Installing Hardwood Floors

[Tyga11]

I would like to rip up all the carpet / tile in our house and replace with an inexpensive hardwood floor.

Does anyone have any recommendations on brand / product? Our house is approx 2400 sq feet.

Is it possible to pay around $10K for the entire job?

[chassis]

All 2400 square feet in the same flooring material?

How many square feet are tile?

[2000cs]

Look at Lowes, HD, and LL Flooring for brands and costs, then read reviews. Level subfloor with no bumps, good pad thing under, and appropriate flooring for moisture levels (bathroom, kitchen, etc) and furniture feet. Lots of reviews and guides online.

We did about 500 sq ft last summer, lots of work getting the subfloor right but happy with the result. Product we used of course is NLA, but we bought a couple extra boxes in case a replacement is needed down the line.

[M_Six]

Originally Posted by 2000cs

Look at Lowes, HD, and LL Flooring for brands and costs, then read reviews. Level subfloor with no bumps, good pad thing under, and appropriate flooring for moisture levels (bathroom, kitchen, etc) and furniture feet. Lots of reviews and guides online.

We did about 500 sq ft last summer, lots of work getting the subfloor right but happy with the result. Product we used of course is NLA, but we bought a couple extra boxes in case a replacement is needed down the line.

Critical point here. We got burned by this. We did part of our basement floor and figured we'd do the rest in a year or so. Then when it came time, they didn't carry the same style. Same thing can happen if you do it all at once but don't have extra, then have something happen down the line that damages part of your floor. Finding the same style may be impossible.

[RickFLM4]

Real hardwood or engineered wood? We have engineered wood in 2 bedrooms and my office and it has held up for 20+ years in 2 of those rooms (the third was done later and also has held up well). It can’t really be refinished like real hardwood, but seems like it fits what you want to do and is reasonably cost effective. But I’m not sure about getting it done with subfloor prep, labor etc, for $10k if you really have 2,000+ sq. ft. to get done.

I’d find a local flooring store. Home Depot, Lowe’s, etc. subcontract to those types places and if you deal direct you might find a better deal.

[M_Six]

We did engineered wood through Home Depot. The first area we did is still in great shape 20 years later. We did the house in sections with the last section being our bedroom and the room across the hall. That was a couple of years ago. It's remarkably durable and very low maintenance. Different installers each time, but all contracted through HD. They all did a great job.

[floridaorange]

Engineered will lack the warmth and coziness in my humble opinion but - they make some very nice engineered these days, I prefer real, wife chose engineered - super durable - not the same as real
though. Can you do real in main spaces and engineered in others?

[vreihen16]

Originally Posted by floridaorange

Can you do real in main spaces and engineered in others?

The real stuff is thicker than the fake stuff, so you wind up with a trip hazard at every place where the two meet. Ask me how I know.....

[mjj]

We have had expensive hardwoods (could refinish 3 times) and high end LVP.

I would take LVP every time. LVP is not all created equal. You want the thick and heavy stuff.

Your 10K budget will not be enough.

[BMWCCA1]

When we built our new house just under six-years ago we wanted all hardwood floors, finished-in-place, other than tile in bathrooms and utility room. It is a 2-story home with three bedrooms and 2.5 baths totaling 2,400 square feet. Our choice was 4-inch White Oak including the staircase. At the time it was difficult to find the wood we wanted through the flooring contractor we chose who had to come 70-miles to do the work. I believe the total cost was something around $14,000, including white oak floor vents and shoe moldings. We used #2 grade because we were going for the old-farmhouse look in a new home.

My wife and I spent a week staining and finishing test pieces to make sure of the color we wanted and ended up choosing Cherry but it still looks like oak. After the three finish coats were applied we felt it was just too shiny so the contractor did another coat of semi-gloss to tone it down. It still looks fantastic over five-years-later. No seams to trip over, even where it transitions to porcelain tile, which was important to us as we will live here in our old age.

I've been in plenty of million-dollar homes with engineered floor coverings and just did not want to go there. My GC showed me the result of such material in his own house where normal traffic patterns have created terrible wear spots that cannot be repaired without replacement. Just do it right the first time.

Our old house is 75-years old with 2-inch oak floor. Even after pulling up carpet in two rooms, refinishing was something I was able to do by myself with a rented sander and some wool applicators for poly. Actually pretty easy. I most likely will not live long enough to have to do that in the new house!

[RickFLM4]

Originally Posted by mjj

We have had expensive hardwoods (could refinish 3 times) and high end LVP.

I would take LVP every time. LVP is not all created equal. You want the thick and heavy stuff.

Your 10K budget will not be enough.

We are considering covering our aging tile with LVP in the kitchen, family / living rooms, dining room and 2 bathrooms. We have it in our vacation condo. I was opposed to it conceptually at first but have come around to your way of thinking, especially if there are install challenges. In our case our first choice is to replace the tile, but don’t want to live through pulling up the tile and can’t lay engineered wood over it because the tile is floating. LVP will work though and the high quality stuff looks very good.

[Joe T]

my suggestion is real wood, finished in place, with the stain and finish you like and fits your home/style.

It will last for generations in the home. As it wears, sand and stain to your liking and refinish

I think wider looks better, but on your budget 2 3/4 white oak may be your best option

[mjj]

Originally Posted by RickFLM4

We are considering covering our aging tile with LVP in the kitchen, family / living rooms, dining room and 2 bathrooms. We have it in our vacation condo. I was opposed to it conceptually at first but have come around to your way of thinking, especially if there are install challenges. In our case our first choice is to replace the tile, but don’t want to live through pulling up the tile and can’t lay engineered wood over it because the tile is floating. LVP will work though and the high quality stuff looks very good.

I was initially opposed as well. Wife made the decision (shocking) to remodel our lake house. I was won over and now the wife has done the same to our primary residence. Worst part is telling her she was right all along (lol). Our dogs (2 Berniedoodles) scratched up the wood floor pretty good. The LVP doesn’t show scratches and looks just like hardwood.

[Tyga11]

Originally Posted by mjj

I was initially opposed as well. Wife made the decision (shocking) to remodel our lake house. I was won over and now the wife has done the same to our primary residence. Worst part is telling her she was right all along (lol). Our dogs (2 Berniedoodles) scratched up the wood floor pretty good. The LVP doesn’t show scratches and looks just like hardwood.

How much should I expect to pay for LVP? Is $8 per sq ft realistic or is that a pipe dream?

[RickFLM4]

Originally Posted by mjj

I was initially opposed as well. Wife made the decision (shocking) to remodel our lake house. I was won over and now the wife has done the same to our primary residence. Worst part is telling her she was right all along (lol). Our dogs (2 Berniedoodles) scratched up the wood floor pretty good. The LVP doesn’t show scratches and looks just like hardwood.

Also a lot less worried about water / liquid spills. We have 2 dogs…

For budgeting purposes, what is a reasonable cost per sq. ft. (all in incl. install) for high quality LVP if you recall?

[CamasM3e93]

Counterpoint: suggest not using Home Depot or similar stores for installation without detailed due diligence and review of their sub contractors ahead of time. Once you learn their company name you can use various on line review tools to see how well they are run.

I spent all last fall putting in 2000sf of lvp by myself and my 75yo father in law after their sub walked off the job post demo. It was actually a relief because the guys they sent would show up at noon and want to work until 11pm. One of them would work reliably, the other would doze off and on on the furniture. It was like the carnie episode of the simpsons where their house is taken over by carnies. Part of the job was removing 20yo floor tile. There was predictably subfloor damage which I anticipated to spend extra on the repair work. The contract indicated as much and inferred they would make repairs at cost to me. Cool. Turns out this sub doesn’t do that work. But the contract says?? Yeah, no. I can go on but essentially these big box stores can and do leave you hanging without much recourse.

We have a little carpet work pending and declined a good bid from Lowes after the sub contractor was revealed and the online reviews for that company pretty much confirmed that I could end up with the same shit show. So be wary.

I’ve had wood, engineered wood, laminate, and lvp. If you have pets, lvp all day long. No question. Some of the higher end products that you have to go outside the big box stores to get and cost $7-8 / sf you will have guests ask if it’s wood. It’s that good. This is a product made by Mohawk and was around $4 per sf.

[mjj]

Originally Posted by RickFLM4

Also a lot less worried about water / liquid spills. We have 2 dogs…

For budgeting purposes, what is a reasonable cost per sq. ft. (all in incl. install) for high quality LVP if you recall?

Asked the wife and she still had the quote. This was from 2022.

LVP - was Shaw Vail Court. It was $8.00 a sq. Ft.

The installation, shipping, removal etc.. was another approx $7.00 a sq. Ft.

Maybe we got screwed with Covid pricing. Wife handled all of it. I just wrote the check.

[RickFLM4]

Originally Posted by mjj

Asked the wife and she still had the quote. This was from 2022.

LVP - was Shaw Vail Court. It was $8.00 a sq. Ft.

The installation, shipping, removal etc.. was another approx $7.00 a sq. Ft.

Maybe we got screwed with Covid pricing. Wife handled all of it. I just wrote the check.

Ok thanks. I was thinking $10-$12 but I probably need to be thinking $15-$18. Doubt prices have decreased for the product or labor in 2024.

[SpeedBuggy]

We recently remolded our Kitchen and two Bathrooms and used MLS brand Luxury Vinyl Plank flooring. Rather happy with the product so far. Looks good and cleans up well.

It is a floating floor and we did have two issues with separation of planks but both have been resolved.

Another thing to consider is where carpet/linoleum/tile meet. We discovered a height issue between where some of our floors met at the linoleum/carpet/tile that separated rooms. All had to be addressed prior to starting the flooring.

[Wolf 335]

One suggestion, when you do buy boxes of vinyl planks, open all of them and sort out the planks based on shade.
You could have batch variations. You want to sort out all shades in their own groups so you could distribute them evenly during install.

[BMWCCA1]

Found a few shots of our 4-inch White Oak with Cherry stain and semi-gloss finish just after installation was completed and the kitchen cabinets were going in. (Counter tops are locally quarried Alberene soapstone raw and unfinished.)

[Tyga11]

Originally Posted by mjj

Asked the wife and she still had the quote. This was from 2022.

LVP - was Shaw Vail Court. It was $8.00 a sq. Ft.

The installation, shipping, removal etc.. was another approx $7.00 a sq. Ft.

Maybe we got screwed with Covid pricing. Wife handled all of it. I just wrote the check.

So that would cost me around $35K??? That can't be right