The prelude

Testing us out our clients had us restore their one room of old vintage pine in their library. Seeing how that came out would dictate if they would have us do their main floors in their mansion. So we knocked the pine out quickly, fixing a few things and making it look gorgeous. Not wanting more inexperienced work, they wanted and got a professional job. To see about this project click here to see how we fixed and restored that vintage pine floor for them.

For them, they were not willing to chance yet more ‘handyman-grade’ slap happy work. And it turned out we did pass. So next, we “graduated” to their grand red oak-mahogany accented floor throughout their main level which looked out over the riverfront. These rooms are opulent and worthy of restoring with every attention to detail needed to do so.

The prelude “phase 2”

Next there was a long list of items to tend to on the main living floor. Some were handled as mini projects first: the mahogany accent repairs which we repaired first you can read about here. And then we did another quick fix, we leveled the floor up against the fireplace hearth in the living room. To clean up transitions to masonry where wood meets the cement or stone structure click here (tbd).

After that work was completed we moved on to restoring the main living floor, including the foyer- grand entrance and foyer stairs. Also in that project was the dining room and living room.

The challenges for this part of the restoration included (recapped from above, but part of the full restoration)

• Fixing the handyman attempted to use a filler (a wrong type filler) to repair a couple areas. They were located near the entrance to the family room, and the other upstairs in the hallway. Both were an eyesore that drove our husband client nuts because it was the wrong filler, and looked like it!
• Sanding to remove the wear near the butler’s panty entrance (the most trafficked area in the house. It looked ‘hammered,”  and showed major fatigue. Especially worn were the mahogany stripes. They needed cleanup and fixing (expanded upon separately and noted above).
• Less noticeable was some ‘trampolining,’ a condition where the wood boards bounces up and down when walked on. There was a weak spot on the corner outline of the accent stripe framing around the fireplace. It bounced up and down while stepping on it. (to see an example of trampolining (tbd). And to learn about trampolining click here (tbd)
• More unsightly mahogany striping was evident in front of the grand staircase. Actually there it looked haggard. The edges of the mahogany stripe were worn down. There were gaps that were a major complaint. Unwilling to tolerate these stripes merely being puttied, he wanted those boards replaced.
• Still in more areas he (they) wanted holes eliminated. They were abandoned holes that copper heating pipes passed through from the basement. Once the heat was upgraded these holes stood out. So he wanted those boards tended to, not filled with putty nor plugged with dowels. He wanted a cohesive look with new board material (whether red oak or mahogany to eliminate the abandoned hole once and for all).
• Upstairs he wanted unsightly boards replaced, even though a new runner would be custom made to cover the area.
• Next they wanted to “bling up” a couple transitions to the family room. For the transitions the designer spec’d black marble transitions. Beyond adding bling factor, this would eliminate the putty eyesore that is located in one of the most highly trafficked areas in the home.
• Another transition would be installed after our work was completed in the dining room as well. This would not only ‘bling that up’ as well, it would be more suitable and withstand major foot traffic from the kitchen to the dining room. Obviousy marble would withstand that foot traffic for eons to come.
• Finally, an undiscovered problem, where the red oak would be leveled at the edge to the brick fireplace hearth. It was discovered that the brick fireplace hearth transition edge was uneven, not level and sloppily slapped in. The cement sub structure was too high, affecting the red oak boards up against it. After pointing out the problem to the customers a solution to fix it was provided (to the clients’ delight, and referenced about above)!

So moving forward beyond the previously referenced repairs we continued our transformation. As the cleaning up of all the blemishes up were completed, we readied the floors for sanding and refinishing.

A side bar

By the way, sourcing the vintage material was not like just going to Loews or Home Depot for it. And thankfully there weren’t many boards to source, but we did need to get some from a vintage dealer.

Vintage dealers de-construct rare materials and inventory them for resale. They literally take apart materials, in this case, board by board. And for our purposes we not only needed a similarly aged red oak, we needed it milled just the way the other boards were milled. Using anything less would create an eyesore (and by this time it should be noted, that would not be tolerated)!

So as it turns out, a very few boards were needed. And for others, we cheated (don’t tell the eventual buyers)!

Our repairs continued

The trampolining was fixed, where we stabilized the subfloor, and reinstalled to face boards. The boards no longer bounced when you walked on them.

Next the copper pipe holes were filled in. Then the transition to the brick fireplace was re-engineered. Using a Dremel we ground down the cement pad so the transition lay more flat (which these homeowners never knew was a problem.)

The remaining problems, the transitions, were addressed after our work completed. As mentioned, our designer friend had transitions templated and made out of marble. More suitable for the highest of traffic exposure, these transitions took the place of red oak ones. And now there were installed to withstand the test of time, endlessly!

Satisfied most of the repairs were done on the main floor, our team sanded as the next task.

The refinishing began

The plan, sanding the floors carefully and completely followed. All in all they were sanded about 5 times, with different grits of sandpaper for all areas. First “the field” or main part of the floor was sanded. Then the edges, and hand scraping the corners followed suit.

After that we switched procedures and introduced our special “trio” sander. Continuing the sanding we migrated to the ‘finish sanding’ techniques. Here the floors were sanded to a flatter and smoother level. Just like a baby’s cheeks, these 150 years plus hardwoods were incredibly smooth. The boards were next ready for staining and coating.

The stain color was picked

The homeowners picked a color close to what the boards color had aged to. When the stain was applied the homeowners instantly fell in love with their floors.

The floors were finished and completed

With the repairs done, the blemishes removed, and new crisp accent boards tidied up, they couldn’t wait to see the completed project with the finish applied. As each coat (of Vermont Natural Coatings Poly Whey) was applied the floors became stunningly rich, brilliant and proud once again.

Finally Phase 3

The Grand Stair Cases and Upstairs Hall were transformed.

Call it “rinse and repeat!” The stairs, more labor intensive were done exactly as the main floors. And the upstairs hallway was done as well. Our part of the project was coming to a close, and it was well done!

Seeing the end product on the stairs the homeowners became excited envisioning their new runner soon to be installed. Continuing with our lady client’s passion for everything ‘cheetah,’ the new runner was similar to the one removed before we started.

The results

Bravo! All in all everything had come to a crescendo and final close. The owner clients were over the moon thrilled. Every expectation was met, and exceeded! Upon entry you couldn’t help but be overtaken by its opulence. Again, well done!

The grand entrance’s Floors were stunning!

Gorgeous and brilliant hardwoods once again, they set the tone as one’s senses takes everything in.  Beginning with the entry stairs and being greeted by the floors, your eye next peruses the grandeur of the marble fire places, the crystal chandeliers and the rich decor.’

It was an honor to be entrusted with this opportunity to demonstrate our craft and passion for hardwood floor restoration. Leaving no stone unturned every detail was carefully given the nuance it needed.

At the final presentation to our clients they are about speechless and overcome with joy! The results were over the top! Even our designer friend chimed in, and together the three of them gave us a nod worthy of recognizing!

Well Done!

The floors and opulent architecture were preserved and restored. Together it all showcased a magnificent view of the river from all rooms within that were beautifully transformed! These homeowners are again reminded why they fell in love and made this ‘to die for’ mansion their home. A thirty year love fest, money well spent and a labor of love to show for it, this home is magnificent!

What our designer friend and clients had to say…

To learn more…

• about our hard wood floor refinishing basics click here…
• about vintage hard wood restoration
• see how a dremel helped us fix the fireplace hearth.