Why Should You Be Concerned about Wood Dust?

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  • Hardwood-Floor-hallway-staris-livingroomWood dust is not something our bodies can process. Wood dust is one of the more common causes of health problems especially lung related conditions.
  • Wood dust can irritate our bodies in many ways, for example breathing exotic wood dust can cause nose bleeds which we have seen happen on a job site. Dust rubbing on your body can cause skin rashes and other health conditions.
  • Wood dust is very hard to clean. We have heard stories about people cleaning their homes months after a sanding job was completed because dust was still settling in parts of the home. Wood dust is fine and light so once airborne it can travel all around your home.
  • A job site that is dirty will only yield a dirty floor finish. How can anyone provide a clean coat of finish when the air is full of dust? One of the most common finish complaints by home owners is debris in the final coat of finish on their wood floors.

How do we create wood dust and why does it get everywhere?

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We use several kinds of sanding machines:
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  • Belt sanders – the abrasive is a belt which spins around a drum in one direction
  • Single disc sanders – the abrasive is round and spins in one direction
  • Multi disc sanders – three discs which spin in multiple directions
  • Orbital sanders – single disc random orbit type

The one thing that is common to all these machines is this: they all create very fine dust quickly. Unless there is a vacuum there to contain the dust, it will get in the air immediately. The motor parts and fans inside the sanders help blow the dust off the floor and up into the air. Once in the air, the dust will travel several feet and often far enough into other rooms. It takes several hours for fine wood dust to settle on flat surfaces like shelves and floor coverings.

A big part of our business is fixing other people’s sanding jobs. We have seen dust on walls, in bedrooms all over the home owners stereo and tv. We have seen dust completely covering a furnace air return and piles of it inside floor heat registers. Dust must be contained for a good sanding job.

The Best Wood Floors for Dog and Cat Owners – Part 2

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pets urine stains on hardwood floorHow to use and maintain your wood floors living with dogs and cats in the home.

Dogs and cats are probably the most common pets we all have in our home. Much like any member of our family they spill water, shed hair, scratch the wood floors and just plain wear through the house just living in it. That is part of everybody’s life. Added to the equation is the fact that if not properly trained, pets will urinate on the wood floors and permanently stain the wood.

If you have a dog or a cat and hardwood floors in your home, this blog is to help you understand what your pets do to your floors and how to keep the floors clean and maintained.

Common topics my clients have asked me about:

  • Pets who shed hair on your hardwood floors – This is a pretty easy fix. You can use a vacuum, a broom or a lightly dampened mop. I find it easier to use a damp mop or a micro fiber mop. A lot of the new micro fiber mops will pick up hair and dust without having to spray anything on the wood floors. When the mop is dirty just take it outside and shake it clean.
  • Water spills around their water station – Water and wood do not mix. No matter the finish you have on the floor, water will penetrate through it and will soak in through the floor seams and end joints over time. Water spills and drips in one area on a daily basis will cause discoloration in the wood, stain the wood or cause minor expansion and swelling of the hardwood floors. To keep those from happening, use a dry clean rag or towel to wipe the area daily. I have seen some clients that placed a plastic sheet on the wood floors and that works well.
  • Scratches on your wood floors – dogs and cats, especially large dogs will scratch your wood floors very easily. The heavier the dog the more scratches. A common mistake with site finished floors is for the home owner to move in too soon after the last coat of finish was applied. Since the finish had no time to cure properly the pets would then scratch the wood floors quickly and easily. It is important to try and keep those nails groomed and filed. It is also recommended not to let your 80lb dog run and play inside…

Much like us dogs and cats use and wear our wood floors. Following these simple guidelines will help reduce wear and tear on your floors and keep them clean for all to enjoy.

The Best Wood Floors for Dog and Cat Owners – Part 1

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20161020_114247_smMany of us have dogs or cats as part of our family, and as such we let them inside the house on the hardwood floors. Dogs and cats will walk, run and play on the wood floors and much like us humans will cause some damages over the years. Normal use of our wood floors will eventually cause loss of sheen, scratches, dents, stains and discoloration. Having pets in the house often causes early wear and tear and/or excessive scratches. This leads me to guide you through choosing and using your new wood floors.

The first thing you need to remember is that what you are wearing through is the finish on top of the wood floors, not the wood itself. When considering a new hardwood floors, remember that you don’t need the hardest wood in the world. Unless you drop hammers on the floor every day you don’t really need a floor like let’s say Ipe’ or Strand Woven Bamboo.

The second thing to remember is what the plan for the near future is; Are you going to sell the home? Are you staying there for a while and might need to be able to refinish the floors?

The third and last thing to ask yourself is what kind of pet do you have? Is it a small dog or a big heavy dog that will scratch the floor finish easily? Is it a puppy which urinates everywhere and will stain the wood?

Let’s discuss these issues and figure out which wood is best for you:

  • If choosing a prefinished product buy a higher quality floor, usually the more you pay the better the finish. If you choose a site finished product make sure your contractor uses commercial finishes and not DIY cheap one component finishes. I recommend using a site finished product because of many reasons, the main one being – you can add one or two extra coats for more protection. That was easy, right?
  • If you are selling the home in less than ten years then you’ll need to make sure your hardwood floor can be refinished or recoated before you sell it. Nobody wants to buy a home with a beat up wood floor that needs work or cannot be serviced. If you bought a prefinished floor that cannot be sanded because of a thin veneer or because of a Teflon like coating then you have a problem. If you chose a solid site finished product then you can easily repair and sand it, and most likely change the color/sheen.
  • Important: no finish is impermeable – meaning if your dog urinates on the floor or a water spill stays on the floor it will eventually penetrate through the finish and stain the wood. The stain cannot be sanded off. The solution to this is preventing by training your pets, there is really nothing you can do with wood floors to protect them from liquid damage.

To summarize, choose a floor that is versatile in service and use. Don’t choose something too soft like Fir and you don’t have to use an exotic wood like Ipe’. There are many options for you out there like White Oak, Red Oak, Maple, Brazilian Cherry, European Oak and more. Do your research and make sure that in the end, you hire and consult a professional. In the next part I will discuss how to use and maintain your hardwood floors with pets in the home.

Matching your original oak floors with new

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A lot of home remodel projects call for new hardwood floors in additions, repair of areas where walls were removed and refinishing of the existing floors. It takes a skilled craftsman to identify the type of hardwood floors you have in order to get a match to your 100 year old floor. We got a call just for that type of project in the Berkeley area. The kitchen had old and worn vinyl floor and the home owner wanted to replace that with new hardwood floors to match what was in the rest of the house. A quick look around and I determined the floors were solid top nail white oak. Original to the home, those floors had seen quite the use and a lot of sun light over the years. I recommended using the same white oak floors in the kitchen with the only difference of a tongue and groove product instead of a top nail. The owners agreed to my recommendation and accepted the quote. We then scheduled the delivery date for the wood to acclimate properly to the home. Approximately a week after that we removed the old floor in the kitchen and installed the new white oak floors. We took the time to sand and seal the appliances areas so that they could be installed back in place immediately. That way the home owners didn’t need to worry about the appliances being installed after the floors were all finished and accidently scratching them. After we completed the install we checked the moisture content in the new wood, comparing it to the moisture content in the existing hardwood floors. That gave us a good idea of how long we had to wait before sanding and finishing the new white oak floors. We came back about a week later to sand the new white oak floor in the kitchen and the existing floors in the dining room. The owners stayed somewhere else while the finishing was taking place for a week. This was phase one of two to refinish the floors in the entire first floor. With having no place to put the furniture, a full schedule and young kids in the house we all decided to plan out and schedule the second phase later in the year. The finish on the older floors was a one component low solids water base. The finish faded over the years and was completely worn by the time we got there to do the work. When we were done the big difference in finish qualities and look was obvious to the untrained eye ever before. Four coats of high solid polyurethane showed a smooth, clear and rich looking finish, providing this family with a floor to be used for years to come.

How often should I refinish my hardwood floors?

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20160701_080008_SmWhether you live in the Berkeley Hills or Alamo, if you have wood floors they are most likely original to the house. Whether you live in San Pablo or El Cerrito, you most likely have a white or red oak solid floor. These floors are solid wood and had been around for decades, some even more than a century. The life span of a traditional oak floor is longer than what most people think. We just refinished a white oak floor that was installed in 1965. It has been around for about 50 years and has more life on it for another 50. When we refinish oak floors we get this question a lot: “how long before I need to refinish my floors again?”

The short answer is: it depends. Some floors will need to be refinished after several years and some after more than a decade. Here are the factors that contribute to the durability and longevity of the wood floors finish:

  • Professionally sanding the floors – a qualified contractor will only sand very little off the floor. Poor sanding can take years off the life of the floors. Also, the smoother and more flat the sanding, the more consistent the finish layer will be
  • Using commercial finishes – if your contractor uses cheap or DIY finishes from the local box store, you are guaranteed a finish that will wear and tear quickly
  • Following manufacturer recommendation for the proper drying and curing conditions. Home owners are told it is okay to move in two days after the final coat was applied. It is not. The finish needs proper time to harden and cure and that takes more time than two days
  • Maintenance – proper care for your wood floors will guarantee more years of use before a need to refinish

From our experience at Avi’s Hardwood Floors the average family would need to refinish their floors every 10-15 years. With proper sanding and finishing on our end, and proper use and maintenance on your end (the consumer) your wood floor finish will last a long time.

Can I Refinish my Engineered Floors?

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Over the past decade engineered floors became the go to product in a lot of areas. Manufacturers were driving more flooring products in engineered form into the market as demand grew. Engineered floors were at first just a plywood core with a very thin veneer or real wood on top. Most of them could not be refinished, so when the wear and tear took toll on the floor it had to be replaced. That was in a lot of cases very costly to the home owner.

We recently had to refinish another engineered floor. The floor was red oak veneer over plywood core. We had absolutely no wiggle room with the sanding. The veneer was very thin. We turned the yellow creamy looking red oak into a dark brown espresso color within two days. The home owner was stunned to see the transformation, especially after hearing so many other contractors say they could not refinish that floor.

When it is time to make the decision you have two options: hire a professional to sand the floors or replace it. Refinishing the floor is a small expense in comparison to a full blown hardwood floors replacement, especially if that engineered floor is glued to concrete, which is the case in most homes here in the Bay Area.

Like our past client, take the time to research the professionals in this area. You’ll soon find out that many contractors don’t know and can’t sand such a thin wood floor and so they’ll quote you on a floor replacement. Not knowing much about wood floors you might end up accepting their recommendation and spending your good earned money for no good reason on a brand new product.

Engineered floors have one thing going for them – there’s real wood veneer! If that veneer is thick enough we can refinish it. We had saved so many floors and saved so much money to our clients over the years. With a full dustless refinish process combined with our well qualified crew your engineered wood floors can also be transformed.

Click to enlarge photos

Which is the Best finish for my Wood Floors?

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Sanded-Hardwood-FloorsWe all want to protect our wood floors with the best finish available so we don’t have to do it all over again, right? Most our clients who choose to install new hardwood floors in the East Bay are concerned about the future of their floors. One client in Berkeley, CA asked me what finish would be best living with a big dog in the house. Another one in El Cerrito wanted to know what finish would protect their wood floors from water damage. The answer to this question is very simple: choose a professional to apply a commercial finish on your floor, maintain it properly and you should be fine. There is no one magic floor finish that does it all, after all we all walk on these finishes every day.

There are many choices of finish out there, here is a table exploring some of the characteristics of the main finishes used in the wood flooring market these days:

Finish Type

Color

Approximate Drying Time

Approximate Cure Time

Aging Color

Approximate VOC

Pros

Cons

Oil Base Urethane

Amber

overnight

7 days

Amber

500 g/L

Durable, ages nicely, easy to repair

Strong smell, dries slowly

Water Base Urethane

Clear

3-4 hours

Approximately 80% in 3 days

yellow

210 g/L

Durable, lower VOC, dries and cures fast

Results vary depend on product

Wax Oil Blend

All colors

overnight

7 days

Depends on color

zero

Easy to maintain, no VOC

No resin build up on the floor like oil and water finishes

Staining Wood Before Finishing

All colors

3-4 hours for light colors overnight for dark colors

7 days

N/A

550 g/L

n/

n/a

All finishes require regular maintenance.

All finishes will scratch.

All finishes will wear with regular use overtime.

All finishes can be repaired or restored with different results.

There is no magic product that cures in a day and will never need refinishing. It all comes down to which look you like and how you would be using the floors. Applied correctly all finishes will stand the test of time.

Five Top Reasons why Oak is still the Floor of Choice

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Oak floors stained dark brownMany years ago almost every wood floor installed was either oak or pine, depending on where you lived in the U.S. These days you can choose whatever wood your heart desires from hundreds of wood flooring choices sourced throughout the world. Nonetheless, white oak and red oak floors are still the number one choice for many home owners, designers and architects. Here are the top reasons:

  1. Availability – oak is sourced right here in the U.S. that means that every accessory item needed is in stock. From oak molding to your door trim to stair parts and baseboards. It would be a shame to buy a beautiful wood floor and not be able to have all these accessories available. In some cases, like exotic woods or engineered floors those items are available on special order only, which means a lot of money and long lead times.
  2. Cost – oak has maintained its’ price over decades of ups and downs in the market. Very affordable and as such, attractive to many home owners.
  3. Versatility – between being able to buy oak in vertical grain or flat grain, stain it to whatever color you like, get it in any width or thickness and choose between white or red oak you’re looking at endless design and color options just with one product. This right here is priceless. Let’s say you have an oak floor that is stained dark espresso and after five years you don’t like the color anymore. Well, just sand it and change the stain color. You can’t do this with any other wood.
  4. Value – researches show that you double your investment in value when it comes to putting in oak floors in your home. Homes with oak floors sell faster than homes with other floor coverings. Buyers look for something they can work with. Even if they don’t like the honey color red oak floors in your home, they know that they can hire a professional to refinish the floors and make them look different. That is a much cheaper option than having to replace a floor they can’t work with.
  5. Environment – oak that is harvested here in the U.S is legally and controlled harvested. What does it mean? It means that we don’t clear cut forests here like other parts of the world. Engineers mark trees they allow to be cut and that is sustained harvesting. Where you can keep going back to the forest and cut trees while still maintaining the environment in the long term. Did you know we have more trees in the U.S today than we did a hundred years ago?

Next time you look at wood floors and need to make a choice, don’t dismiss oak so quickly. If you look around long enough you’ll see that white and red oak wood floors had been here for hundreds of years and will still be here for hundreds more, for a lot of good reasons.

Fixing Badly Sanded Hardwood Floors

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Sanded-Hardwood-FloorsWe were called again to fix a floor that was badly sanded. After a water leak damaged the wood floor in a home in Lafayette, the insurance company brought in their hardwood flooring guys to fix the floor. The home owners assumed everything was going to be handled by the insurance company. Little did they know that the guys hired to refinish the wood floors were just plain horrible. The home owners returned to their house to discover a disaster: dust everywhere, gauges in their baseboards and an uneven floor.

Shortly after their discovery the home owners found Avi’s Hardwood Floors and contacted me for an estimate. When I got there it was obvious the floors needed a full refinish and the baseboards needed replacement. After closely inspecting the stairs we also decided to replace all the decorative molding on the stairs.

After a long while of the owners dealing with their insurance company we finally got the green light. The owners knew we were up to the challenge but like anyone who’s been through a bad experience, it was obvious they were concerned with the outcome. After all this was the second and last shot at the sanding, otherwise the floor would have to be replaced because there would not be much wood left to sand. We showed up on time and started stripping the finish off the floor while making the floors flat. This took a little while and the more we sanded the more we realized how bad the sanding job was. In some places we could not take the gauges out without replacing the boards. By looking at the scratch pattern on the floors we determined that one of the tools used on the floor by the other guys was – A grinder.

That explained the small circular scratches in the wood, the long deep gauges and the damaged baseboards. The owners were scheduled to stay at the house the first part of the sanding, then leave for the staining and finishing phase. Once we finished the final sanding I could see a big relief in the owner’s eyes. They were watching us sanding the floors at times and expressed their appreciation in our effort to keep everything clean and the floor flat. We made a custom stain color for them at their request to minimize the gold and yellow in their red oak floor. We applied the stain coat on a Friday so that we could let it dry for three days. The pigments in dark stains like the ones we used are very heavy and require longer drying times. The following week while the owners were gone we applied three coats of commercial water base finish and installed all new baseboards and stair moldings throughout the working areas. I took the time to text pictures of our progress to the owners every day.

As usual we did the best we could and the floor came out as expected. Avi’s Hardwood Floors takes pride in doing the best on every job. It makes for happy clients and life easier on everyone knowing that a project only needed to be done once.