This is a question I hear a lot from clients. Most of the time people are worried about refinishing being a dusty, smelly and toxic project in their home. There’s been many stories from the past of clouds of dust filling your home. Smelly toxic finishes being applied that fill your home with noxious fumes and force you out of your home. Also because of the off gassing these finishes were known to make you stay out of your home for long stretches of time so you couldn’t move back in for a week after. These are all a thing of the past.
Let’s talk about some advancements made in floor refinishing.
Vacuums
A vacuum is attached to every sander that will be on your floor. These catch 95%-98% of the dust
We vacuum the floor multiple times throughout the day
While vacuum systems are becoming more standard, what isn’t as well known is how well they work. They capture about 95% to 98% of the dust created from the sanders. Of course that means they do not catch 100% of the dust. So we vacuum the floors multiple times a day to capture any dust left on the floor. We can also put up some plastic around some sensitive sections, although this practice is hardly needed anymore. So those dust storms from refinishing you may have heard about are a thing of the past. We also do a final clean up and wipe down of any excessive dust from the project.
Advanced floor finishes
Non toxic, no more nasty fumes
Dry faster
More durable
The industry has definitely heard the client loud and clear and non toxic durable finishes are at the forefront. There are many options to choose from but it seems the standard now a days is water based finishes. You can get single component are two component finish if extreme durability is your need. These are all low VOC, non toxic and low odor. Also since they are water based they dry and cure much faster than finishes from the past.
So what you get are finishes that won’t stink up your home for a long amount of time and you can move your furniture back into place much quicker.
So through a few meaningful changes there has been a lot of progress made. The clouds of dust that find their way into every nook and cranny of your home are non existent nowadays. Your home being filled toxic fumes and not being able to be in your home for a week are long gone.
The truth is that with vacuum systems and water based finishes, you can live in home through out the whole project. Like any renovation project it will be nosy and somewhat inconvenient, so you may choose to leave your home but I never tell my clients that they have to leave. At the end your floors will look like new and you’ll have made a good investment into your home.
7 Reasons Hardwood Floors Increase Home Value Compared to Vinyl and Laminate
There are a lot of factors in the value of the home. How big is it? Does it have a fireplace? Is it well maintained? Does it have a sizable backyard for the kids and pets to play in? All of these make a big difference in the value of a home.
And, one of the most important factors is right underneath your feet: hardwood flooring. Just think about it. Natural hardwood floors provide warmth, age, uniqueness, and style to all the central living spaces in your house. They draw attention from any potential homebuyer. Plus, for those who just want to add a piece of luxury to the home, hardwood flooring is where it’s at in home renovations!
So why don’t people switch to hardwood floors?
Unfortunately, most homeowners hesitate when it comes to the price tag. And when there are cheaper flooring options like vinyl and laminate out there that can mimic the aesthetic of hardwood flooring without the price, why make the investment?
But remember, it’s an INVESTMENT that’ll do wonders for increasing your home’s total value when you decide to sell. Just to prove it, here are 7 reasons hardwood floors increase home value when you’re renovating or selling your home!
Stain samples
7 Solid Reasons to Install Hardwood Floors
1. Nothing Compares to Natural Hardwood!
Technology has come a long way, but there’s nothing like natural aesthetics. Hardwood floors come from the trees of the earth. The beauty of the wood helps us stay in touch with the natural world. Every plank is one-of-a-kind, rich in beauty, and full of life.
On the other hand, vinyl and laminate flooring are man-made, artificially produced from synthetic materials like compressed petroleum and fiberboard. They’re made to mimic the look and feel of hardwood, but they can’t replace what we know and love from Mother Earth herself.
2. Every Hardwood Floor is Unique in Design & Texture
Another beauty of hardwood flooring comes from the unique texture and design. There are so many species of trees available for hardwood flooring! You can choose the plank width, pattern, texture, stain color, and more—so you have endless options when it comes to the looks, the price point, and the durability of your floors.
Vinyl and laminate also come in a variety of designs to compete with popular hardwood varieties. However, it is just an image or design. It may be comparable from a distance, but most people can distinguish between the real thing and a fake in a home.
3. Hardwood Floors Can Last Several Generations
Just like in nature, hardwood can last for several generations. Some homes from as far back as the 1800s still have glorious hardwood floorings that have only become more beautiful with age. And with proper maintenance and refurbishing, most hardwood floors can last a hundred or so years before needing to be replaced.
When you compare that to vinyl and laminate flooring, there’s just no contest. These cheaper alternatives can only last 5-10 years before needing to be replaced. They’re not made to sustain years of use and abuse. So, you’ll be paying more over the long haul if you expect to keep the home for many years to come.
4. Hardwoods Can Resist Damage and Maintain High Durability
This will ultimately depend on what species of wood you decide to use for your home. Certain woods like oak, maple and cherry are preferred because they are more impact resistant. But if you decide to go with a more exotic variety, then you may have to sacrifice durability for appearance. But in any case, you can refinish your floors to get them as good as new.
Vinyl and laminate often have a protective coating to prevent the surface from getting scuffed and scratched like hardwood. However, the coating isn’t as impact resistant. So once that coating is breached from a hard fall or scrape, you can’t undo the damage.
5. Home Renovations are Easy with Hardwoods
The most rewarding benefit of including hardwood floor to the interior design of your home is how easy it is to refurbish and refinish it. Hardwood flooring keeps its aesthetic even after you sand it down and add a new finish to it. So, even if it gets scuffed and scratched over the years, you can always repair it.
You can’t achieve the same effect with vinyl or laminate. Their hardwood design stays at the surface level. So once that becomes damaged beyond repair, it’s going to cost you a whole new floor to fix.
6. Stay Environmentally Friendly with Hardwood Floor Installation
Hardwood floors come from a reusable material—trees! Wood is biodegradable and won’t harm the environment if you discard it. It is also non-toxic and won’t off-gas any harmful chemicals into your home. Modern manufacturers produce wood in a sustainable, eco-friendly way.
The opposite can be said for vinyl and laminate flooring. Because they come from synthetic building materials, they don’t break down naturally as waste. They will fill up landfills for centuries to come. And worst of all, they can even give off volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that can harm family, pets and the environment!
7. Guests and Future Home Buyers Can Tell the Difference!
And finally, no matter how much you try to replicate the look and feel of hardwood flooring, people will always tell the difference. Future homebuyers will always be willing to pay more for all-natural wood floors. It has so much more value attached to it both aesthetically and monetarily.
Vinyl and laminate may look great overall, and they do have their own benefits. However, they do next to nothing to increase the value of your home. In fact, they might even lower its net worth on the market!
Get New or Refinish your Hardwood Flooring
Looking for hardwood floor installation or refinishing? If you need an experienced, reliable crew in the Fraser Valley and Greater Vancouver area, Evergreen Hardwood Floors is here to help.
Get ahold of our contractors today at (604) 557-6738. Plus, you can follow our blog to learn other tips and tricks for your next home renovations project!
We here at Evergreen Hardwood Floors are focused on a quality first approach. For the work that we do and the flooring we install. Unfortunately we are noticing an unfortunate trend around our area. Still perfectly good hardwood floors are being ripped out, then installing lesser quality hardwood flooring or even laminate.
There seems to be a lot of misinformation out there regarding the life expectancy of hardwood floors. Good quality hardwood floors should last as long as your home is standing.
The waste and environmental impact is enormous from this practice. The still useful flooring is just thrown into the landfill, where it sits and adds to the pile of garbage. Some of the new flooring installed, it may be hard to tell where your hardwood floors come from, without a lot of research. Some overseas manufacturers have much lower environmental standards and sustainable logging practices are not a concern.
While this may help lower the price, this has a major impact on the worldwide environment but also the environment of your own home. We know you are concerned about the environment now and for future generations, so why not extend that to what goes in your own home!
Loba Impact Oils – 0% VOC
So what do you do if you have hardwood floors that are worn or out of date? We offer the option of refinishing your hardwood floors. With this practice, the environmental impact is much less. We remove as little as possible of your existing hardwood floors and then we build it up through the use of low VOC stain and finish coats. We are committed to always offering you the best options for your health that also have great durability and longevity for your hardwood floors.
The bonus of the refinishing process is that you can have a direct impact on how your flooring looks. The choices that you can make for regarding the colour of your floor are almost endless so we can really tap into what you want your home to look like!
So if your hardwood floors are looking out of date, within a few days we can get them looking modern again, and you can have a hand in the finished product.
Stain samples
Also, if you need to install new hardwood floors we can help you choose the best option for your home. We do our best to offer flooring from mills that are conscious of their environmental impact. Whether that’s an engineered or solid hardwood floor, we want you to love your floors for decades! We would not want you to go through all the inconvenience that come with a renovation, and then have to go through it again with ripping up your floors every few years. I know that may seem far off, but the years seem to fly by.
Contact us today, about your hardwood flooring project, and you may be surprised by the options available to you.
At Evergreen we finish a variety of floors and work with customers who have a variety of tastes and preference. We wanted to take some time and let you know about our favorite high quality products and how we can make your floors look as unique as you like.
I wanted to provide a little insight into my trade after going to see a client who tried to refinish his own floors with some rented equipment. Some things are fairly DIY safe but some are a little more complicated. I liken it to car maintenance. I have no formal training, but I do have wrenches, screwdrivers, and Youtube, so I can do oil changes and basic maintenance but should I take apart my transmission? That is a recipe for disaster, trust me.
