I am once again calling upon all my friends here, and the wealth of knowledge you possess. If you’re just a visitor, or even if you hate me (how is that even possible), I could still use your help.
The house is officially off the market as of Thanksgiving Day. The listing, imho, is officially “stale”. We are going to wait 90 days, and hopefully the days-on-market will reset to zero.
One of the things virtually everyone asked; “Are there wood floors under the carpet?”. The answer is yes, and we were getting sick and tired of the question. It appears to us that virtually no one likes carpet anymore.
I want to eliminate that yuge objection.
So, I want the living room and hallway carpet ripped up and the wood floor refinished. I want the wood floor in the dining room (uncarpeted) refinished. About 800 square feet.
I have ZERO experience in such things. Been checking out some DIY vids and articles. DIY is a whole lot cheaper than contracting it out. It looks fairly straight-forward and uncomplicated. Of course, I said the same thing about staining concrete, and that was a clusterfuck.
Q: For folks with actual experience, should I do it myself or hire it out?
Many thanks in advance.
Hire it out, get prices, many they can vary greatly.
Just so you know when sanding and you hit a nail, you will curse the day you were born, re-punching nails, and filling is no fun. HIRE IT OUT.
You’ve Been Warned
Bob
Stucky,agree with Bob,hire out especially as home for sale.I am a carpenter(and licensed builder/supervisor,I know,real impressive hey!),and would definitely go with a pro.The bad news maybe that the floors have been re-sanded 2-3 times already and have no more life to sand and poly,don’t know the history of your home.I would say if this is the case,have the nicest carpeting possible or,refloor the place.This was my own place,no time limits would tackle meself as do it when I can devote the time/fix boo-boo’s ect.,not though when trying to sell.
Talk to everyone you know,ask if they had their floors redone and how they liked them,this way can see the work and finished product with some time behind them,as Bob said,get a few estimates that include sanding,any minor fill/repairs needed/how many coats poly(2 minimum)ec
Have you ever seen the floors,perhaps just a light scuff and coat of poly be enuff,but,till the rugs up and looked at do not know what you have and cannot get a firm quote.You will want to be out of home a few days while the poly dries and then,have a firmshoes at the door policy with a shoe/boot box ect.,good luck.
I’m one of those people who hate carpet. I prefer hardwood floors and area rugs. But I’d recommend hiring a professional. Hardwood floors isn’t something you’ll want to cheap out on or mess up.
A relatively cheap upgrade, definitely worth it. Compared to concrete staining, a walk in the park. I’m not that handy, but sanding and refinishing floors is a very doable project. And you will love the results.
I agree, don’t be a pussy if the floors aren’t punky.
Redid the Doug Fir floors in my place in Idaho, people before had BIG dogs. Peeled carpet, rented a floor sander. Sanded three smaller rooms in a day.
Peel the carpet and floor trim so you don’t fuck it up and get closer to the wall. Use a nail-set to pound down any nails sticking up. Sand while MOVING so you don’t dig in. Vacuum, fill cracks/holes with wood putty. Finish.
I finished with Tung Oil, wiped it in good and even. Johnson floor waxed it after drying, Used a $20 buffer to shine it up. Looked like a million bucks.
Old school, but worked well.
BTW, also pointed and glazed all the windows, repainted the kitchen cabinets, replaced cedar shingles, repainted the outside of the house and 2-car carage, severely trimmed the Siberian Elm in the yard, removed the beat up chicken coop, repaired and painted walls that weren’t paneled, and dug through 4 feet of river rock the empty the septic tank to sell that house, but it wasn’t that bad, grand total of about $750 back in 2006.
But what the fuck do I know, I’m just a dumb Yooper Finlander that can’t afford to pay anyone else to do stuff, so I do it myself.
I guess what I’m saying is if you can field-strip and clean your weapon of choice, you can do this. Otherwise, your slip is showing, Nancy.
Question. Are you prone too fits of rage? Do you throw things when frustrated? If your answer is no then you would be fine doing it yourself. It just takes patience and a lot of work cleaning the old finish off around the perimeter of the rooms.
One more thing Stucky, If you fuck it up, say sand too deep in one area, all is not lost. Just repeat your “mistake” throughout the rest of the flooring then beat the floor with random objects until it is thoroughly fucked up. Just make sure there are no splinters. Apply your stain and finish as is, then call it “distressed” and increase your asking price for the house. You’ll sell it in no time.
How to distress a hardwood floor.
Fucken hilarious.
That is the “process” used on Ethan Allen furniture.
No, it isn’t a first timer type job. Too many areas for screwing it up unless you have a very deep well of carpentry/woodworking skills to draw from.
Find a pro with a good reputation if you are going that route.
HSF, Stucky is not your average man. 🙂 He would have no problems.
Edit: YOUTUBE is your friend.
Stucky, love you like a brother, but there are some DIY projects you should NEVER attempt.
1) Wallpapering, esp with a spouse that is 1 1/2 feet taller than you. Trust me, wallpaper glue in your hair is not easy to get out.
2) Laying flooring, unless you are at most 5 feet tall and you still value your knee caps and lumbar spine.
3) Roofing. Cuz, well, heights and gravity are not your friends.
You can get it cheaper if you do the prep work like you are doing and buy the materials yourself and get the nice guys at Home Depot to put it down. It might cost you a case of beer or a fifth of really good whiskey but it is money well spent.
Stuck,
The hardwood floor craze is 20yrs old. Our last house? No hardwood underneath,
so question? Install hardwood or replace carpet…The cost of “good hardwood” eg
cherry or even top oak, was 25-35K. We installed fab new carpeting, area rug on
top. Kirby vacs will dedust carpet…which I had.
By all means hire out. Get bids and pics of their work. A buncha guys hustling will
have your floors shining and new in no time. Do it yourself? DON’T.
Everybody I know/knew did hardwood refinishing and everyone was happy with it.
Get the best company…If they do goof it up somehow, they are responsible for repair.
The professional equipment alone is worth it. Mrs. Freud will totally freak at the amt.
of dust the process creates. The best machines have vacs integrated so that will reduce
the dust storm. If it is possible, send your wife on vacation for a week. Once my Mr.
had the entire house repainted while I was on vacation. Took pics of my arrangements
and put everything back in place perfectly.
If you do it yourself? Be prepared for weeks of hell.
Stucky,
We ran into the same thing in the last house right before we sold it. It had the original hardwood under the carpet. Problem was the wood was not thick enough to sand again. Fortunately the wood was in good enough condition to take the carpet up. We cleaned the wood with a good hardwood cleaner then oiled it up by hand right before we put it on the market. We repeated as necessary. It wasn’t perfect but looked good and clean and did the trick. The house sold.
Remember you are prepping this thing to sell it and not live in it for the next decade. Keep things simple.
Many a hardwood floor has been ruined by first-timers operating a drum sander – resulting in valleys and ridges. Hire a professional. or as the old Fram commercial went: “pay me now or pay me later.”
A number of years ago I hired some dude to re-do my very old and stained oak floors. He was a pro and his finished work proved that fact. My advice, fwiw, is to continue having ZERO experience at the job other than spectating experience.
Stucky don’t listen to these Beta males they have problems brushing their teeth. Real men build things that’s what we do, jump right in. Home Depot will answer any questions you might have. Man up buddy!
Eyeroll…
You get that he’s trying to sell his house, right? Homebuyers these days are really picky.
Hey Clammy what’s up? Long time no see. How’s the world treating you?
Thank you, Sensetti for ‘Everything you wanted to say to Stucky but were afraid to say it.’
Although, I will say that I hate wood floors. I like tile. Of course, you can’t put tile over a wood floor and I’m not suggesting anything. Just want to say, I hate wood floors.
That’s beaners for you, they tile everything, floors, walls, ceilings, tubs. A tiled commode would look nice.
And Stuck, stop trying to sell to beta males like me, look for a buyer with some balls. Your house deserves it.
House 4 Sale, serious inquiries only. No beta males need apply. If you make an appointment, call the day before to confirm your appointment. Be here 15 minutes early and be prepared to make an offer.
Stucky, Sensetti is totally right. You have a teutonic mind, and a knack for patience. Your last two projects turned out killer. Save the money. You might hit a few snags, but you’ll figure it out. Your naysayers are probably scotch-irish or italians, different breed of cat. It’s off the market right now, you have the time, do it. It’s not rocket science, hell, it’s not even putting down a floor, it’s just refinishing 800 square feet. Who’s rocket scientists did we steal at the end of WW2? Italy? Ireland? Edit: pro tip. Start sanding with a fine grit while you figure out the sander. It won’t damage anything in those first few terrifying moments. Edit: when I lived in Miami Beach the bull dyke airline pilot next door ripped up all the carpet and did the wood floors in the whole house by herself. Just sayin
Was this bulldyke airline pilot a midget black somali muslim?
In the Twin Cities it would be a given…
Go with the pro. For example, if I needed a fag, I would hire Randy from Canada.
This is not a DIY project for a first timer. In addition to all the good advice above, think of the possibility of doing it so poorly that you HAVE to hire a pro to fix it. It is a lot of work and worth the 3-4 bucks to have a pro get in and get it done, quickly, accurately, painlessly. I am a big DIY and that is one thing – especially at our ages now – that I would sub out.
Good luck with your project and I hope the house moves more quickly for you and your parents afterwards.
PS after posting I read Francis’ post about oil. He might be on to something with that but OIL STINKS and takes a long time to soak in for the multiple coats necessary to achieve anything resembling a “finish”. I’ve used tung oil on furniture to good effect but never on a floor. I’d read everything written about it on the internet before I used it, though. If you screw up an oil job, putting polyurethane over your mistake becomes impossible within a short period of time.
Fuck it, Stucky. First thing to keep in mind is that if the floors are damaged beyond repair or you fuck them up to that point, you can always just cover them up again with carpet so YOU HAVE NOTHING TO LOSE. Think about that…well you’re tall as fuck and you could fuck up your back but you’re a young man, right?
Okay, still with me? Good! First thing is to get a big floor sander or maybe use a belt sander but taking wide steeps with it. What you are trying to find out is if the floor is level enough to bother fucking with. It might have depressions around high use areas like doorways or halls from wear. If that’s the case then the floor is beyond saving, so you need to find out right away before you put too much work into it.
If it looks like a go, then use a floor sander or an orbital sander to remove the old finish and prepare the surface. Nail holes are okay, they add character. Other than that it’s no different from refinishing furniture. Stain and varnish. No biggie. Avoid at all costs an oil finish. It will look good for about a month before it becomes dark from embedded dirt and grime and then there is nothing that can be done about it. As for finishes, go to a store that caters to contractors and ask. The fuckers behind the desk love noobs because it allows them to look like experts. Contractors, on the other hand, are know-it-alls who never ask for advice.
You’re welcome.
“Many a hardwood floor has been ruined by first-timers operating a drum sander – resulting in valleys and ridges.” —-nkit
Yea. I did more research since posting. The article below that I just read talks about valleys and ridges … and how EASY, apparently, it is to create them …. AND, you won’t know about them until AFTER you apply the finish. Yikes!!!
Basically, the guy says you’re nuts to DIY …. much as many folks here are saying the same thing.
You have convinced me. And, I do know my own limitations …. which does include “fits of rage” and “throw[ing] things”.
I ain’t doing it. Thank you all very very much.
I stick to what I’m good at. Masturbation and stuff.
Uh-huh. I have a good HANDle on that myself.
First things first. How do the floors look? Thirty years ago I was living in an older home with carpet and discovered hardwood flooring underneath. Took up the carpet expecting to have to refinish and found floors were in real good shape; not new-like but not far off. So, first look at what you have and then assess.
Then study on floor refinishing. It’s not rocket science. Get some bids from professionals (at least three) to see what you’ll save by doing it yourself. If you think you can tackle it and it’s worth your time and effort then give it a try. If you are a handy and capable guy you can do it, it’s just a lot of work. You can rent a floor sander; nails as mentioned above might not be an issue. Usually plank flooring is a tongue-and-groove product (don’t get excited Stuck. Not that kind of tongue-and-groove) and is nailed through the side so that nails don’t show on the surface.
The point is that it’s not difficult but it is a lot of work. If you are up to attacking this project vigorously, you could save some money.
BTW, my experience: As licensed landscape contractor, I do grading, masonry and concrete, carpentry, plumbing, roofing, painting etc. Also, I built my own house (which included 2,000 square feet of hardwood floor planking), my own 24’sailboat, I do my own welding and just about anything else.
Stucky,you gonna hire pro’s of the carpet world.Only problem is they all speak Spanish and are probably illegal immigrants with fake work cards.Be careful.
the crews have an English speaker that is the boss of the job.
Last time we had a ME crew. Very nice, very quick, and near perfect job.
I have done it. You can do the sanding yourself if you are strong enough to maneuver the big belt sander without gouging the floor and pay attention to what you are doing. The hardest part is getting down on your hands and knees with the smaller sander to get into all the edges and corners and blending the hand work into the part done with the belt sander. There will be nail holes all around the edges where the tack strips are and there might be other damage. Whether you fill all the nail holes and fix the other damage or leave them for “character” depends on how many and how obvious they are – YMMV. But if you fill the holes you must stain the floor or they will stick out like a sore thumb.
Even if you hire someone to do the sanding I don’t think anybody would do a better job of painting on the urethane than you would, after seeing the job that you did with the cabinets it is obvious that you know how to paint! You know the drill – get up every speck of dust – paint on a thin coat – let it dry – light hand sand – repeat as many times as you can stand. Just make sure that you get a polyurethane formulated for floors and get enough of the same stuff so that you don’t have to switch products mid-stream like we did. (new govt regulations required manufacturers to change their formulas so when we went back to the store we couldn’t get the same stuff we had been using).
I have to echo what most of the others posted. DO NOT attempt to use a large floor sander unless you know what you’re doing.
I’ve been a woodworker for years. I build bookcases and entertainment cabinets for friends and family. I have a pretty good working knowledge of wood finishing and sanding. But, when it came to doing my own wood floors, I hired a pro to refinish them.
Even if you do happen to get the floors sanded perfectly flat, that’s only half the battle. Now you have to get the stain and finish sealer down properly, in the right amounts and time frame so the floor looks like one continuous, smooth piece.
You should do the demo on the carpet yourself, but sanding and refinishing is something best done by someone with a lot of experience. It is remarkably easy to fuck up a hardwood floor with an industrial sander.
After reading your comments over on the pizzagate thread I changed my mind.
You should definitely do this yourself, you’ll be great at it, there’s nothing to it, eazy peasey lemon squeezey. It’s something you could get your wife to do in an afternoon. No problema.
Have fun, I’m sure it will come out top notch.
Post pics!
Ouch! Now you’re just being mean to me.
WHY??? Just cause I love pizza, but not Pizzagate?? My god, man! It’s not like I told you to go suck off one of your pigs.
I have been, and always will be, a Yuge admirer of you.
Hey Stucky, from now on, whenever I write something that is intended as a joke, I will end it like this- 😉
Like Grandmothers do when the post stuff on Facebook.
And if I am being serious I’ll do this- 🙁
That way there’s no confusion.
🙁
You two cut it out, it’s obvious both of you are joking. My gawd, you sound like teen lovers.
Are you sure of their condition? Any pet urine in the past is a major problem.
Phoolish,not a issue if going for that distressed look!Just adds even more character with “aroma”!
If you are planning to paint the walls, do so first, because wall to wall carpet makes an excellent drop cloth
Based on what you did in the kitchen and on the stairs you could do this project as well.
But….. being capable and recognizing when it is best to hire someone else is a completely different story.
In my stubbornness of never wanting to pay anyone to do anything I can figure out how to do myself, I bought a used sander and did a small house myself. Turned out beautiful after two full weeks of work. Only thing I have ever regretted not paying someone else to do for me.
Even if you are good by the time you rent equipment it is cheaper to find a guy to do it as a side job. Ugly hardwood is still better than carpet.
Probably worth pulling up old carpet to know exactly what you have underneath. Some guys will give a low bid to get the job then try to stick it to you on any extras. As was said in another comment sometimes a scuff, fill and recoat might be enough.
I’m a little late to this thread but I’ll throw my two cents in anyway.
I’ve done both, refinished HW floors myself and hired it out and in your situation I agree with the advice you’ve gotten and decision you’ve made to hire it out to pros.
I normally try to encourage people to DIY as much as possible but refinishing HWFs has plenty of ways to easily screw up and in your situation of needing to move on as quickly as possible let someone else get it done and over with.
Having said that be sure to check out the work and reputation of anyone you’re considering hiring to do the job, I’ve seen crap work done by people claiming to be experienced.
Anon above was me
Maybe your house is not selling because you’re asking too much?
I’m a commercial painter, wood floors are not that big a deal, all this advise from people and nobody but you knows what the existing floor looks like.
It could be as easy as a light sand and clear coat, or it could be more than that. If you have to sand down to bear wood, then you need special sanders, and you should then hire it out to a pro, maybe check Angie’s List or something like that to find a residential company.
Stuck’s morning wood could be called bear wood.
But, yeah, Stuck should have presented the problem after doing a survey, letting people know more details than simply, there is wood under there.
Stucky, This is my first post here. Been lurking for years. I have rebuilt 7 houses the last 5 years. Have installed real, new hardwood flooring. And refinished several old floors. I am 66 years old and would encourage you to do it yourself. It is easy and cheap. All these posts about drum sanders are old school. I wouldn’t go within a country mile of a drum sander. Lowes & Home depot rent heavy sanders that spin 3 ten inch pads in a horozontal plane. It is an amazing technology. You cannot screw up. The machine is a giant orbital sander. You just guide it around, very little effort. No divots, no scratches. The only drawback is the cost of the sandpaper. The machine rent is cheap. The old razor blade model. Free handle, expensive blades forever.
Yup, that’s what we own/use, one machine with three small heads rotating the opposite direction of the big head, I can diamond grind a concrete floor, and polish concrete with it too.
Fuck those old drum sanders.
If the floors are solid enough to support another layer of wood flooring,consider using laminate flooring that you can put down yourself.
If you are near a large city you can probably find medium grade flooring for a good price.
Also,if the carpet is in good condition,b4 ripping it out,put an ad on craigslist for the carpet.You might find a carpet guy or home handyman who wants to save $.
and still no haters? tbp folks are becoming pussies.
Cripes, I know I’m not too smart, I’m just a dumbass farmer. It sure has been and still is fun watching ol Stuck thrash around, spending money, trying to make that old house worth what he thinks it’s worth.
WTF!! Lower the price, sell it for what it is worth. IF YOU REALLY WANT TO SELL IT and move to hell out of there.
If you’ve been paying attention the shit show has arrived, the shit has been circling the old gurgler for a long while, now it’s starting down the drain, you know the old flush. Time grows short to improve your position.
So, hell is an upgrade from Jersey?
1) Don’t use a belt sander – wrong tool. This would rip up the floor.
2) If you do this yourself, only attempt it if you have the right tools. To do it right, I would use a Festool rotex sander, a Festool finish sander, a Festool DTS 400 to get in the corners, a supply of 80 to 400 grit pads, and any supplies needed for a new finish. If you have to install new hardwood flooring, add a quality miter saw, flooring nailer, trim nailer etc
3) If you do not have the tools, it will usually cost less to pay someone to do it. I have the skills and most of the tools (everything but a flooring nailer) but it was still cheaper to pay pro’s than to buy the extra tool AND they did a project that would have taken me a month of weekends in a day.
Stucky
One thing I did on my last HWF project that I was really pleased with was that I stained the quarter round edge trim a much darker color. I think it came out great. Also the floor color was a darker stain than the “natural” color and I went with the high gloss finish.
This was the project that I had a Pro do the refinishing and I saved a few bucks by staining and installing the quarter round edge trim myself.
I’ve been trying to load the picture but I can’t get it to load for some reason.
Stucky, for God’s sake forget this shit about redoing the floors and plant a St. Joseph statue upside down in the front yard like I told you 5 months ago. You’ll have a buyer within 3 weeks. God what a knothead!
And what if you go to all the trouble of doing the floors and they turn out shitty? Do you recarpet or drop the price? Or people then raise another objection about something else? And if the floor is really that big an issue, offer a redecorating incentive as part of the deal. Thinking like this is like digging a hole that only gets deeper. If you’re going to dig a hole, dig it for the statue.
Done it both ways. Myself and paying someone else. I prefer the latter.
I did my house myself. You just need to sand it enuf to take stain. I used a belt sander and an orbital, the stained with an oak tone hi build polyurethane. Easy peasy, and under 200 bucks including the tools. 2 coats.
Sometimes they used to glue the carpet down with some kinda of black cement like substance that you could soften with a heat gun and scraper. Oh yes I had a 1911 house with lots of beautiful woodwork and stained glass once. Those beautiful hardwood floors were underneath some awfully tough and miserable shit sometimes.
Stucky. listen to me. Do not. I repeat Do not attempt a massive project like this yourself. Forget Youtube. Forget Home Depot. This is a job to be competitively bid out to a professional company. My dad just had his floors refinished and it was a huge job for the four guys that did it.
Adjust and repeat the procedure now with the 40 grit, 80 grit, and then once
more with the one hundred twenty grit. Then you will need
to hoover the floor entirely and leave for a couple
hrs, before repeating flooring sanding.