hardwood floor contractor « Hardwood Floors in Portland, Oregon

Posts Tagged ‘hardwood floor contractor’

Be very selective when hiring a hardwood floor refinisher… Here’s why:

Thursday, April 7th, 2011

This week in my business has been very busy looking at mistakes from a couple of hasty wood flooring companies. I’m not a certified wood floor inspector, but I try to look objectively at problems and be empathetic to the homeowner. It is not ethical for me to bash companies in an attempt to gain work for the company. Read on because I want to explain a few things:

When you hire someone to refinish your hardwood floors, particularly on a large project with a dark stain color there are a number of things you should know:

If you provide a company with a 50% deposit to begin a project, then the cost to hire another company to fix and refinish an improperly stained or refinished floor WILL exceed the remaining balance you owe to the company at fault.

If your state has a contractors board, then it will take generally four to six months by the time the problem is resolved and you are awarded any monies to remedy the faulty work. Usually this is paid from the bond of the company at fault. If you hire an unlicensed contractor, then you are pretty much out of luck.

Most states have a “right to fix” clause that allows the contractor at fault to fix the problem. Usually this is 10 days. If you hire someone else to fix the work without following this procedure then you will pretty much lose your case against the contractor at fault.

I’ve witnessed a number of pretty defective floors lately. One floor project was a $9000 refinish that was pretty poorly done. It would not be possible for a quality contractor to fix the work for the remaining $4500. Who wants to lose $4500? Not me and I hope you don’t either.

My advice to you is to get references and thoroughly research your contractor’s background in doing similar projects to yours. I used dark stain refinishing in this example because it can be very high risk for failure, but this post applies to any project out there.

If you have any experiences, please share your thoughts.

Tags: hardwood floor contractor, hardwood refinishing
Posted in Contractor Perspectives, Floor Finishing | No Comments »

What are you getting for your money?

Friday, April 1st, 2011

Would you buy a car without knowing:

The color?
If it had a radio?
Whether it had leather or cloth interior?
If it had a reliable engine?

Would you hire a contractor to refinish your hardwood floors without knowing:

The name and specifications of the finish being used
If they are licensed and bonded
If they have a reputation of reliability

Every week I talk with consumers who don’t know anything about the finish being used on their floors other than if it is waterbased or oil based finish.

In addition, I talk with various hardwood contractors in the field who never discuss the finish being used with their customers. The contractor just gives the customer a price and depending on the cost of the job and material costs, purchases finish that allows them to stay profitable. The customer generally gets the finish that is the cheapest.

In the last year:

Insurance rates have increased
Material costs have increased
Fuel costs have increased

How is it possible that you can get the best floor for the cheapest price?

Tags: hardwood floor contractor, hardwood refinishing
Posted in Contractor Perspectives, Floor Finishing | No Comments »

Is it in you?

Friday, February 25th, 2011

Gatorade says this.

I also wonder this about some of the guys in my industry.

What am I talking about?

I was doing a whole lot of repairs to an old house in NE Portland by Grant high school today. When the heating systems get switched from oil to forced air, you usually find holes with plywood covering them (instead of oak flooring) underneath the carpet where the old ductwork was located.

Fixing the holes requires installing new subfloor across the joists to fix the holes. My customer thanked me when she saw I had put plywood down to support the oak flooring that goes across the the area of the patch. I was sort of puzzled that she thanked me because this is the proper way to fix things.

Being an ethical contractor is either in you or not. Doing repairs properly isn’t more difficult really, but you would be surprised at the shortcuts I’ve seen when I fix floors. If you’re hiring a guy to do your floors you should really try to pick up on who has a happy internal spirit and is proud of what they do. What are the signs?

Good contractors listen more than they talk
They’re happy and not negative and grouchy
They earn the respect of their crew by leadership rather than yelling at them

Tags: hardwood floor contractor, Hardwood floor Portland
Posted in Company Life | No Comments »

The top 3 bait and switch selling points used by desperate wood floor refinishers

Thursday, February 10th, 2011

In the wake of a toughened economy, the number of desperate contractors has risen dramatically. The end result is that contractors are using very vague language to describe their process so that they appear to be offering more for less. Here are the top 3 red alerts for anyone considering a hardwood floor refinish:

“Oil finishes”- There are two common finishes that are lumped together as “oil” finishes, oil-modified polyurethane or conversion varnishes. Oil modified polyurethane (poly) typically costs 60% less than a conversion varnish or true “Swedish” finish (Made by Glitsa or Synteko). Polyurethane generally gets worn through about 2-3 times faster than a quality conversion varnish because it is considerably lower in solids (the stuff that provides durability). This price difference is how a company can refinish your floors for $1.00/sq foot less than other companies and say they’re doing an “oil” finish without distinguishing the type of finish.

“Waterbase”- Not all waterbased floor finishes are equal. As a general rule, if the finish isn’t a two component waterbased finish, then you’re pretty much getting a very inferior finish. I wrote a lot about that in a previous blog.

Two coats versus three coats- This is funny because it’s the wrong number to really consider. Film build thickness is the key to durability and three thin finish coats actually has less film build than a high build two coat system. Rollers and brushes apply finish much heavier than trim pads and T-bars.

PLEASE don’t get sold on the wrong buzz word phrases and not ask the appropriate questions. Unless you like moving your furniture every three years, I encourage you to become a more meticulous consumer.

I would love to hear from anyone about their stories or observations from the field.

Tags: hardwood floor contractor, hardwood floor finish, hardwood refinishing
Posted in Contractor Perspectives, Wood Floor FAQ | No Comments »

Be afraid, very afraid

Monday, February 7th, 2011

Currently, I am helping advise a homeowner in NC whose walnut floors have a severe adhesion/white lines syndrome issue. I’m glad to help her and email back and forth and not charge a fee because I feel that paying it forward is essential in my industry. I know my stomach would turn if I had just paid for 3000 square feet of walnut to be installed in a custom house and it had major issues, so being empathetic isn’t a problem.

During our discussions, she recently sent this link for a so called “online expert” who charges $70 to answer a question

http://www.woodfloordoctor.com/_contact/index.shtml

This guy is scary to me for several reasons:

There is no indication he is or ever was a hardwood flooring contractor. Supposedly, he has been around since 1979 (well before the internet).

The advice he is giving is usually not accurate and just strikes me as someone who has read a few Fine Homebuilding magazines and watched a few wood floor sanding videos.

A majority of the products he is referencing and recommending no longer exist or comply with VOC standards in some states.

Nowhere on his website does it indicate that he is a member of the National Wood Flooring Association, the premier wood floor organization in the world.

There is NOWHERE to reply or comment to his “advice” on the website. This makes me really question things because he thinks his answer is perfect, without any input.

Homeowners, the internet is filled with so called experts in this industry. Be very careful of what you read because there are more charlatans than experts as a general rule.

Tags: adhesion, hardwood floor contractor
Posted in Contractor Perspectives, Wood Floor FAQ | No Comments »

Ladd’s addition wood floor refinish

Thursday, January 20th, 2011

Here is a video of our recent Ladd’s Addition whole house refinish and restoration.

Tags: hardwood floor contractor, Hardwood floor Portland, hardwood refinishing
Posted in Project Videos | No Comments »

What defines integrity in our industry?

Thursday, December 16th, 2010

Integrity is a commonly thrown around word by many contractors and some companies have it in their name. Let me just lay these items out:

Your reputation is being evaluated long after the final check is cashed. To the fairness of us contractors though, if you don’t point out something after we have gone, please contact us to deal with it. Contractors with integrity will be back to fix problems.

Time tells all-In an era of increasing pressure on pricepoint, the world of pre-finished wood flooring warranties has become ridiculous. If you’re worried about your dogs and children, then get customer lists of a product that is a few years old and pay them a visit. It will tell you more than a warranty paper.

A contractors house is where you will see the most high value products. They know what performs best for the money and put it into their house. That doesn’t mean expensive, just high performance level for the money. Whatever they’re selling you, ask if they would put it into their house if money wasn’t the only issue.

Everyone makes mistakes-end of story. It’s how you work with the buyers to deliver a resolution that makes them happy in the end. Attitude gets you nothing, but high stress and sometimes lawyer bills.

My good friend Jesse Pender of Portland Tradesman was the inspiration for this blog.

Tags: hardwood floor contractor, Hardwood floor Portland
Posted in Contractor Perspectives, Wood Floor FAQ | No Comments »

Glitsa Polyurethane…Great stuff

Tuesday, November 23rd, 2010

We recently had a reason to use the new Polyurethane finish the was just launched by Glitsa American. I must say that this product has exceptional build on the floor and the workability is exceptional. Although it is not technically low-VOC, in my own observation the smell from this product the next day after application isn’t bad at all. If budget and value are necessary for your floor, I highly recommend this finish.