How To Refinish Your Hardwood Floors: Sanding the Edges with the Edger

This week, we continue our ongoing series. As always, if you have any questions about any of the information that you're reading here, we're more than happy to answer the questions that you have. We don't expect anyone to get this down 100% with their first try. Hardwood flooring is a delicate and nuanced process that takes years to master. That being said, we'd like to share some of that wisdom when it comes to sanding the edges of your floor.

By this point you can most likely really see your floor coming alive! The main body of the floor looks great, but you still have a very distinctive foot or so of edges around the room that have been untouched. We will take care of this with the next step of the process.

When renting an edger machine, you should receive the power cord and a bag. Put the bag over the rear dust pipe and tie it carefully, double knotting it to make sure dust does not shoot out, or worse, so that the bag doesn’t fly off while the machine is on. Next, install your paper to the rubber edger pad under the machine. We must begin and end our sanding with the same grit sequence as the large belt sander. For this floor we will start off by sanding the entire perimeter with 50 grit and then do another pass with 80 grit. To do this, undo the bolt in the middle of the pad with the wrench that is attached to the back of the edger. Line your paper up onto the middle of the machine and screw your bolt back in tightening it hand tight. Be sure to put the wrench back into the clip at the rear of the machine so you do not misplace it! Your machine should now look something like this with the paper attached.

Place the machine on the floor, hold it tight and lean it back as you flick the switch to turn it on and carefully set the disk onto the floor to begin sanding. The machine is very loud and very aggressive so make sure to not let go and be aware of the noise! It is going to take some getting used to and just like with the belt sander the rental store should give you a quick how-to on using the machine. I recommend focusing on simply removing the finish with the 50 grit paper. Once you finish with the 50 grit pass you must return and do everything with 80 grit, with this grit your main focus is to simply remove the scratches left from the previous 50 grit sanding. I would recommend trying to work in circular motions and putting very little to no pressure on the actual machine, let the machine do the work for you.

Again, I must stress this tutorial is simply meant to guide you, and this is not a tutorial on how to use the actual machines themselves. Although, after a few minutes you should start to get the hang of it fairly quickly. Once you are finished with the 80 grit sanding pass on the edger clean the machine and the bag. Wrap the cord and return it to the rental store with your big belt sander. It’s time for the fine sanding!

How To Refinish Your Hardwood Floors: Begin Sanding with the Large Belt Sander

We continue our hardwood floor refinishing series. We dive into the nitty gritty of belt sanding. This can be intimidating to anyone who doesn't have experience with heavy machinery. A lot can go wrong here if you aren't careful, so we recommend paying extra attention before you begin anything.

This is it, we are ready to begin the project. By now you may have already noticed that your belt sander will not hook up to a regular power outlet in your wall. This is something the rental store should have made very clear as well when renting the machine.

Getting Power to Your Large Belt Sander

You will need to call an electrician to connect the machine straight into your fuse box. DO NOT try attempting this yourself, it is very dangerous, and only experienced professionals should do so.

Your electrician will safely connect the large 3 gauge wire into a breaker, which he will then plug into the main rails in the fuse box. This way, if something shorts, it will simply blow the breaker.

After the wire is connected to the fuse box and you are ready to go, stop before plugging the other end into your belt sander. I’d recommend installing your sanding paper.

Again, every belt sander is different and this is a tutorial on simply guiding you in the technical process of correctly sanding your hardwood flooring; so I will stay out of the details on how to install paper.

Other things I cannot specify: how to sand with the machine. This is not what this guide is meant for and can vary greatly depending on what machine you rented.

Cross-Cutting Your Hardwood Floor

After installing your 50-grit paper and starting the machine, the first step involves cross-cutting the hardwood flooring at a 45-degree angle. Many “how-to’s” do not tell their readers this and I believe it is very misleading.

This is one of the core concepts when sanding a terribly worn and uneven floor. If you do not begin your first sanding pass on a 45-degree angle, the drum of the big sander will simply follow the exact same divots and chatter/low spot marks from the previous sanding process.

Starting on a 45-degree angle with the drum sander eliminates all of these marks and helps in completely evening out the flooring. With this first pass, you should see quite a bit of finish being removed from the floor. Some finish may still remain and that is completely fine.

After completion of the 45-degree angle sanding pass, you will want to turn off the machine and slide on a second brand-new 50-grit belt. This is because when cross-cutting the floor, you must always go back and do your straight pass with the same grit paper to properly remove any scratch marks left from the cross-cutting.

With this next pass, you will want to go completely straight with the hardwood flooring. This is a very aggressive pass and you must be very careful not to create any new drum marks or other sanding marks.

With this pass you should be completely removing all finish off of the floor, if you still see a lot of finish and marks\color remaining on the floor then this is a good indicator that you have unfortunately started with too fine of a grit.

If this occurs, swap belts to a 36 grit and redo the sanding with the 36-grit belt, and follow up again with the 50-grit belt. After completing the room with your 50-grit straight sanding pass, it is time for the final step with the belt sander.

Sanding Inspection and Final Pass

Before this step, I’d recommend to re-empty your bag no matter how little sawdust is actually in it because the sawdust from the lower sanding grits can be a bit heavier and sticker and not mix well in the bag with the finer dust from the lighter papers. This can cause your bag to clog more often.

Now that you are away from your machine it is a good time to inspect the floor after your straight pass with the 50-grit paper. Is all the finish removed? Is the floor still shiny with finish in some spots? If it is, the job is not done.

If you see a lot of finish still left over on the floor and you have not swapped to a 36-grit belt then it is a good idea to slap on another fresh 50-grit belt and do another sanding pass through the entire room to ensure the floor is properly stripped of all of its finish.

This is what your floor SHOULD look like.

This is NOT what your floor should look like.

After emptying your bag, install your fresh 80-grit sanding belt. You must sand the room a third and final time with the 80 grit. Be sure to sand as straight and level as possible, just like with your 50-grit pass.

After this final pass, you are finished with the big belt sander. Be sure to empty the bag and clean the machine to return to the store as you have rented it. It’s time to take care of the edges.

How To Refinish Your Hardwood Floors: Sandpaper and Wood Scrapers

We continue our ongoing series which details just what you need to know if you want to refinish your hardwood floors. This week we're covering everything you need to know about sandpaper and wood scrapers.

Establishing a Grit-Sanding Sequence

Okay, so, you’ve got all of the necessary tools to begin the job. Now what?

Well, now we must establish a grit-sanding sequence that will work best on your floors. We must also determine how many areas you will not be able to reach with the sanding equipment, and how to make sure we are properly equipped to handle those areas.

A key factor to note when starting a project is that we must make sure we start with the correct level of aggressiveness when it comes to our sandpaper. For instance, on some projects, 50 grit may be too dull to start with, however, on other projects 50 grit may be perfect.

This is something I can’t really tell you or educate you on unless I see your floors in person. Every floor is very different. This is where the wisdom that I've built over the years helps. If the floor has NOT been waxed and is in fairly okay condition you should be able to easily start with a 50 grit paper on the edger and belt sander.

To show you an example, this is a project we recently did; on this project, we also started with 50 grit on both the big machine and the edger. 

As you can tell, this floor has got it all as far as wear and imperfection go - scratches and drum marks all over the place. Drum marks are what we call those lines running perpendicular to the rest of the floor. This is caused by improper use of the belt sanding machine.

What Sanding Grit Do I Finish With?

So, we have our starting grit established. What’s next? Well, we must determine our grit sequencing on what grits we will sand with after the 50, and also what grits we will finish with. For this, I have attached this helpful chart in order to help us understand better what a proper grit jump would be, and what an improper grit jump would be.

From this chart, you can tell that if we start with 50 grit we could skip 60, and then sand a second pass with 80 grit on both machines, skip 100 and go to fine sanding on the buffer machine with 120 grit. However, if your floors are really rough you may want to start even lower, let’s say 36 grit.

If you need to start with 36 you’ll have to then go to 50 and finish the process just like we described above. You cannot grit skip from 36 straight to 80, although some professionals may be able to do so because of certain drum pressure settings on their machines and other factors.

It is never recommended for a novice to try and grit skip throughout the sanding sequence. This can cause a variety of issues, the main ones simply being that you will have large scratches and lines running through the entirety of your floor because the 80 grit will not sand out 36 grit marks that the lower grit has left behind.

How to Sand in Tighter Spaces

So we have our sandpaper selection established for the big sanding machine, edger, and buffer. We will sand on both the big machine and edger with 50 grit, and then 80. We will then buff the floor with 120 grit for our final sanding pass.

However, we still have that handheld Random Orbit sander; what do we do with that? We will need to use that to take out edger scratches that the edger machine will leave behind, even after the 80 grit pass. For this, we will need 80 grit for the handheld RO sander. We must also touch base on how much flooring you may not be able to reach with your sanders, which greatly depends on what areas you are sanding.

If you are sanding the hardwood floors in a simple square room, then the only spots that you will not reach are the corners. However, if you are also sanding hardwood flooring in kitchen areas or bathrooms, you may have quite a bit of flooring that you cannot reach behind the sink and under the cabinets.

For this, we will need either a wood scraper or a multi-tool with a triangular head and sandpaper. I’d recommend the multi-tool as it is less physical labor. 

Multi-tool with triangular head piece

Hardwood Flooring Scraper

How To Refinish Your Hardwood Floors: Equipment

Hardwood floor refinishing can be challenging, but it most definitely can be taught. We learned the nuances of our craft over years and we can safely say that experience is something that you can't teach. Hardwood floor refinishing is very much an art. We'd like to let you behind the curtain as we begin a multi-part series that details the ins and outs of hardwood floor refinishing. Look for the other parts of this series to come out in the coming weeks.

Disclaimer

    I’d personally like to just start off by saying; this article is meant to educate you, the home owner, on HOW to refinish your hardwood floors and the procedures necessary that must be taken to end up with a professional looking product after the work is complete. This is, however, NOT an article meant to teach you how the machines work or how to use them. This is plainly and simply meant to be a step by step guide on what machines you need to rent, and what sandpaper you need to use to end up with a floor you will be happy with when all is completed. I, nor my company, am not responsible for whatever damage you may do to your hardwood floor in attempting a refinishing project. This is a large risk for the first time user; please remember that woodworking is a skill that takes years to get good at, and a lifetime to master. Also, this guide is meant for a NATURAL refinishing; meaning sanding the floor down and applying finish for a light looking appearance. Staining requires much more steps and sanding, and is genuinely best left to be done by professionals. 

Chapter 1: Equipment 

Before beginning your project, it is important to know which tools you're going to need as well as what you're not going to need. I know many of you were sitting here thinking, “Right, I’ll be on my way to Home Depot this afternoon to rent all of the equipment and begin my sanding”. Home Depot is THE LAST place you should do your shopping when it comes to hardwood flooring. You should be consulting a hardwood flooring store that specializes in just flooring supplies and equipment rentals. There are many in all areas of the country - I'm not going to recommend any specific ones.

Let’s begin with why you shouldn’t go to Home Depot. Though it may be tempting with the rates they have on tool rentals, the simple fact is they DO NOT have the tools you need for a proper refinishing job. The single most important tool needed for hardwood floor refinishing is a 220Wat Belt Sanding Machine, also referred to as a “Big Machine” or “Belt Sander”. Home Depot will usually try to sell you on one of these beautiful little monstrosities and expect you to refinish the entire project with it:

This is a tool that, if used at all, should be used towards the very end of a sanding process. They may also try to sell you on a 110Volt smaller drum sander. Do not, I repeat, do not fall for this. If you DO manage to sand your floor with it, the project will literally take triple the amount of time and sandpaper to complete properly.

The first tool that you should be looking for is made by a variety of manufacturers; Lagler, Bona, Clarke, and Galaxy all make a big belt sander and each has its own upsides and downsides. However, whichever sander your local rental flooring store has will do the job just fine. Again, CHECK TO SEE IT IS IN FACT A 220WAT SANDER. Below is a picture of the Lagler Hummel. It is often seen as the industry leader in belt sanders. The dust collection is so spectacular on this particular machine that disconnecting the bag and replacing it with a vacuum machine often cripples the dust collection and makes it worse rather than better.

The next piece of equipment you will need is called an “Edger Machine”. This, again, is a very important piece of equipment that the job cannot be properly completed without. The Clarke Super 7R is the industry leader in these machines, and most flooring rental stores will have many readily available and, in most cases, even Home Depot has started offering these as a rental option.

Other important pieces of equipment you will also need: an Orbital Palm Sander, and an Industrial Grade Vacuum. These come in a variety of configurations and a surprising amount of households have them in their garage. 

A Festool Industrial Strength Vacuum

The final piece of equipment is going to be an orbital buffer. Orbital buffers are actually quite tricky to use properly so make sure to review an documentation that comes with the rental of this machine. An instruction video will do wonders for you before you begin the refinishing process.

Two Hardwood Flooring Trends in 2016

It's already April and we think that we've had long enough to see a couple trends happening already happening in 2016. Hardwood floors are all about style. The right shade of stain can make or break a room for years to come. Because hardwood floor refinishing is a labor intensive process, you don't have very many opportunities to try different things. That's why we typically recommend going a little conservative with any color choices you make for your hardwood floors. That said, here are two looks that nearly every customer is asking for.

Dark and Wide

Nearly every customer we do work for these days is leaning towards a darker stain for their hardwood floors. There can be many reasons for something like this, but the likeliest culprit is probably that lighter stains were so popular for so long. Dark stains are very mature and elegant. They add a formal feel to any room. That formality can be contrasted with a warm feeling however.

Alternate Sized Planks add wonderful variety to a living room.

Wide planks are really popular in 2016. These "wide floors" are reminiscent of farm houses and offer a warm feeling that we find a lot of families loving. We have to say that we love the look as well and it's definitely something different. Our customers seem to be more willing to experiment with alternative widths and sizes as opposed to just to stain color.

A Few Tips for Kitchens with Hardwood Floors

Hardwood flooring in a kitchen has always been one of the those topics that gets people riled up. There are some people who really don't think the kitchen is a place for hardwood floors while there are others who think the kitchen is the perfect home for hardwood floors. As with most things, it comes down to the type of person you are and what kind of living situation you are in. 

We are of the fundamental belief that a kitchen is a great place for a hardwood floor. If the rest of your home is hardwood flooring, the open layout that a constant hardwood floor provides is fantastic. The uniformity of having only one floor type is a nice aesthetic that most homeowner enjoys for years to come. We haven't even brought up how much easier it is to maintain only one floor type vs two or three different ones. 

We do have a couple things that we think you should look out for if you decide to have hardwood floors in your kitchen.

Watch out For Moisture

We feel like a broken record, but moisture really is the timeless enemy of hardwood floors. Simply drying up a spill quickly instead of waiting is going to make a world of a difference as time passes on. A mat underneath your kitchen sink to protect against spills there is going to be a great way to keep your floors dry.

Be Careful With Rugs

Rugs are great to add a bit of character you any hardwood floor but you have to watch out for the sun. Kitchens are typically covered in a lot of natural light. Hardwood floors that have rugs on them can end of with dark circles where you have your rugs if you're not careful. This effect is more prevalent with floors that have darker stains. Hardwood floors have a very real reaction to the sun so it's best to be cognizant of how the sun is interacting with your hardwood floor int he kitchen.

Don't Worry About The Wear and Tear Too Much

Hardwood floors are meant to be lived on. Kitchens are typically some of the most heavily trafficked areas in any home. As long as you take reasonable care of the floor in the kitchen, you won't be in too much trouble after some scratching and dings. You're going to have to refinish your whole floor anyway, and the kitchen is going to go along for the ride. The only thing that would require actual plank replacement is a liquid spill that sits for too long. 

3 Reasons Hardwood Floors Are Great For Families

Hardwood floors and families are like two peas in a pod. We've seen all kinds of families with hardwood floors, and we've yet to see an instance where hardwood floors were a bad idea. From families with toddlers to families with pets, hardwood floors are a great idea for any family.

Easy To Clean

Hardwood floors are easy to clean as long as you're relatively quick to get to any stain. Hardwood floors that are properly installed are going to be very resilient to all kinds of spills. As a responsible homeowner, you have to make sure to get to spills quickly and dry them. This goes double for pet stains. The acidity in pet urine can permanently damage a floor if not handled in a timely manner. 

A simple pass with a cleaning solution every week or so is going to ensure that your hardwood floors are going to look great for years to come. Your floors are also not going to smell bad like carpet does after a few years. If you have a pet, your carpets will smell up until the moment you replace those carpets. There really isn't anywhere for that smell to sit in a hardwood floor. If weird smells are a concern, hardwood floors are your answer.

Kids with Allergies Will Thank You

Carpeted floors are going to collect dust no matter how many times you vacuum. It's not uncommon to see children with allergies suffer in homes that are predominately carpeted. Hardwood floors can alleviate the problem as the dust is not going to have anywhere to collect. It's very easy to spot any dust sitting on the surface. A quick pass with a Swiffer and you're done.

Flexible

Do you need something a little "warmer" for the winter? A rug is a great temporary solution. Your toddler is beginning to crawl around the house? a rug here and there is going to make his world a little softer. You can enjoy the benefits of softer floors without having to commit to them permanently. A hardwood floor is going to look elegant all times of year and for years to come. A hardwood floor can be refinished and re-stained if you feel like a different color.

We hope we gave you a few ideas to consider. Hardwood floors and families can work very well. We've run into a few customers that wanted to carpet the entire home because they were worried about temporary problems. We're here to tell you that it's only temporary. As alway, if you have any questions, don't be afraid to contact us. Have a nice day.

3 Myths About Hardwood Floors

There is a lot of misinformation surrounding the topic of hardwood floors. It's natural for half-truths to form around a topic like hardwood floors because it's not something that most homeowners deal with a lot. By that, we mean that most homeowners seek out professional help when they need some work done to their hardwood floors. When we talk to our customers for the first time, a lot of the same types of myths come up. We'd like to mention some of them in the hopes that you can avoid falling in some of the most common traps.

Hardwood Floors are Expensive

Sure, the initial upfront cost can be a little bit of an eye opener for some, but there's a little but more to the price of a hardwood floor than meets the eye. Hardwood floors are going to last years - decades even. Proper care and maintenance are going to ensure that hardwood floors last a typical family for the majority of their life there. Wood is incredibly durable and can be refinished many times during its life. 

Hardwood Floors are Difficult to Maintain

We often hear from customers that they fear the care and maintenance that goes into owning a home with hardwood floors. There really isn't much to worry about. The biggest thing to avoid is going to be pet stains. Pet stains can permanently damage wood, so make sure to take care of those as quickly as possible! Other than that, simple hardwood floor cleaner will ensure that the finish on your floors is looking incredible for years to come. 

Hardwood Floors are a Money Sink

We often hear from potential customers that they are worried that hardwood floors are a money sink. Hardwood floors are an incredible investment. Homes with hardwood floors sell faster and get higher offers. We occasionally work on homes that were recently involved in a real estate transaction. We like to talk with real estate agents because we're fascinated with the housing market and we've never had an agent tell us that hardwood floors are a bad idea. Sure, they can be expensive up front, but you get to enjoy them and then recoup a decent amount of the cost when you sell your home. 

We hope we were able to shed some light on some of these topics for you. If you have any questions or you'd like to request a free estimate, don't hesitate to contact us.

Hardwood Floors vs Carpet - 3 Things You Should Know

Homeowners will often have a choice between hardwood floors and carpet at some point during their ownership. Carpet and hardwood floors are two very different products that can completely change the look and feel of a home. We think there are a few things you should know before you make a decision.

Hardwood floors and nice carpet are similar in price.

We often hear people tell us that they were thinking about going with carpet in a certain room because they thought that it was going to be cheaper. Low quality carpet can definitely be cheaper. The problem is that it's low quality. High quality carpet requires high quality padding to go underneath the carpet as well. The price can quickly escalate if you factor in the price of the padding. 

Hardwood is easier to maintain.

Carpets need to be vacuumed constantly. Dust build up can make your family sick over time. Dust becomes a serious problem if you have pets in the house. Hardwood floors are fairly easy to maintain. A simple hardwood floor cleaner will keep your floors looking great for years to come.

The return on investment for hardwood is higher than carpet.

We see it time and time again - a customer puts new hardwood floors in a home or refinishes the old floors, and they put it on the market soon after we're done. Hardwood floors demand higher prices when you put that home up for sale. Buyers immediately notice hardwood floors when they walk into a room. Nice carpets can work in certain rooms, especially basements, but don't forget about the "wow" factor that a hardwood floor is going to give your home.

Hardwood Flooring Disasters: Pet Stains

A lot of our customers have pets. It's a common thing in the United States. We even have pets ourselves! Unfortunately, pets and hardwood floors don't necessarily mix well. To be more specific, we're talking about urine stains from pets. It doesn't seem like it would be a huge deal, but it could wreak havoc on your hardwood floors. Read after the break to see why.

It's not uncommon to see a pet become a member of the family. Our customers love their pets that much. We're here to tell you that you're going to have to be careful if you have a pet, but it's completely doable. Follow these simple instructions to make sure that your beautiful hardwood floors stay beautiful.

Keep that floor clean!

Pets can have accidents that aren't brought to your attention right away. Try to take care of the accident as soon as possible. Time is going to be of the essence here. Clean up whatever you can with a paper towel and then crack out the vinegar and baking soda. These will help with and residual urine and also help with the smell. 

Time is going to be the most important factor here. If you can get to it quickly, you're going to have a chance to fixing those floors. If the accident sits too long, you're going to have a decision to make. Pet stains are acidic and will soak into the wood for eternity. No amount of cleaning solution is going to help you. Believe us. Sanding it down won't even help. You're always going to see it. In these cases, you have to replace the individual planks and then sand down the entire floor.

As a little side note, lots of our customers have carpet covering their hardwood floors. We're usually asked to come in and remove the carpet and refinish the old hardwood floors. We can't even tell you how many times we pull up the carpet to see a completely ruined floor.

A carpet will not stop pet urine and it will soak through to the hardwood. It's also going to leave a nasty smell, but that's another story. 

We hope these tips help you with your hardwood floor maintenance. Cats and dogs are awesome, but you're going to have to be a little vigilant with them if you want to have pristine hardwood floors in the same home.

Plus Hardwood Flooring - NWFA Member

It's been a special week at Plus Hardwood Flooring. We are official members of the NWFA. The National Wood Flooring Association is an incredible organization dedicated to making sure that hardwood floor companies across the country maintain a level of excellence that is respected by the best that the hardwood flooring community has to offer. 

There are all types of hardwood floor companies. Some are a little more professional that others. Membership with the NWFA is something that only the most dedicated hardwood flooring companies in the country take the time to sort out. We're excited to finally be a part of the one hardwood flooring group in the country that is nationally respected.

The National Wood Flooring Association offers some incredible resources on their website. We always encourage our customers to go there if that have general hardwood flooring questions as the NWFA is a valuable resource. They run the website - woodfloors.org which is a consumer facing hardwood flooring resource that anyone can use to learn about what goes into proper hardwood flooring.

We're excited to finally be apart of this group, and we're excited to meet other hardwood flooring men in the community through this group. We are looking to travel to the Hardwood  Flooring Convention April 2016 to experience some of the latest techniques in hardwood flooring so that we can stay ahead of the competition. 

5 Reasons To Finally Refinish Your Hardwood Floors This Year

At Plus Hardwood Flooring, we take hardwood floors very seriously as you can imagine. Feel free to look at some of our past work to see what we mean. We love what we do and we love doing this work for our customers. We often have our customers remark on how enthusiastic we are about hardwood floors, and we tell them that we're only like this because we know that we're some of the top professionals in the Chicago area. We're giving you some reasons to consider refinishing or installing new hardwood floors this year.

Increase The Value Of Your Home

Hardwood floors are incredibly valuable if you plan on selling your home sometime this year. Hardwood floors are the first thing that someone is going to notice when they walk into a home. Make that first impression a great one with newly refinished hardwood floors. With the real estate market picking up, now is the time to get this done if you've been thinking about it for a while.

Do It For Yourself

A lot of our customers tell us how long they've been putting a project like this off. We understand that it's a big decision in any homeowners life, but it's about time that you had floors that you're proud of anytime you look at them. With any big decision in your life, make sure you choose a vetted professional that will work with you to get the floors that you've been dreaming of.

Spring Time Is The Beginning Of Our Season

We start to get really busy in the next few months. We always hate turning down work, but it has to happen sometimes. We get booked very quickly once Chicago gets a hint of Spring. We know that we're not the same either. If you call a a hardwood flooring professional in the middle of the summer and they're not busy, that may be a sign that they're not in high demand. The best hardwood flooring professionals are going to start getting very busy so get a hold of them while you still can!

You'll Have Beautiful Floors For Years

Newly refinished hardwood floors are going to last you years. If you take proper care of them during that time, you're going to have floors that look great for years to come. It's definitely an investment, but it's an investment nearly everyone we speak to is happy they made.

Hardwood Floors Look So Much Nicer Than Carpet

This is obviously biased, but you're going to be hard pressed to find someone that thinks hardwood floors don't look better than carpet. Carpet has it's place, but we've always been proponents of hardwood floors in homes with children and pets. Hardwood floors are so much easier to clean as well.

Hardwood Floor Profiles: Ash

This week, we continue our hardwood flooring profiles series with a new wood - ash. We like working with Ash because it's not something that is very common in the Midwest when it comes to hardwood floors. Part of this is simply because people don't know much about this wood. We can assure you that it's a great and we'd love to tell you why.

Ash is a naturally light wood that you'll know from baseball bats. That's right, baseball bats are almost always built using ash because it gives great "bounce" on impact. Ash is a nice and light wood that has many applications. 

In terms of flooring characteristics, ash is great when you want to use stains. Ash is very absorbent and blends well with a lot of stains. If you're thinking of staining your floors, then consider ash. Ash is naturally really light and we find it to be gorgeous without stain. It's personal preference, but ash allows for flexibility in this regard.

One of the downsides of ash is that it's a little on the expensive side. Most of the cost surrounding ash has to do with the fact that it's not a really popular wood. Ash isn't exactly exotic, so it's price is unfortunate. Still, you should always check first because we find that the price of ash can fluctuate a lot.

Spring Cleaning and Fresh Hardwood Floors

It's bitterly cold out there, but we all know that Spring is going to be here before we all know it. This could very well be the year that you finally do the hardwood floors you've been meaning to do for years now. Why not knock two birds out with one stone and get your floors done as well at clean the entire house?

We happen to be a professional hardwood flooring service if you haven't heard. We do some of the best floors in the Chicagoland area. Spring is all about new beginnings, why not start from the ground up?

Cleaning the entire house this Spring is a great way to welcome the warmer weather. There's going to be a ton of commotion at your house while you do this, so why not get your floors done at the same time? Fresh floors in 2016 is a gift to yourself that keeps on giving all year long.

Someone is ready for Spring. Are you?

We're starting to get busy, so if you'd like to work with us, start the conversation with us soon. Once the season ramps up. it may be hard to schedule a time slot with some of your favorite hardwood floor companies. 

These really are the final few weeks before we start to get really busy. Summer is nonstop work because people tend to like to do bug home improvement jobs during the warmer months. While this is very understandable, it makes it difficult to service everyone that would like their floors done. It's not just us, hardwood floor companies all over the Chicagoland are experience the same penomenom.

Hardwood Floor Profiles: Maple

Maple is a personal favorite of ours. Maple can be stained in various colors that are going to impress any guests you have in your home. We love Maple for its hardness and durability. We have it in our own homes and can wholeheartedly recommend it to any one of our customers.

Maple is great for any family that is going to beat on their floors. Maple has a Janka rating of 1450, which is pretty tough. Maple floors will be resistant to a pet such as a dog. Children can also have massive wear and tear effects on a floor, so Maple might be the right choice in that scenario.

Maple grows mostly in North America and Canada. These floors are going to have a pale complexion. Maple grain is very light, and it is actually difficult to see in most situations. This gives the wood a very "clean" attribute. Maple floors are not very busy, which is a look that some customers are going to prefer.

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It can actually be difficult to work with Maple because if its unique characteristics. A Maple floor can quickly turn blotchy if it not prepares adequately ahead of time. We recommend contacting a professional before you start working on this floor. It would be a tragedy to have such a gorgeous wood ruined due to lack of preparation.

Reclaimed Maple Floors

Plus Hardwood Flooring Saves The Day

Sometimes, it's our job to come into a home and fix a problem that we didn't cause. This happens all the time because unfortunately, many professionals in the industry simply don't have the skills that they advertise. It always pains us to see a homeowner wasting their precious time with someone who clearly isn't a professional, but that's the way this industry works sometimes. Read on if you'd like to make sure that this doesn't happen to you.

We recently got a call from some distressed homeowners who were not happy with the work that their previous floor man had done. We figured that it couldn't be that bad, but we were wrong.

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As you can see, it's not a pretty sight. No one wants to pay thousands of dollars to have their floors turn out like this. The uneven finish and visible scratch marks are awful. We can't imagine what kind of person wouldn't be ashamed of this. It makes the entire industry look bad.

We got to work as soon as possible and tried to fix it as best we could. Luckily for the homeowners, we could sand this down and apply a new stain. In a lot of instances, the floor will be so messed up by the previous floor man that we would have to literally replace the floor with fresh would. This only happens if mistakes are made during the sanding process and the floor is scratched deeply.

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We're really happy with how everything turned out. Most importantly, the homeowners were ecstatic. That's why we do this. We love coming into a home and making something beautiful happen. Each of our jobs is a different story and a new experience.

We hope you can see the difference between an average floor man who might have a low price and the professional company that makes sure everything is right the first time. If you have any questions or hardwood flooring needs, we are always here. We are true professionals and have the work to prove it!

New Year, New Floors

It may be cold outside, but we all know that spring is going to be here before you know it. With Spring comes a Summer that gets here before we know it. Now is the time to start making plans for any home improvement that you've been putting off for years. Home improvement is daunting for nearly everyone. Do your research and start now if you plan on doing anything construction related in your home this year.

Plan Now

This is the time to begin planning. It's still January, but the summer is going to get here before you know it. If wait until then to start anything large, you're going to be kicking yourself once it starts to get cold again.

Always Plan For More

Large projects like home remodeling always end up being bigger than your first imagine. That's simply the nature of it all. One things leads to another, and before you know it, you're redoing the hardwood floors in the whole house. Give yourself a buffer and don't anticipate getting everything done within the initial time frame you set.

Don't Trust Time Tables Contractors Give You

This is fairly straightforward. Contractors are notoriously bad at giving accurate time frames. It's nearly impossible to anticipate everything going wrong once a job gets big enough.

The Real Estate Market Is Coming Back

This may be the year that you want to sell your home. Lots of folks ended up staying in a place that they didn't think was ideal because of the economic downturn in 2007. The real estate market is back now, and we're seeing people moving for the first time in years. A new hardwood floor is going to make you stand out in a neighborhood once the competition gets going. Brand new hardwood floors leave an impression because it's usually the first thing people notice when they enter a home. Make your home stand out.

We hope these tips help you in your home construction efforts in 2016. If you'd like to begin the conversation, we're always happy to talk and help you with any hardwood flooring needs you might have. Remember, the first step if first contact.

Hardwood Floor Profiles: Maple

This week, we're going to be focusing on maple hardwood floors. Maple has a very distinct elegance to it that immediately attracts homeowners that are looking to add a level of seriousness to their space. We love working with maple as it is a "regal" wood. It definitely has a richness and fullness that you're hard pressed to find in any other type of wood.

Maple floors can be stained to be very dark which is a major seller for some people. We also love how easy maple is to maintain. You can easily sweep dust off of the surface to ensure a glowing floor all year long. This versatility is incredibly useful if you're looking for something that doesn't require constant care. Water and floor cleaner can make maple floors look brand new for an incredibly long time. Regular buffing is recommended so that the maple floors maintain their elegance for years to come.

There are some downsides to this elegant wood as well. Maple does not hold up incredibly well in heat and humidity. Rapid temperature changes can cause maple floors to warp and split. Admittedly, these tend to be extreme cases, but we have seen it happen from time to time. Midwest summers can be incredibly humid, so a dehumidifier may be a wise choice. A dehumidifier seems like an easy investment to make once you factor in the full price of a pristine maple floor. Protecting your investment is nearly as important as choosing to make that investment in the first place. 

Lighter maple floors tend to shows scratches more so than their darker counterparts. However, this can be said of most floor types. Darker stains are capable of hiding scratches should they ever occur. It can be a good idea to install maple floors in an area of the house that doesn't see a great deal of traffic. Maple floors can make any space look incredibly elegant. It only make sense to protect that investment to the best of your ability. Maple floors can also be pricey which turns some homeowners off.

Maple floors can last years if maintained properly. They really do add a "wow" factor to any space they are installed in. If you have any questions about maple floors, or if you've got questions about other woods, don't be afraid to ask. We're here to help.

Hardwood Floor Profiles: Bamboo

Bamboo is wood that many people are familiar with, but they forget about how it looks on a floor. In recent years, bamboo floors have gained traction in the market and they are now a major seller with those seeking to create modern looks for their homes. We find bamboo to be a particularly fascinating wood choice which has obvious upsides as well as downsides. Read on to see what we're talking about.

It's oozing with modernity.

Bamboo can instantly give any room a modern look. Due to its uncommon patterns and interesting stain blending, a bamboo floor is going to give every room a look that more traditional hardwood floor choices simply cannot match. We love bamboo for its uniqueness and modernity. We've had a few customers decide to go with bamboo floors in their homes, and they've been happy with the result every time. Mind you, they were hesitant throughout the installation because of how different a bamboo floor looks, but they were happy nonetheless. These floors seem to be a hit with the younger demographics.

Bamboo is extremely stable and long lasting. This is no exception when it comes time to putting bamboo on the ground. Many are familiar with how quickly bamboo grows, but many are quick to gloss over the fact that bamboo is actually and incredibly hard wood that with resist scratches for years to come. This is stark contrast to another floor that we profiled a few weeks ago - pine. 

Pros

- Bamboo is biodegradable which makes it environmentally friendly.
- Very durable and scratch resistant.
- Bamboo is easy to clean. 

If you're going for a more traditional look in your home, it may be best to steer clear of bamboo. It looks too modern for a lot of older homes, but we're all about pushing the human race forward here at Plus Hardwood Flooring. That being said, we've grown to understand that it's usually wise to be conservative when it comes to major home design decisions. It's every home owners nightmare to realize they've made a massive mistake when it comes to a design decision as these tend to not be reversible. 

Cons

- Bamboo can be expensive if you want quality wood.
- Bamboo can discolor easily, especially if exposed to prolonged direct sunlight.
- If bamboo experiences a spill, it needs to be taken care of quickly.

However, from our experience, we find that our happiest customers are the ones who take risks within reason. No matter who you are, we hope you found this informative and encourage you to contact us if you have any further questions.

We're So Close To 500 Facebook Page Likes!

The Plus Hardwood Flooring Facebook page is so incredibly close to acquiring 500 likes! It's been a long journey, but we're incredibly proud to have this many fans on Facebook. It wasn't too long ago that it would be normal for most small business to not have any online presence. The times have changed inconceivably over the past decade. Everyone is expected to have a website and some social media presence. We accepted the challenge and we're proud of what we've built.

2016 is going to be a year of growth. We want to expand our online presence and make it easier than ever for customers to interact with us via all forms of communication. A phone number alone isn't going to cut it anymore. So many of our customers prefer to use only email or text messages in order to complete a project. We like accommodating our clients because it makes the process more seamless than its ever been. 

Our web traffic grew orders of magnitude last year. We attracted more business via internet channels last year than every other year combined for as long as Plus Hardwood Flooring has existed. We look forward to more growth this year than ever before.

The fact of the matter is that small business owners have to be flexible. Every customer is going to want things done a little differently. Technology is a tool that lets us do that and we think that we use technology than anyone else in our business. 

500 Facebook Page likes may seem like small milestone compared to some of the businesses out there on Facebook, but this growth has occurred mostly over the past year. The best part is that it's accelerating.  We don't think this happen if the work didn't speak for itself. 

If you're reading this and haven't given our Facebook page a "like", then please consider it. It would mean more than you can possibly imagine.

Here's to a great 2016!