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Old 06-24-2009, 08:13 PM
 
Location: I'm gettin' there
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We have put an offer on a house that has no hardwood floors. We plan to rip out the old carpet and put a new one.
Do you guys see any major issues with not having hardwood floors in the house ? The agent said there is normal wood under the carpet.

Approx how much will it cost to put the wood floors say 50 x 50 area on the 1st floor ? There is no basement in the house.
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Old 06-24-2009, 08:21 PM
 
Location: Long Island
9,918 posts, read 23,024,907 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by zulu400 View Post
We have put an offer on a house that has no hardwood floors. We plan to rip out the old carpet and put a new one.
Do you guys see any major issues with not having hardwood floors in the house ? The agent said there is normal wood under the carpet.

Approx how much will it cost to put the wood floors say 50 x 50 area on the 1st floor ? There is no basement in the house.
There are plenty of houses out there that don't have hardwood floors.

Are you sure you need 2,500 sqft??
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Old 06-24-2009, 09:02 PM
 
Location: Suffolk County, NY
874 posts, read 2,864,969 times
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My home does not have hardwood floors either. I took up the rugs and put down Swiftlock laminate flooring. I did it myself and it looks great. The wife loves it. The best part is that you can do it yourself which saves a lot of money.
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Old 06-24-2009, 09:44 PM
 
Location: NY
1,416 posts, read 5,583,810 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by zulu400 View Post
Do you guys see any major issues with not having hardwood floors in the house ? The agent said there is normal wood under the carpet.
Right, what is under carpeted floors in a no-hardwood area will (should!) be plywood.

Another option, other than laminate, is prefinished hardwood. Eliminates the mess that comes with site-finished hardwood installations and a good brand such as Bellawood will probably come with a finish warranty of up to 25 years.

We hate floor refinishing so much that the next house will get Bellawood even if there are existing oak floors already there. I'm no longer a "carpet person" and would much rather have the entire house flooring be a combination of porcelain tile in the kitchen and bathroom areas and micro-bevel prefinished hardwood everywhere else.
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Old 06-24-2009, 10:12 PM
 
Location: Currently seeking a home!
130 posts, read 741,224 times
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I don't think it matters. It is all about the person who has to live with it. I watch so many HGTV shows and hear "O it has carpet," or "EWW no granite counters" or "Old appliances" just because it's not stainless, granite or hardwood doesn't mean tthe house is crap. I personally don't like any of those things. But it's up to you!!
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Old 06-25-2009, 12:04 AM
 
Location: I'm gettin' there
2,666 posts, read 7,308,938 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Elke Mariotti View Post
Are you sure you need 2,500 sqft??
Not sure all at once, but thats including 2 floors, maybe I'll do one floor at a time.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Egobop View Post
My home does not have hardwood floors either. I took up the rugs and put down Swiftlock laminate flooring. I did it myself and it looks great. The wife loves it. The best part is that you can do it yourself which saves a lot of money.
How much was the area and what did it cost you ?

Quote:
Originally Posted by totallyfrazzled View Post
Another option, other than laminate, is prefinished hardwood.
I'm no longer a "carpet person" and would much rather have the entire house flooring be a combination of porcelain tile in the kitchen and bathroom areas and micro-bevel prefinished hardwood everywhere else.
There is marble flooring in the kitchen, its has chips on most tiles, what can be done to finish marble floors ?

Quote:
Originally Posted by MissesFixIt View Post
I don't think it matters. It is all about the person who has to live with it. I watch so many HGTV shows and hear "O it has carpet," or "EWW no granite counters" or "Old appliances" just because it's not stainless, granite or hardwood doesn't mean tthe house is crap. I personally don't like any of those things. But it's up to you!!
Yeah, I would rather have hardwood with area mats. We are in the cost analysis mode right now.
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Old 06-25-2009, 07:15 AM
 
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You can plan on paying $6-$12 per sq foot depending on what type of wood flooring you choose. It's pretty easy to install.
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Old 06-25-2009, 07:20 AM
 
Location: Suffolk County, NY
874 posts, read 2,864,969 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by zulu400 View Post
How much was the area and what did it cost you ?


T
It was around $600 for two bedrooms and a hallway. I do not remember the dimensions off hand but if you would like I can measure it later and get back to you. I also did my living room but do not remember how much that cost. I still have one bedroom and the dining room to do. I have been doing one room a month just for the financial reasons.

The first bedroom I did took just about two days since I had never done it before and took my time to ensure it being done right. My living room is of course a bigger room and was the last room I did. That room took me one day since now I have the hang of it.

There are many different laminate floors made and I did not buy the cheapest or the most expensive. I believe it has a 30 year warranty. We have three children (4,6,8), dogs and cats and there are no scratches on it anywhere so it seems to hold up to abuse extremely well.

I bought mine at Lowes and there are actually a number of different companies that make the laminate floors. There are also many different price ranges. It is easy to figure out how much it will cost. Just measure the rooms and go there. The floors are sold in boxes by square footage so you just have to do a little math and you will know exactly how much it will cost you. Just remember that all of the floors come with different amounts of square footage per box so make sure you read each box before you do the math for that particular laminate floor.
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Old 06-25-2009, 07:47 AM
 
13,506 posts, read 16,952,802 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Egobop View Post
My home does not have hardwood floors either. I took up the rugs and put down Swiftlock laminate flooring. I did it myself and it looks great. The wife loves it. The best part is that you can do it yourself which saves a lot of money.

Hey Egobop, how was the installation in terms of cutting? Did you have to do any non-square edges? I'm going to install some of this stuff, but one of the borders is not square, so it will require some diagonal cuts.
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Old 06-25-2009, 08:22 AM
 
Location: Suffolk County, NY
874 posts, read 2,864,969 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dman72 View Post
Hey Egobop, how was the installation in terms of cutting? Did you have to do any non-square edges? I'm going to install some of this stuff, but one of the borders is not square, so it will require some diagonal cuts.
I had to do numerous cuts. I did not put dividers in between rooms either, so the floor is continued from one room into another throughout the house. I used a jigsaw that I have for making all of my cuts and had no problems.

The first thing I did was clear all the furniture from the room, then removed all of the molding from the bottom of the walls. I then pulled up the rug. I then tacked in 1/4 inch spacers around the room at the bottom of the sheet rock (they sell these in the same section where you buy the floor; not expensive) since you need a 1/4 inch space from each wall for expansion and contraction because these are "floating" floors.

I then laid down my first row. After you lay your first row, you will have to cut the first piece of your next row in half since the manufacturer calls for at least a six inch overlap at seems. Just continue all of the rows in this fashion and work on the spots that need the floor piece to cut when you get to them.

I also suggest buying the installation kit which I believe was around $18. It comes with a small rubber hammer, a small, soft wood block with notches and a metal bar that is maybe a foot long or less with a lip at each end so you can hammer the pieces together when you get close to the wall.

I read a lot of forums about the laminate floors and was almost deterred from the amount of people that said it was extremely difficult. The hardest part is, if you never worked with it before, getting the correct angle for the pieces to interlock in the beginning. Once you get that down which for me was probably after the second row, it gets quicker. Remember, when you get the sides interlocked at the correct angle, the floor pieces will be easy to push to the floor. If it feels like you will have to push it down hard, take the piece off and interlock it again. If you force it down it will just ruin at least one and possibly both of the boards.

If you are doing more than one room I suggest buying more than one of the small, soft wood pieces with the two lips. Halfway through my second room I chipped the end of two of the floor boards. I looked at the small, soft wood block and noticed that it was getting worn and not fitting at the end of the board properly which caused this. Luckily, the boards were not wasted since I eventually cut them in half to use for the first pieces in every other row (remember, you have to do this to have a six inch overlap at the seams).

It is always hard to explain this stuff in writing without showing what I am talking about but I hope this was not too confusing for you. Once you start doing it I think everything I wrote will make more sense. What I believe is the most important advice I am giving is to take your time and do not force anything.

If you have any other questions feel free to ask. I have had a number of my neighbors comment on the floors and will be doing the floors for two of them which is why I think my advice is probably good. I am not a "know it all" type that will insist he is doing something correctly even if I do not know what I am doing.
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