Are you a young, new home buyer who is finding that a lot of homes are hiding beautiful wood underneath the carpet and linoleum. Do you make the jump and buy the house with the job of refinishing the hardwood floors looming in the distance or do you keep on looking? HGTV star Joanna Gaines, who makes all of us want to live in Target’s home goods section, has popularized the “farmhouse chic” look with lots of refurbished wood, and carpet is now only mentioned on Zillow if ripping it out will reveal the beautiful hardwood.
Hardwood floors offer the allure of charm and history and refinishing them is even cheaper than putting in the dreaded carpet.
Refinishing hardwood depends on a number of factors including condition and age, but the Home Depot promo code will help you out with your budget for in general, it is almost always cheaper to refinish hardwood floors rather than replacing them. Replacing floors requires additional wood, ripping up and hauling away existing hardwood. However, if the floor is worth saving by refinishing or replacing a few boards and making repairs, that is the way to go, but homeowners should not expect the floors to look like brand-new floors.
Who to Hire
When choosing who to refinish your hardwood floors here are some questions to ask:
- How long has the company been in business?
- Do they use a dust control system?
- What kind of polyurethane do they prefer?
You should get three competitive bids and contact your Contractors State License Board to confirm the company is bonded, has workers compensation and has no lawsuits against. You can also contact the Better Business Bureau to gain information.
Also, although it is cheaper to refinish your hardwood floors, if you have no formal training, you should not hire yourself. If you screw it up, you will pay more money than hiring someone. Most floor refinishers will charge by the foot, so you can plan on spending between $2.50 to $5.25 per square foot for the sanding, staining and three coats of finish. This project can take anywhere to three to seven days depending on the size of the floor.
Hardwood flooring is expensive but if you are able to restore the ones you already have, then you are ahead of the game. Also, if you decide to put your home on the market, the refurbished hardwood floors will certainly add value to the price of your home. The mess of refurbishing will be worth it when you get to return to a beautiful, brand new space for much less money than if you had replaced your floors.
