Hardwood Flooring Installation | Artistic Floors by Design

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

If you’ve got an ugly floor, look no further than Artistic Floors by Design to assist with your home improvement. We are literally saving the world from ugly, one wood floor at a time! So what happens after you have decided you are ready for your dream home? Here’s what’s next.

GETTING STARTED

The first thing we do is place your project onto our production calendar and order materials for delivery. This is usually scheduled 1-2 weeks before the start of your project. Materials are delivered by a reputable bonded and insured distribution company. Bundles of tongue and groove flooring materials and all other sundries (finish, sandpaper, etc.) are placed inside the home to acclimate to normal living conditions (this prevents the materials from expanding and contracting if the environment is consistent). All materials are stacked at safe heights (no more than knee or hip level) and placed on top of existing hardwood flooring. I email you one- and two-week reminders prior to the project start date and, as we get closer to production, Joe emails you an introduction to the technicians assigned to your project for the duration.

Our workday is typically 8am-4pm with a few breaks, including lunch. As a general guideline, we estimate approximately 300 square feet of installation or sanding work per day. So, if you hire Artistic Floors by Design to install approximately 600 square feet and you already have 600 square feet of existing hardwood flooring, a good estimate for timeframe (including demolition of other floor coverings) is about 9-10 weekdays:

1 day-demolition
2 days-installation
4 days-sand1 day-color
2 days-finish

Room configurations and weather can have an impact on our time frames as well.

DEMOLITION AND INSTALLATION

On day one, you’ll meet our technicians if you choose to be home. Some of our clients prefer to be out of town. If you’re sensitive to sounds, smells, or you don’t like containing pets or restricting children to specific areas of your home, we recommend you take a trip. Our company is insured and you have the advantage of coming home to a completely transformed home environment!

Demolition includes a dumpster, which is delivered onto your driveway. You can select which side of the drive, but we cannot park it on the street. Most of the dumpsters we rent are smaller than a car, as you can see from this image of the container and our van. We use the dumpster to haul away your old floor coverings, wood flooring that is cut too small to reuse, and dust/debris from scraping in corners and other hard-to-reach areas as well as dust containment bags from our Lagler machines.

Unless you choose a different option, we make every effort to lace into your existing hardwood floors with the same species and grade (character) of wood that’s currently in your home.

Installation of hardwood commences with sub floor preparation (scraping seams and removing drywall or high spots), and installation of approved vapor barrier (red rosin paper, roofing felt are NOT approved vapor barriers). Sold hardwood flooring should be installed perpendicular to floor joists, blind nailing every 6-8″ with a flooring nailer on each piece of flooring, nailing the boards, on the perimeter with a expansion gap, with nail guns and face nailing.

SANDING AND COLORING

After installation, we wood putty nail holes and any small cracks, then we begin sanding with our Lagler Hummel—the big machine. Following the big machine, the Lagler Trio makes the whole floor more flat. Our technicians edge and scrape all corners so everything looks consistent throughout. Usually while we are sanding, we apply sample colors (with finish) so you can choose the best color for your home’s design.

It always helps us to have some color direction from you prior to the start of the project. I recommend you visit our professional profile on Houzz.com and review of projects or search for keywords like “dark brown oak floors” or “gray wood floors.” Emailing us which color you prefer helps us ensure we’re on the same page.

Most colors and finishes take a few hours to dry, so if you are staying home at the end of the project, be sure you check to find out when your home is accessible. If there is hardwood at all entries, be sure to confirm the wood floors are dry. The floors shown here have stain and a first coat of finish. Notice they’re not yet dry! Baseboards and shoe moulding are replaced before the final coat is applied.

Cure times are different from dry times! Just like fingernail polish, ladies: when you get a manicure, even though your polish is dry to the touch, you don’t reach in your purse for your keys! And if you get a pedi, you wear flip flops for a certain amount of time. Finish technology has improved tremendously, but it’s still important to wear socks for three days and keep pets off the curing floors. Furniture can be moved back after a few days but we recommend waiting five full days before large rugs are placed back in the living areas.

THE FINISH LINE

Final payment is due upon completion of the work. Once I receive your payment, I’ll send you a receipt showing you’ve paid in full. Once you review Artistic Floors by Design, regardless of a positive or negative testimonial, I’ll deliver cleaning and care items. This is a relationship; remember, most floors look good on day one, but we want to continue to stay in touch with you so they look beautiful for years to come!