Planning a home flooring renovation will take more than just buying and installing the floors. Be sure you’re prepared at all stages of the process by following our guide to planning a home flooring project.
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Measure Your Square Footage
Measure all rooms you are reflooring and calculate their areas. For a rectangular room, simply multiply the length and width in feet to calculate the square footage needed. Be sure to always add an additional 10% in square feet needed to account for flooring waste as it is installed.
Determine Your Flooring Needs
Consider the type of wear and tear your new flooring will have to undergo once it is installed. Do you have pets or children? If you do, you may want to consider flooring that is highly water resistant, like luxury vinyl plank flooring, rather than hardwood floors.
Location can also affect your flooring selection. Will the flooring be installed in a common area that will be regularly used? Consider finding a floor that is durable and can withstand high traffic. If you’re installing new floors in a bathroom, consider tile or other waterproof materials.
Figure Out Budget
This may be an obvious step in the planning process, but sometimes homeowners neglect to take into consideration the full cost of a flooring renovation project. Budget planning should not only include the flooring materials, but also the necessary tools and additional materials needed to install the floors. For example, if you want tile, you must take into consideration the cost of grout to adhere the tile to your subfloor.
Also take into consideration the cost of removing your old floors and the cost of hiring a contractor if you do not plan to install the flooring yourself. If you decide that this is not a project you want to handle yourself, follow our guide to hiring a contractor to avoid headaches.
Once you have set down all of the additional costs, determine how much can be afforded in flooring material per square foot. This will help you stay on budget, without any surprise elements once you order your new flooring.
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Research Companies & Request Samples
Find a few flooring companies that carry the flooring product that you need that fit within your budget. Most companies will allow you to order samples of the flooring product for free or at a low cost. The sample will be a small portion of the actual product to give you an idea of color, thickness and texture of the product. Unsure of ordering flooring online? Don’t worry, we have a guide: How To Buy Flooring Online.
Set Your Plan & Stick To It
Create a general timeline and a deadline of when the work should be finished. The timeline should include time to remove and dispose the old flooring, subfloor preparation, shipment of flooring materials, acclimation of the new floors, and installation time. Ensure that the flooring company will be able to fulfill your order request and meet your installation timeline for delivery. Allow additional time for each stage of the project for unexpected obstacles.
Outline the tools that you will need during the installation prior to the floors arriving. If renting these tools, it is important to stick to your timeline in order to avoid additional fees.
Also decide if you and your family will need to stay elsewhere during this project. Flooring renovations can get messy, and depending on how large of a project it is, it may displace you for several days. Prepare to have to stay elsewhere during the course of your project.
Place Order
So you’ve reviewed all of your numbers, found an installer, and have the timeline set to go. Placing the order is the easiest part! Simply order online or talking to a representative who can place the order for you.
Mentally Prepare For The Unexpected
As much as you can try to prepare for renovation and hope for the best, mentally prepare yourself by accepting that unexpected issues will arise. Sometimes the removal of the old floors will reveal an inadequate subfloor that needs to be resurfaced. Things like this cannot be predicted; so being ready to overcome unknown hurdles will make your flooring project much less stressful.
Source: Hirashima, Karen Aston Design
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