HardWood Floor

By Susan Atkins

Hardwood flooring comes in both unfinished and pre-finished materials. These products are made from solid wood, which gives you three-quarters of an inch of wood that can be sanded and refinished if necessary in the future. Pre-finished flooring has an extremely durable finish already applied at the factory, which not only saves time and labor, but can also provide a better finish than you could apply yourself. Other wood flooring products include those made from press board laminated to a thin layer of wood, but although this product is inexpensive, it just will not wear as well as solid wood flooring.

Wood flooring comes in standard grades, which vary according to visual appearance and price. Clear grade is of the highest quality, with the wood containing very few knots and very little variation in overall coloring. Select grade flooring varies a bit more in color and has a few more knots, but is still considered a fine flooring product. Common grade flooring contains more of the natural variations and imperfections of the wood, but can still be used in less formal rooms to create a beautiful hardwood floor.

Floor boards should be laid perpendicular instead of parallel in relationship to the floor joists. It is also important to measure carefully so that an accurate base line can be determined, in order to keep the first rows of wood flooring straight. Standard tongue and groove wood flooring is installed by nailing the flooring board directly through the tongue, and then sliding the next piece over the nailed tongue. Although the process can be completed by hand, there are pneumatic tools that can be rented that can make this job much easier. These tools can quickly and easily drive the staples or nails at the perfect angle, making it easier to do a good installation without missing the tongue or damaging the floor boards. However, it is generally necessary to hand-nail the first row or two of because you will not be able to get close enough using the pneumatic tool. The boards will be installed in a staggered fashion, with the end joints being offset by at least sixteen inches as the rows of flooring boards are installed. Spacers are used between the wall and the flooring planks to allow room for expansion, and the last row of flooring will need to be cut to size and face nailed into place.

Since hardwood floors are becoming an increasingly popular, it may be a good DIY project to attempt. Although some people think that a hardwood floor installation might be difficult, in actuality it can be a relatively easy project, as long as you have some experience with basic carpentry work. You'll not only end up with a beautiful floor, but save yourself a lot of money too.

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By Vic Nagy

If all your floors have previously been carpeted like a lot of places did in the 70s and 80s and you want to get back to wood flooring look you have to remove the carpets obviously. This is an easy job. You go to one corner of the room with a pair of pliers grab some of the carpet and pull up. Usually the way I do it pull enough of it up and you can start cutting a 2 foot strip from the edge the length of the carpet you can roll this into a bale if the bale is too big, shorten the bale length causing it to lose its overall diameter. Then tie up the bales and take them out of the room.

There will be strips of wood with little nail sticking out of it all the way around the edge of the floor. You might need to invest in a molding remover pry bar which will get underneath the tack strips and pry away from the floor once you have it lifted away from your hardwood floor take a pair of pliers to completely remove it from the floor, being careful not to prick yourself in the fingers with the sharp little tact barbs.

Your hardwood floor should now be ready for sanding.

Quick note: you're spending a lot of time and effort into making a new hardwood floor so don't waste your time with unprofessional sanding equipment. Unless the floor space is really small like 3 or 4 feet square. On smaller space like this you can get away with probably an orbital square pad sander and a 30 or 40 grit sandpaper, you most probably won't go too far with a piece of sandpaper. You might end up using two pieces of paper per square foot of area so this could be expenses if you try to do a larger floor. And this is why it's better to go with professional equipment. I also use a very sharp wood paint scraper to go around the edges and hard spots where the sanding machine won't work. The trick with the wood paint scraper it has to be very very sharp and I tell you to keep it sharp by having a file on hand. When you're using the wood paint scraper try scraping in the direction of the grain. You can be very accurate with the paint scraper getting into the smallest little crevices and edges.

Caution! Be careful about leaving your.collection bag on the sander I never leave the bag full of sanding dust, since you've been working the machine hard it got hot and you have a bag of dust which is flammable you could end up with spontaneous combustion.

After working on hundreds of homes a lot of experience has been acquired. If you're interested in tapping into my knowledge come see me at Diy Restorations. Here you can learn more about home improvements and renovations.

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By Talia A.

Flooring is the most important aspect that people consider before constructing a house. Several homeowners opt for marble floors or tiles, but this trend keeps up for few years. Some people follow the latest trend and opt for hardwood floors and laminate floors. This is the latest ongoing trend and many people are going for it. The fashion of marble and tile floors will keep for a short period, as the wear and tear power of these floors is very less. This is the reason why numerous people are opting for hardwood floors, these days. Hardwood floors are the best options to retain quality of floors for years.

Hardwood Flooring

Hardwood floors are a quite expensive deal, but there is a guarantee of longevity. Another advantage of using hardwood floors is that it increases the value of property. One should take care of these floors in order to retain the quality and life of the floor. Hardwood flooring is the best option for any room in the house but it is not recommended for bathroom as it can not hold water. It can be installed depending upon the choice and type of hardwood floors. There are several types and styles available in the market that people can choose.

Wood Species

Maple and oak are mainly used in the manufacturing of hardwood floors. Other options include fir, beach, walnut, cinnamon, cherry, pine and birch. Each and every floor has its own benefits and disadvantages, so it is recommended that customers should consult any flooring professional prior to making investment.

Treatment

Hardwood floors can be of two types which include finished and unfinished. Unfinished type involves the finishing and sanding of the floor after the installation, while in case of finished floors there is no need for any type of treatment.

Adds up the Value of Property

Hardwood flooring not just beautify the interior of the home, but it is completely environment friendly as well. These floors are recyclable which is an added advantage for the home owners. Hardwood flooring is widely used from centuries and is now becoming a part of the latest fashion. After its installation, the owner does not need to worry for the refinishing of floors. These also add value to the property and facilitates if the owner wishes to sell the home. The greatest thing about the floor is that it suits the taste of all the people having different life styles.

Online Alternatives

There are numerous websites that are offering hardwood floors at very reasonable prices. Several websites are providing great discounts to the people who purchase the hardwood floors online. One can choose the designs and styles online as there is a huge list of designs and styles are mentioned there. So, hardwood flooring is the best option in order to enjoy longevity of the floors. One just needs to select any of the floor type and design, and add them into the wish list.

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