared to their nylon counterparts, these hefty polyester carpets are very reasonably priced.  Other attractive characteristics include inherent and permanent stain resistance, the ability to produce colors with superior clarity, good abrasion resistance, fade resistance, and clean-ability.  Polyester does not have as good a reputation for abrasion resistance as nylon, but evolving technologies continue to deliver an ever-improving fiber.

Let’s turn the focus to wool.  Wool carpets seem to have a unique status quotient all their own.  This natural fiber brings luxury and performance to the floor in equal parts.  Its features include a naturally soft hand, high bulk, good color options and inherent flame-retardant characteristics. That’s a credible menu of features for a fiber with the longest history of use in carpeting.  The naturally low luster level of wool is a strong draw, and other fiber types do their best to emulate it.

Without a doubt, fiber selection ultimately affects carpet aesthetics and end-use performance. We, as consumers are the benefactors and owe manufacturers a vote of thanks.  It’s their call as to which fiber types will perform best in certain constructions.  So far, I’d say they are making very wise calls.  We continue to see striking, well made carpets spicing up the floor covering market, pairing exactly the right fiber with the right construction!

The Unexpected Floor Covering

Submitted by Annette Callari, A.S.I.D.; CMG

Most of you have toured professionally designed model homes in your area. Designers turning out those models all seem to have something in common: they have been successful in integrating an element of surprise. What makes a room or a home memorable is the application of materials in a way you might never have thought of. Some of my most seasoned design associates cruise Home Depot in search of novel materials to adapt to home environments. Crazy? Maybe. But when you see the finished product, it appears more ingenious than crazy. The fact that they get requests to replicate what’s been done in the models is testament to the fact that this brand of “craziness” seems to have broad appeal.

The Best Flooring and Hottest Styles for Every Room, Including Kitchens
As homeowners search for new hardwood flooring, it’s clear what is uppermost in their minds: Authenticity. An appealing look or style is not enough. While consumers are certainly concerned about a floor’s durability and value, they want something of substance even more. They choose hardwood because it reveals much about their taste, values, and what is important to them. They want something authentic.
All that from flooring? Yes.
These Top 10 hardwood flooring trends are not driven by mere fashion or some longing to keep up with the next-door neighbors. Instead, this Top 10 reflects the desire of homeowner to bring the art of nature into their homes so they can enjoy authentic natural beauty.

1. Authenticity
This is the Big Kahuna of flooring trends today—and for good reason. In this era of smarter and smarter phones, reality TV “stars,” and constant change, where do we find equilibrium and calm? Many of us look to nature and the appeal of slower times.
Authenticity is behind a desire for floors that take inspiration from the past, charms us, or help us live lives more attuned to nature. It leads to these choices in flooring showrooms:
• Wide-plank, handscraped, distressed floors. These replicate historical flooring, going back to early America.
• Exotics. These are unusual tree species from all over the world.
• Bamboo and cork. Though not hardwoods, these are also products of nature. No trees need to cut down to produce these sustainable products.
Each tells a story about you and your values. Your most cherished value is history, rare beauty, or the environment.

2. Handscrape Hardwood Flooring
Through the 1800s, finish surfaces for hardwood floors were commonly worked by hand with draw knives. These were simple flat blades attached to two handles. By pulling toward him or herself, the crafter could scrape thin layers of wood off a piece of lumber, slowly smoothing the top surface. Inevitable, scraping marks were left behind, proving for generations to come that a piece of wood had been worked by hand.
Handscrape marks are commonly seen in flooring reclaimed from old structures. These signs from another time tell a story about craftsmanship that is now replicated by today’s flooring manufacturers who have planks handscraped in a similar manner to get the look and feel of salvaged historical lumber.
These beauty marks authentically reproduce a genuine look from the past. Today’s handscraped floors are also distinctive to walk on barefoot. With each step, homeowners will feel slight variations in the surface—their feet feeling the evidence of a crafter’s skills.

3. Wide-Width Wood Planks
The next time you are walking through a building from the 1800s, look at how wide the floor planks are. Instead of the 2-inch to 3-inch widths common today, earlier floors were 5 to 8 inches wide—and more—depending on the species of wood.
The reason is easy to understand. Trees were much more mature when cut in earlier times, which meant they were also thicker. Most of the old-growth trees are gone or protected from harvest now. So trees for flooring are thinner and wide planks rarer.
However, 4- to 5-inch planks offer more authentic beauty than thinner slices. So manufacturers are finding ways to offer this wider lumber. These create a look that is more leisurely and languid. This is a hat-tip to less-hurried time.

4. Distressed Wood Flooring
Those who lived through the distressed-wood trend of the 1970s can relax. Today’s distressed doesn’t go overboard; it merely replicates the look seen from use and age of authentic, reclaimed flooring.
This second coming of distressed wood actually has its roots in the early 1990s when reclaiming flooring from old warehouses and commercial buildings emerged as a hot niche market. Those structures, built in the 1800s and early 1900s, offered a wealth of old-growth lumber, marked by decades of rough use. The gouges, nail holes, stains, slices, and saw marks were scars of authenticity.
By their interest in authentic distinguishing features that had pounded earlier flooring, homeowners today are showing their admiration for an era when skill rather than electronic technology was king.

5. Exotic Hardwood Floors
Exotic hardwoods appeal to a different sense of authenticity. What wins the heart here is the art of nature. How is it that trees can offer such elegance in form and still function so well as flooring? What a marvel.
There is the bold striping of tigerwood, the depth of Brazilian cherry, the rich beauty of teak. There are looks for every taste.
In addition to these authentic woods, manufacturers are also inventing ways to cut, bake and dye woods to mimic many of the exotics. This allows homeowners to obtain the look they want without endangering wood species in this country or abroad.

6. Harder Finishes
Admiring a new hardwood floor, you gaze at its natural beauty, alluring color, intricate graining and depth of shine. It’s so good to walk on wood—except you are not really walking on wood. The work surface that you tread is actually a clear finish that’s been formulated for toughness, sprayed on wood and baked to a hard-as-nails finish.
State-of-the-art factory finish clear urethane finishes are salted with aluminum oxide—microscopic metal crystals—to increase durability. Several coats are sprayed on and dried under ultraviolet lighting. The finish is about 10 times harder than is possible with a site-finished floor. With prefinished, you’ll also avoid the odorous off-gassing, labor and the time required for finishing a floor in place.
The moment after prefinished flooring is installed, it can be walked on. Instant gratification.

7. Engineered Wood Floors
Conventional wisdom promotes solid wood flooring because it can be sanded and refinished repeatedly. Sounds impressive, but when was the last time you sanded and refinished a floor? Safe bet that the answer is, “Never, with no plans to start.”
Unless you plan on living in the same house for 10 to 15 years or more, engineered wood is usually a better answer. Engineered floors are constructed of 3 or more thin sheets or “plies” of wood cross laminated together to form a single stable plank. Each plank is made like a sandwich, with stable, low-cost woods providing the foundation and the prettiest, more costly showpiece woods as the top surface.
Most engineered flooring comes pre-finished and goes down with relative ease. Fix it in place with nails, staples or glue. It can even be installed as a “floating” floor, a very quick way to put a floor in place. Regardless of the method for holding it down, these floors offer the beauty of solid wood without the price. They are more likely to be replaced than refinished (though many can be sanded and re-coated)—emphasizing their use as a design element in your house rather than a feature you may feel you have to endure. Plus, because they are dimensionally stable, engineered wood, unlike solid wood, can be installed below grade.

8. Sustainability: Cork, Bamboo and Others
Concern for the environment shapes the way we live, the laws we follow, and what we value. Hardwood flooring is a big part of this discussion for homeowners who want to play a part in preserving the world’s natural beauty.
The days of clear-cutting forests to produce lumber are fading as manufacturers turn to managed forests, tree farms, engineered flooring and different woods for the supply of raw material. If you want a hardwood exotic, you may wind up with a sustainable domestic species—probably oak—that has been finished to mimic the look of an exotic. Or you might choose bamboo or cork, which offer performance similar to hardwood, but without the need to cut down even a farmed tree. Instead, bamboo is a grass that regrows after it is cut. Cork is made from tree bark, which regenerates.
Concern for forests and the environment are making an impact on how wood flooring is produced. Governments, environmental groups and industry leaders are adopting certification programs and tracking systems to validate the sustainability of wood supplies.

9. Color
Hardwood flooring doesn’t have to be a sea of brown. Widely available finish colors include an amazing array of whites, browns, blacks, greys, and reds. Not enough? Purchase unfinished flooring and stain it with in any of a rainbow of colors.
Color choices allow floors to better serve interior style as a full partner. Why should colors be limited to walls? Colorful flooring, in turn, allows for rooms that authentically express the desires, style sense, personality and idiosyncrasies of the homeowner or designer.
This trend can be summed up as “I want it the way I want it.” You can certainly have it.

10. Value
To some manufacturers, retailers, and even customers, value means getting flooring at the lowest price possible. But that misses the mark. You may save a few dollars on the purchase, but that will prove foolish savings if you are constantly spending on maintenance, repair and replacement over time.
Value is getting the highest quality product at the best price. To do that, look for manufacturers who are committed to product performance. Look for brand names from companies who aggressively improve their product and back their products with warranties. Real value comes at a cost—but so does buying strictly on price.

Courtesy of our Friends at WFCA

You’ve decided on new carpet, but you want to shop smart. You already know how carpet is made and the difference between carpet styles, but what else is there to know before you buy? Lots.

Here are some tips to give you the upper hand on what will soon be underfoot!

Seams

Unless your room is narrower than 15 feet, you’re going to have seams. Most carpet comes in widths of 12 feet and 15 feet — and on occasion, 13 feet. The degree of visibility of your seams depends on the texture and color you choose, as well as the lighting and furniture placement in your room.

Bending

When you carpet your stairs, its backing may show on the bends. And if it’s a looped carpet, it can snag — especially at the seams or transitions.

A carpet’s nap runs in a single direction, making pile reversal or the shading you see from a vacuum trail, completely normal for most cut pile styles. If you’re not a fan, window treatments and furniture placement can minimize the effect.

Quality

Let’s face it. You get what you pay for. If you want your carpet to have a great pile density and tighter twist construction (which leads to improved durability), then you’re going to want to go with a higher quality (and more expensive) product. New carpet adds value to any home, so it’s an investment worth making.

Color

Carpet covers a large part of any room, so it’s vital that you consider some basic rules when selecting its color. First off, know that once your carpet is installed, it’s going to look lighter in color than the sample you saw in the store. Don’t ask us why, that’s just the way it is — kind of like losing a sock in the dryer.

Next, recognize that color can affect the apparent size of a room. Call it a visual illusion or a trick of the light, but lighter carpet makes a room look larger and darker colors make a room look smaller and more intimate.

If you like to redecorate often or plan to move soon, go neutral. It’s much easier to imagine furniture in a room that is decorated with neutral colors.

Stains

It’s going to happen, no matter how long you hold out from sipping wine or munching on chips and salsa in your freshly carpeted room. Stain protection is an important consideration when buying carpet. Products come with various levels of protection and warranties. As the quality of a carpet increases, so does its stain protection level and warranty coverage.

Padding/Cushion

Padding or cushion is the layer of spongy material between carpet and floor. It’s the padding — not the carpet — that determines whether the carpet feels good or great under your feet.

A quality padding can help preserve a carpet’s look and can extend its life and comfort by providing tougher protection against wear and tear.

Padding is sold using quality specifications, not color specifications. The color of the sample you see in the store may not be the same color as what’s installed in your home. But as long as it feels good, who cares?!

Warranty

It’s a good idea to read the product specs and warranty coverage on the back labels of your carpet prior to purchasing. Doing so will give you the information you need to protect your investment — and eliminate any surprises down the road.

Cost

“Cost per square foot” is just one component of the overall price tag for new carpet. Ask your retailer to calculate the total cost of your floor covering project. Here’s what he or she may include beyond the cost of the carpet, itself:

• Furniture removal/replacement
  Some retailers or installers may charge to remove (and then replace) furniture in the room to be carpeted.
• Demolition/disposal of old floor covering
  Unless your home is brand new, there’s probably an old floor covering that is going to need to be removed and properly disposed of.
• Sub-floor preparation
  Depending on its condition (after removal of the old floor covering), your subfloor may need to be prepped for carpet installation.
• Product delivery
  Delivering your carpet and padding may not be included in the “cost per square foot” price.
• Installation
  There will most likely be a “cost per square foot” or “square yard” to install your new carpet and padding.
• Materials required to complete the installation
  Additional materials, like adhesives, moisture barriers, stair nosing and baseboards may be required to properly install your carpet.
• Financing
  Many retailers offer financing as an option of payment. Be sure to check the interest rate, minimum payment due and any finance charges if you choose to pay your purchase off over time.

In addition to your total project cost, annual cleanings are also recommended to maintain the beauty and life of your new carpet. Ask your retailer and/or consult the manufacturer’s warranty and care guide for directions on cleaning and maintenance.

Think about the space you are working with when considering your options

So you’re thinking about upgrading your bathroom? Let us help you with some ideas as you start your remodeling project.

• Make sure you “look around” the space. Are you thinking about adding a tub, or expanding a shower? Selecting your color scheme and appropriate accessories is always a good starting point.
• Bathroom tile goes a long way to influencing the look of the room. Make sure that you choose something that you love and that fits in with the other elements of the space.
• When in doubt, it’s always safe to go with earth tones in the bathroom. Many people enjoy having plants in the room, and selecting an earth tone palette will create an inviting environment.

Take a look at these photos for some ideas, and feel free to contact us if you have any questions about your remodeling job.

Tiles in earth tones make an aesthetically pleasing shower

Strong colors and patterns provide bold accents for your room

Getting started on your dream home? Follow these steps to be successful

Your custom home building project can be an overwhelming experience. One of the first questions I often hear from clients is “Where do we start?” Every dream home starts with a dream, and this is often the best place to begin realizing your vision.

Once you’ve decided to pursue your dream, the question becomes “Where do we build?” In so many cases, location is a major factor in the process and dictates what can be built. At this point, it’s time to find a good residential designer to incorporate your dream and your location into a home that is just right for your lifestyle.

Finding the right designer is an important part of the process, and it’s vital to find someone that you are comfortable with to turn your dream into a reality. While experience and creativity are certainly important criteria for a designer, finding someone that has stylistic and aesthetic tastes that are in line with your preferences will make the process much smoother.

After you have drafted a plan with your designer, the next step is finding a builder. This experience should be similar to your approach to finding a designer. Choose a builder that has an approach that you feel comfortable with. Make sure that you are working with someone that has solid references and a measure of integrity–a little research will eliminate headaches down the road.

Once you’ve got your team in place, you’re ready to begin the process and make your dream house a reality.

J.R. Hilton, of Hilton Design / Build, specializes in creating one-of-a-kind custom homes in the Middle Tennessee area. For more information, call him at 615-207-8802, e-mail him at JR@HiltonDesignBuild.com, or log on to his Web site, www.hiltondesignbuild.com.

If you are considering remodeling your home and adding hardwood flooring, you may be wondering how much money you are going to have to spend? First off, you need to answer some simple questions.

• Will you be installing raw lumber and finishing on site?

Sand and Finish on site

•        Or will you be installing prefinished hardwood flooring?

All you have to do is install

This article will focus on the site finished wood, or sand and finish wood installation. That said, I will give you a breakdown for pre-finished flooring as well.

Sand on site hardwood flooring has several components that should be considered and thought about when you are considering expense involved with this project. Lets walk thru the different elements and costs.

• What is your current flooring? Who is going to remove it? If the installer will be removing it figure $.30 per square foot.

Out with the old!!

• Is your subfloor in good shape, or does it need some repair? If it needs repair you are looking at isolated charges that will be about $60.00 per 4×8 plywood section. This is something that will probably not come up, but is relatively common.

• OK, so you have decided you want a beautiful new Oak floor. How much is this? Lets assume that you are going to install a 3" Wide plank and that you will need about 600 sqft for the project. You also want some character, so a #1 grade of lumber is what you select. Expect to pay about $2.40 per square foot plus tax. This price fluctuates but that is an average for 5/2011.

Very Pretty

• How is this 600 feet of wood getting to your home? Well, you can always pick it up, or the installer should deliver it for about $.10 per square foot.

Need a big truck, and lots of muscle-- hard hard work!!

• OK, ready for install– this is where the rubber meets the road. A quality installer should charge you between $1.75 and $2.50 per square foot for the installation. If someone is out of this range I would question it, because to cheap usually means poor quality and to expensive, well you know what that means– you are getting taken advantage of.

You want a pro that knows what they are doing.

• Next is the finishing, this involves sanding the floor and applying stain, then finish. It also includes puttying and making sure the installs imperfections are resolved. This is truly where a professional can shine– this is the bread and butter of the job. The range you should expect to pay is $1.50 and $3.00 per square foot. Depending on how many coats of finish and what materials are being used this is a fair estimate. 2 coats is standard.

This is such a critical step

• How about the trim? After hardwood flooring is installed it will need to be trimmed out at the base boards using Quarter round. Expect to pay$1.50 per linear foot for this including material. The installer will not paint the trim, but will stain it to match the floor if you like that.

This is a must

Of course additional costs may be necessary, but essentially that should cover it. You will end up with your beautiful new hardwood floor!!

I know, its Walnut-- very pretty

Site finished Oak hardwood flooring should cost somewhere in the range of $6.75-$8.50 per square foot. Of course be weary of companies that are very inexpensive. I could share some real life nightmare stories that ended up costing customers double because the floor had to be replaced.

Prefinished flooring varies in price, that said it is an easier installation process and provides a beautiful look. Expect to pay $5.25-$10.00 per square foot.

One of the first questions I ask a new customer looking for hardwood flooring is “what kind of wood do you want?”. Typically, they do not know how to respond and just ask “well, what is the standard?”. Many customers are surprised to know that wood comes in lots and lots of different species and they all have very distinct looks and characteristics. For instance, in Nashville, the “standard” is 2 1/4″ Red Oak.

The Standard

Red Oak is great looking, but is it the best choice for your style? It has a warm and inviting natural tone, and remember you can finish the wood any color you like.

Nice looking floor, reasonably priced and timeless

 Red Oak has a brother called White Oak, the difference is in the name. White Oak has a more neutral base and Red Oak, you guessed it…. Great looking and very popular as well. I would always recommend this species if you decorate with a lot of earthy tones. Greys, blacks and browns work really well with White Oak.

The Standard 2.0

Earthy and very versatile

Oak will usually be a very good value and readily available. My suggestion would be that if you have more traditional tastes, consider Red Oak . If you may want a bit more versatile material go with White.

Another great look and incredibly beuatiful option is Walnut. I almost consider Walnut to be the Hal Holbrook of hardwood flooring, a distinguished southern gentlemen. The rich tones and soft hues are subtle, but very deep. Walnut is not for the faint of heart though, because it is bold.

Hal, good ol' man

Rich and warm, very versatile and heavy with the browns. This floor will be a focal point in the space, so if you do not want that than stay clear. Also, expect a lot of variation in the coloring.

Colors range from Blonde to Jacobean, beautiful

 Next time we will cover Hickory, Ash and Maple– three more great woods!!

Carpet makes a great area rug. Textures has a rug workroom where we can custom make a rug to fit any size. Recently, we attended Surfaces, a trade show in Las Vegas that features new styles for the upcoming year. Some of these styles would be beautiful for an area rug or really any area in the home. Pricing is typically around $10 per square foot, so an 8×10 would be about $800.00.

Wool. Makes me think of Charleston

Whimsical Sisal

Braided indoor or outdoor-- you can pressure wash these if you want

Great area rug, or Man Cave look

Love this, beautiful and timeless. 3 Great colors!!

So pretty and relaxing

Some great new shags, they are alive and well

These were some of the hundreds of new styles I saw. Such great design and all reasonably priced. I cant wait to share some of these samples with you!!

Hardwood flooring is a beautiful and natural flooring that looks great and lasts a long time. As durable as hardwood flooring is, it does need to be refinished about every 7-10 years depending on use and traffic. When installing new hardwood flooring or refinishing the existing flooring in your home, you should prepare yourself for a time consuming, smelly,  labor intensive process and understand what to expect during this process.

Does your floor look like this? Time to refinish!!

First off, this is a much easier process if you are not living in the work zone, so I am going to concentrate on “tips” that apply to those of you are refinishing your existing hardwood, or adding hardwood to a recently finished room or  adding hardwood where carpet was. Lets walk thru the basic process from start to finish of what the installers (or for you DIY folks–NOT RECOMMENDED) should expect as far as time.  These times may vary depending on the size of job.

1. If adding hardwood to an area, this will usually need to be delivered the week before work begins, and be set in the home for acclimation. This is not always needed but a good rule of thumb.

2. Day 1- Installers will arrive, tape of doorways, floor vents, curtains, appliances and so forth. They will then install the hardwood flooring in the areas needed. They will also remove old trim molding, and prep areas as they go. If you are just adding  a room or two this process will take 1 day. The stain color should be decided on at this stage in the process. The installer will review a color chart with you, or make a sample. However if there is furniture, carpet pull up and “lacing in” of new hardwood to existing hardwood the process could take 2 days.

3. Day 2- The installers will sand the hardwood (old and new) to get to raw wood. They should use dustless equipment that is hooked to vacuum’s and captures the dust adequately. They will use 2 machines for this. A large sander and an Edger sander for getting in tight spots. These are loud and will be disruptive.

Tight spots like around walls and stairs require this machine.

This is a very powerful machine that requires an expert.

4. After the sanding is complete, the installers will take a lot of time cleaning and vacuuming the floor to remove as much dust and debris as possible. Keep in mind that this is not a controlled environment, so debris will be in the air and will settle into the finish. They will then apply the stain color, you should have selected the stain color before the installers started. This will take about 1 day.

Stain is applied by hand or brush, and it is a tough job

5. Day 2-4–After stain is applied, it is time to coat the floor with a urethane finish. This material is the protective coat that protects the floor and makes it durable. Typically 2-3 coats of urethane are applied, and these coats take 12-24 hours to dry before the next coat can be applied. After the first coat and before the 2nd, the installer will usually install the base trim, either shoe molding or quarter round.

Finish is applied using a roller

This buffer abrades the surface in a circular motion. This will cause some swirling in the finished product.

At this point your floor should be done and look great!! Give the finish as much time to cure as possible and maybe be in just socks for the first few days.

When inspecting the floor at the end of the project, remember the things and have reasonable expectations.

1. There will be debris and dust in the floor. This is totally impossible to prevent in site finishing, but every attempt to limit this will be made. Of course there are different degrees of this, use your judgement and be reasonable.

2. There will be swirl marks from the buffer. It moves in a circular motion, this should be very limited and if it is very noticeable it is a bad job.

3. The boards will have some gaps between them. This is natural and is to be expected. Wood is always living and reacts to moisture.

4. There will be slight height differences at transition points. Every attempt will be made to make these areas flush, but sometimes special mill work may be required.

5. Baseboards will need some touch up paint and the house will need to be cleaned. Even with a dustless system there will still be some dust.

Enjoy, the dust has settled and we are all done!!

I hope you love your new floors!!