Hardwood floors are a highly sought after commodity. Many feel they increase the overall appearance of a home, making it feel polished, tied together, and cozy. Installing hardwood floors can also provide a certain amount of ease and convenience. With hardwood floors, there is considerably less concern of staining. Messes are easily taken care of. In fact, the majority of homeowners prefer hardwood or tile floors in places like the kitchen, where most of household messes occur.
Installing hardwood floors is a financially sound option and can even increase the value of a home. In fact, 54% of people are willing to spend more for hardwood floors. More than 80% of U.S. realtors concur that hardwood floors cause a home to sell faster than it would otherwise. It’s even a good choice for environmentally conscious homeowners. For every cubic foot of trees harvested, 1.66 feet are regrown.
So now you’ve decided on installing hardwood floors. What kind of upkeep do they need? When do hardwood floors need repair?
When first installing hardwood floors, speaking to a professional will give you the greatest number of options. They can help you pick custom hardwood flooring, talk to you about types of floor finish, and instruct you on the care and upkeep of you floors.
For some general advice, you should sweep your hardwood floors daily, though they only need to be vacuumed weekly. Like most things, hardwood floors sometimes need professional maintenance and upkeep, so hiring professional floor refinishers is a sound option. This needs to be done at least every few decades. In the meantime, a maintenance coat should be applied every three to five years.
There are other things you can do on a daily basis, like being mindful of what comes in contact with your floors. For example, you should never walk around in high heels on them. When cleaning your floors, you should always use a product specifically recommended for wood floors and not some other type of cleaner. You should also keep the temperature of your home no lower than 60 degrees and no higher than 80. The relative humidity of your house should be no greater than 50%, no less than 30%.
If your floors do become damaged, it’s a good idea to hire a hardwood flooring contractor who can assess the damage and help you decide how to proceed. A hardwood flooring contractor might recommend different types of floor finish or even hardwood floor board replacement.
Hardwood floors, though they require some special care, are a great investment. Near 100% of real estate professionals advise spending money on floors, noting that for an average investment of only $600, brokers estimate a return value of close to $2,000.
