New owners are referred to us for hardwood floor refinishing.

Excited to help this couple with their first house and in their time line too! With settlement done they started to get their ‘To-Do” list going. When I inquired about how they got our name Kaitlin told us her boss Bryan Cooke and Stephanie Sbotta of Mathnasium referred us to her. (She works with them as a Math Tutor.)

An older home, they got right on seeing if there was hardwood under the carpet. Discovering there was, they got excited and hoped the floors would be ok to refinish. With other bigger projects on deck, with a stroke of luck maybe refinishing would work without having to shell out thousands on new hardwood.

We arranged to meet them quickly, and got right to inspecting the floor.

Although it was 5/16th’s thick, and top nailed there was enough of the “wear layer” to sand. What I mean by “wear layer” is, the thickness of the wood that can be sanded. Not all the part of a wood board is sand able, only the thickness of the “wear layer” is. The rest of the board is thickness whose purpose is to serve as how the boards attach to one another. That is not sand able. So if the boards had been previously sanded down too far our sanders will sand through the wear layer, and that part of the board surface is not finish able.  In that case we would have to recommend new wood flooring instead.

So new flooring was not necessary, that was in our favor.

We had enough surface to sand and refinish the wood floor, and make it beautiful again. However, there were some boards that were in rough shape, so replacing a couple of them was recommended.

Our conclusion is that this floor will respond and look beautiful after refinishing. The stairs also had wood under the carpet and would be able to be refinished as well. Only issue was there is a fair amount of settling, and the boards were very creaky.

We shook hands and told them we could start right away!

Without skipping a beat the repairs and preparation were done the very next day. Boards were replaced in the hallway, and 2 more boards were replaced in the dining room. Along with that Marvin pulled more staples out and tried to quiet the floor creaks down.

Meanwhile Kaitlin decided she wanted the floors to match her front door, which she just loved.

So looking at the door we put samples down right in front of it. At first two colors were in the running, Gunstock and English Chesnut. But then Kaitlin asked for a blend, using both of the colors, and we had the winning choice!

With the repairs now complete it was time to break out the sanders.

Marvin did his first “cut” with our drum sander on a 45 degree angle. This removed the old tired finish more quickly. It also removed the bits and remnants of the pad that stuck to the floor, especially in the dining room area and the office.

With two days of sanding, going through the schedule of sanding grits he prepared the field. Then he switched to the edger. While edging he sanded off what appeared to be pet urine or water marks in the office. Thankfully they were isolated against the wall in the office area, and they sanded right off.

And finally he hand scraped the corners. Moving methodically all the surface of the wood was sanded precisely and evenly. This prevented uneven discoloration in the way the stain absorbs in to the wood. If done incorrectly the stain along the edge of the rooms may appear a different color than the rest of the floor. Considered a rookie mistake, it is more apt to occur with a medium to darker stain color. And since this was a medium color he dare not take a chance.

At this point Marvin informed me he had to set the nails deeper into the boards.

This was necessary because the sanding removed a micron amount of the board surface leaving the nails up higher than they should be. So he used a nail set to drive the nails in every so slightly.

In fact, there are times that we inform homeowners that we can’t sand their floors for that very reason. Again, saying there was sufficient thickness of the wood in this instance, it was the last time the floor could be sanded. There comes a point in time where the nails simply can’t be set down far enough. In that case we tell our customers the floors cannot withstand sanding, and it is time for a new floor to be put down.

Keeping an eye on the progress I report to our clients that the stain is ready to be put on.

Carefully advising them to stay off the floor, I announced Marvin is ready to stain the floor. Well let me tell you, these floors are cleaning up nicely and look dramatically different than what we started with. I snapped a few pictures and shared them with Kaitlin. (Not living there I was certain she’d appreciate a peek at what they looked like along the way.)

My hunch was correct. She was thrilled, and commented that the house inside looks totally different. The floor condition and the new color made it “pop.”  And that was just the stain color. Eventually it would be more dramatic as the seal and the two finish coats (that build the sheen) would be applied.

With this floor project almost done, after the finish went on Marvin set about installing new quarter round trim.

This would be a nice accoutrement to the appearance, and they agreed they’d like the quarter round installed. As is popular, they decided upon white painted quarter round.

So we got the quarter round pre-primed, and Marvin painted it ahead of installing it.

With the painting done, Marvin set his saw up outside and went about measuring, cutting and installing it. Using precise measurements, and then what we call “shooting it in” with a pin nail-er, the trim was tightly fit against the baseboard trim. And using the pin nail-er, a pneumatic gun that uses 1″ 3/16th’s nails, it leaves little evidence of the nail having impacted the trim. To explain further, there is but the tiniest of holes left that can be visually seen. Therefore, there is less cover up needed with putty when we are done.

On the homestretch, Marvin also finishes the trim with custom return ends. This is a craftsman’s extra trim piece that is cut in a reverse angle that is used to tidy up the end piece instead of just leaving a blunt end cut. Considered further “finish work” of that of a higher grade of craftsmanship, it is a subtle detail Marvin takes great pride in for his customers.

In all, you might say we took this floor and made a “silk’s purse out of a sow’s ear!” What a difference!

Our clients are amazed and in love with their floors. Boy do they look great, all flat and smooth to the touch. With vibrant color and a subtle sheen, they are proudly rich once again. With the nails set and gaps filled they definitely are quieter, but with structural settling of the beams they still are a tad creaky.

Frankly the wow factor just adds up!

Call us and let us evaluate whether your older hardwood can be restored and refinished before shelling out thousands on a new floor. Free estimates! Call 609.953.0472. Or Contact Us online and we’ll reach out!