Hardwood flooring cost

obullfish

obullfish

Carolina Trail Blazers
Joined
Nov 21, 2011
Location
Candler N.C.
We built our house about 8 years ago and at the time thought that carpet in the family room and our home office was a good idea. Well as you can tell by this post we are wishing that we did the hardwood from the start. What would be a fair price to move furniture, remove old carpet, and install a mid grade pre finished redoak hardwood for 600 sq ft?
 
I can do it just don't have the time anymore. If i tried to do this it probably would take me 2-3 months and my wife wants it done quickly.
 
2.oo Sq ft for install
.25 ft for furn. Moving
.35 ft for old carpet/pad/ pad staples,tacks trip removal. (Alot of folks assume cpt removal is super simple...but when converting to wood floors, now you have alot more prep)
And now you need shoe moulding installed (carpet didn't need this)
1.50 ln ft bought and installed( need those measurements, but safe rule of thumb is 1/3 of sq. Ft age = linear ft of moulding.

Wood prices vary to much for me to attempt to place a number on that.
Find your product..add that price to the above figures ,don't forget moulding figures, and that should ball park you.

Don't forget underlayment ( roofing felt or aqua bar..etc... any transition pc. will also cost.

Ballpark...without wood, but including absolutely everything else...1800.00
Look for a loooong day or regular day and a half labor. Me and 2 helpers.
I don't speak spanish, and I am not the cheapest company to use. Lol
 
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Dylan W. said:
2.oo Sq ft for install
.25 ft for furn. Moving
.35 ft for old carpet/pad/ pad staples,tacks trip removal. (Alot of folks assume cpt removal is super simple...but when converting to wood floors, now you have alot more prep)
And now you need shoe moulding installed (carpet didn't need this)
1.50 ln ft bought and installed( need those measurements, but safe rule of thumb is 1/3 of sq. Ft age = linear ft of moulding.

Wood prices vary to much for me to attempt to place a number on that.
Find your product..add that price to the above figures ,don't forget moulding figures, and that should ball park you.

Don't forget underlayment ( roofing felt or aqua bar..etc... any transition pc. will also cost.

Ballpark...without wood, but including absolutely everything else...1800.00
Look for a loooong day or regular day and a half labor. Me and 2 helpers.
I don't speak spanish, and I am not the cheapest company to use. Lol
Click to expand...
Do you work around the Asheville area?
 
Not really, but would if time allowed. I'm 3 weeks booked and adding more everyday.

You could probably tear our the carpet pad and tack strip you self or get someone cheaper like a buddy and some child labor!
 
jeepmedic said:
Buy a good saw, tape measure and YouTube it. People who do hardwood flooring think thier labor is worth gold. It's so easy a caveman could do it. Honestly.
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My labor is worth gold. Or at least the guarantee that backs it is. Plus the fact we actually know exactly what we're doing.
And already own all the propper tools for just that. My jamb saw alone cost many a gold coin.
 
It would be a month or so at the earliest before I would be ready. If it's something you're interested in doing let me know. I would like to use a NC 4x4 member if possible. Thanks for all the info!
 
jeepmedic said:
The 1/4 round and done.
Click to expand...

Forget the quarter round. Move the baseboards to the proper height and make it look sooo clean.

I want to kick the guy that installed our flooring in the nuts (put in long before we bought it). Quarter round everywhere and scroll cut around the door casing instead of undercutting. Such shoddy ass bullshit, and I have no way to fix it without new flooring.
 
$7.50 a foot ball park. That's material/labor on a prepared surface. I stay so busy at my gold price that I'm cosidering going platinum in hopes of a day off. :flipoff2:.

@Dylan W. 2 days by myself. I'll take all the gold for myself!
 
Dylan W. said:
..and I am not the cheapest company to use. Lol
Click to expand...

This is actually what I look for. I get suspicious of the most expensive company, and I have no desire to take a cheap/expensive gamble (depending on your point of view) on the cheapest company. Somewhere in the middle is where I shoot for, unless I know exactly what I'm getting.

Unfortunately, in my past experience (this works for many industries) the most expensive company is usually one or more of these things, and often not the ones you want:
  • actually worth every penny
  • fishing with a high price to see what people will actually agree to
  • too much overhead, or
  • not efficient, or
  • very high insurance rates from past problems
  • artificially inflated because they don't want to bother on a small project but won't say no directly
If it's the first one, you've got the perfect person and should stretch your project budget if needed.
 
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Fabrik8 said:
This is actually what I look for. I get suspicious of the most expensive company, and I have no desire to take a cheap/expensive gamble (depending on your point of view) on the cheapest company. Somewhere in the middle is where I shoot for, unless I know exactly what I'm getting.

Unfortunately, in my past experience (this works for many industries) the most expensive company is usually one or more of these things, and often not the ones you want:
  • actually worth every penny
  • fishing with a high price to see what people will actually agree to
  • too much overhead, or
  • not efficient, or
  • very high insurance rates from past problems
  • artificially inflated because they don't want to bother on a small project but won't say no directly
If it's the first one, you've got the perfect person and should stretch your project budget if needed.
Click to expand...


Sometimes it's the last one too...lol. except it should read.

Artificially inflated because they don't have time for a small project at that particular moment
 
I'm not looking for the cheapest or the most expensive. I'm looking for the best quality of work at a fair price and someone that takes pride in what they do. This is really hard to find now days for some reason especially in the mountains. Had a buddy that did some of the nicest hardwood floors I've ever seen before the Meth took hold and now I wouldn't let him put a plywood floor in a outhouse.
 
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Alot to consider for hardwoods but here's my take...

Better make sure your subfloor is suitable or you will run into another wammy. You can't get a straight answer across the board for everybody has their preferences and so many variables, but I prefer 7/8" total (nothing compressed or particle / all pure ply) by means of 1/2" under 3/8" with the 1/2" laid longways on the floor joists and the 3/8" all laid at 45 degrees with the 3/8" screwed with 5/8" screws at no less than every 16".

I prefer cleats and NOT staples for various reasons.

All the door trim and corner round has to come up so there's a HUGE cost considering re-install. Trim can break and damage easily so if you pay someone, hands down supply all new trim...

I prefer unfinished not the prefinished crap. You have a smooth surface to sweep / mop / smop / dust and it seals way better. Actually prefinished does not seal period...

Any layman can do the job with good knowledge but once it's laid, it's there and you will have to live with your mistakes. I can go back and show you every detail where I messed up on the floors I've done although I'm usually the only one that can notice without pointing it out.

there's a HUGE toll on the body if not used to this work. It works every muscle.

After my 5'th, I think I have it down to a science but I don't do side work any more. I only give out advise...

:beer:
 
6BangBronk said:
Alot to consider for hardwoods but here's my take...

Better make sure your subfloor is suitable or you will run into another wammy. You can't get a straight answer across the board for everybody has their preferences and so many variables, but I prefer 7/8" total (nothing compressed or particle / all pure ply) by means of 1/2" under 3/8" with the 1/2" laid longways on the floor joists and the 3/8" all laid at 45 degrees with the 3/8" screwed with 5/8" screws at no less than every 16".

I prefer cleats and NOT staples for various reasons.

All the door trim and corner round has to come up so there's a HUGE cost considering re-install. Trim can break and damage easily so if you pay someone, hands down supply all new trim...

I prefer unfinished not the prefinished crap. You have a smooth surface to sweep / mop / smop / dust and it seals way better. Actually prefinished does not seal period...

Any layman can do the job with good knowledge but once it's laid, it's there and you will have to live with your mistakes. I can go back and show you every detail where I messed up on the floors I've done although I'm usually the only one that can notice without pointing it out.

there's a HUGE toll on the body if not used to this work. It works every muscle.

After my 5'th, I think I have it down to a science but I don't do side work any more. I only give out advise...

:beer:
Click to expand...

Here is you strait answer for all questions hardwood floor related. If you read through them you may realize that doing the job right takes time.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...9otrUMVOi64pJmZNA&sig2=U1NOIhI4nc84u6UTDHcmtw

As for staple vs cleats I prefer staples b/C there are 2 2" legs going into the floor and 1/2" crown connecting them.

The quarter round will have to be removed but the door trim stays. I've never known anyone to remove that.

You are right about the toll on the body. I've been doing this for so long it doesn't bother me but the young new guys can't seem to keep up with my old ass!
 
1'st off, there's so many answers nobody is wrong here. But it sure does make it interesting to hear someone's take that does this for a living. I've only learnt from my mistakes. Now that's stated...

I'd love to hear your reasoning for I'm sure you have a good one.

GotWood said:
As for staple vs cleats I prefer staples b/C there are 2 2" legs going into the floor and 1/2" crown connecting them.
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My thinking has been opposite on staples. Unless they are different now days, we used stapes one time in my early hardwood flooring years when they first came out (think like 12-13 years ago) using 3"-5" wide Cherry with boards up to 6-7 feet long. 1'st thing we found out, there's no salvaging a tongue that you figure out too late that it won't work after a single staple. Plus after going back and looking later, the boards warped especially in the middle of the floor and in front of the front door and windows. I think it was cause they couldn't swale or contract? Good thing is the house exchanged hands since we laid the floors down. :rolleyes:

Then I noticed they squeaked a lot? My thinking is that the wood forced the contraction and swales and probably split the tongues? I just know that cleats are smooth up top and wiggle around alot for the purpose of allowing the wood to wiggle. And they are easy to grab the head with a pair of pliers and twist about 8 times til they pop off. Then you can remove the wood without damaging the tongue and pound the rest of the cleat down and fix your mistake.

Then again, we may have needed to not do the felt thing at all and use staples and wood glue on the cherry for it was so big? I did that for my sweetgum at my house I live in now and after 3 years, so far it seemed to have worked like a charm?

GotWood said:
The quarter round will have to be removed but the door trim stays. I've never known anyone to remove that.
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I'm sure you have the correct saw to cut it in place in a manner that they don't get hacked to shit. :) I never had the privelidge so we took them off. I forget there's a tool for that now.

GotWood said:
You are right about the toll on the body. I've been doing this for so long it doesn't bother me but the young new guys can't seem to keep up with my old ass!
Click to expand...

We used to use the statement "Tin Man Ya" when we did floors or steep roofs. You feel like and walk just like the character off of Wizard of Oz for a couple of days.

I forgot to mention earlier to my experiences, that there's no such thing as the term "airless hammer" anymore. I think now (if any still exist) that the proper terms are either "door props" or they are generically called "scrap metal"!!! :shaking:
 
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