We are finally about 98% finished with our floors on the first floor. Minus a few sections of trim, our floors are done. I am excited that we have slowly started putting our rooms back together. We are pleased with the outcome and feel the extra work was worth it.
After the holidays we ordered Utility Oak flooring from Lumber Liquidators after shopping around for flooring for a few months. I had a specific color in mind that I found tended to be at the high end of flooring prices every time. B and I both agreed that we really wanted something with character that didn’t look like brand new flooring. We also really wanted something with more of a matte finish. After looking at what felt like hundreds of options, we settled on the 5″ utility oak flooring that we would finish ourselves exactly the way we wanted.
The installation of the floors took a while because the boards were not in consistent lengths. We have since learned this even pre-finished flooring, unless you buy the super high end options, also come with a lot of short lengths. The smaller pieces meant that it was more like putting a puzzle together to make sure joints didn’t line up from row to row. With a house built in the 1840s, we also had to deal with rooms that aren’t square. We expected this issue but it didn’t make it any easier.
Once the floors were finished being installed, it was time to finish them. This was the first time either of us had ever installed hardwood flooring so we learned as we went. This was our process.
Sand the Floors
The utility oak has a lot of imperfect boards. Many have knots, have rough spots or aren’t quite the same depth. This needs to be evened out before finishing. We started by renting a floor sander from our local equipment rental company. We had to rent the sander twice because we did the dining room first and then did the living room. The rental was about $75 both times.
When you rent a floor sander, you are usually given a stack of sanding discs in a variety of grits from super rough to the really fine, finishing discs. You are typically charged based on the number of discs you end up using. Starting with the most abrasive discs and working our way to the finest, we made sure we had all the chalk marks removed as well as smoothed out any rough areas.
The floor sander is pretty heavy and while you don’t really need to push it too hard, it does need to be controlled. B and I took turns running it to give each other a break every once in a while. Once the floors were sanded we went over any areas that needed a little extra love with a hand block and then we were ready to clean the floors.
Clean the Floors
The floor sander doesn’t leave a huge mess but there is dust that needs to be cleaned up before going any further. We started with going over the floor with a broom. We then went back over the floor with a ShopVac. The last thing we did was go over the floors with a tack cloth to make sure were were picking up every last spec of dust before moving on. This was a more tedious step but with us living in a perpetual state of dog hair everywhere, we wanted to make sure we had the floor cleaned up.
Stain the Floors
If we would have decided to stain the floors, this is the point that we would have done it. I had tested stains on a few sample boards which I recommend before staining your actual floors. Allow the stain samples to dry and then look at them in different light to make sure you are happy with your choice.
Sealing the Floors
When it came time to seal the floors we went to Lowe’s and bought a low lustre “clear” polyurethane. It seemed pretty simple. When we got home and opened the can, the polyurethane was very brown and I was really concerned about putting it on the floors. I couldn’t help but think that the color would alter the color of the floors even if it said it was clear. Not really knowing what other options we would find, we ran to our local hardware store in town and they carry Benjamin Moore products. The store employee opened the can for us to see what it looked like and it was a milky white color, very different from what we purchased at Lowe’s. The cost was a bit more per can but we wanted to make sure we go it right.
As with any polyurethane, be sure to read the instructions and follow them for the best results. The Benwood poly says to put down two coats which we did. I feel this was the right move and well worth the $60+ a can.
Move Furniture Back In!
The Utility Flooring took more time and labor than a pre-finished flooring would have. Money was definitely a factor but so was the final appearance. We didn’t want anything too perfect or new looking given the age of our house. By going with the Utility Oak, we were able to install solid wood flooring and control how the floors were finished which was a huge bonus. We could have stained them any color and we had our choice of glossy, low shine or matte finish. For 800 Sq. Ft of flooring our total cost for the project was about $1250 and it took us two weekends worth of work.
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