Don’t Invest in a Wooden Nickel: Finding the Right Wood Floor Installers
Wooden flooring can be a wonderful way to add value to a home. The aesthetics alone make a stylish living area or a cottage kitchen even more appealing to anyone who walks in. This appeal can drive up desirability enough to increase the valuation of a home – providing the rest of the decor is up to the same standard. Installing wooden floors is a big investment in terms of both time and money. You need to be sure that this is the right option and that you have a qualified team who can do the job at a fair price. The cost of installing real wooden floors has people questioning their worth and whether to go for cheaper alternatives. However, the right material in the right hands can be a wise choice.
Wooden Floors Or Laminate Floors?
The first question you need to ask yourself here is, what sort of floor do you want? Are you looking for something completely authentic with quality hardwood all the way through? Or are you looking for something that simply gives the illusion of a wooden floor and is actually just plywood with a wood veneer? There are pros and cons to both options. Durability is going to be a concern no matter what, with laminate floors being hard to repair when they’re scratched and hardwood floors becoming susceptible to water damage. Real wood flooring looks better because of the warmth of the tones and the real grain, but they are also more expensive to install.
Why Is Wooden Flooring So Expensive?
1) High-quality materials
First up, there’s the issue of the cost of the materials. High-quality materials don’t come cheap, and with good reason. If you want solid wood over a wood veneer, you’re looking at a substantial piece of oak or pine with the right tone and an attractive grain. It could be more difficult to source these materials, which will only add to the overall expense. It takes time to grow the trees, harvest the wood at the right age, and ship the timber. Rarer materials are more expensive due to simple laws of supply and demand.
You may have to pay more again if you want your wood stained or painted a certain color to match the decor. A white wooden floor will finish off a Scandi room at a high price. It’s a similar issue if you want your wood oiled or distressed. Some wooden flooring companies will let you choose between these different finishes to find the perfect fit. If you wanted to save money, you could try it yourself. However, you might not get an even coating, and it could ruin the timber.
2) Paying For Skilled Labor
It takes an experienced tradesperson with a keen eye for design and precise measurements to lay the perfect wooden floor. You’ll get what you pay for. So, if you decide to cut costs by working with a budget company, you’ll probably get an unsatisfactory result. The floor could be uneven, with shoddy work on the cuts and joins.
In addition, you may also choose to work with an installation team that can handle more complex designs. This means cutting the wood to precise measurements to create intricate, repeated patterns with no mistakes. Popular choices include chevron designs and the old-fashioned herringbone look of parquet floors. Both can look stunning and increase the aesthetic and financial value of the floor further, especially with attention to detail in the wood tones and grains. That premium service comes at a price.
3) Paying For A Laborer’s Time
All of this takes a long time to perfect. You are going to end up paying an installation team for their time as well as their skill, and it’s worth those extra hours to make sure everything is done right. You want to ensure the team takes the time to prep the floor properly before putting anything down. You may need some work to level out the floor and provide the right surface before they can begin. Then, you need to give them the time to go through the processes mentioned above to a high standard.
Getting A Reliable Installation At A Fair Price.
If you want your wood flooring installed correctly, you have to be prepared to pay the right price. You’ll know you’re getting a better value service when you work with wooden floor installation teams with a good reputation. These companies will have plenty of experience selling and laying floors to order and the skill to get flawless results. They’ll take their time to go through all the stages of measuring the floor, prepping the surface, handling the timber, and dealing with the finishing touches. You’ll be paying for quality, and that extra cost will be worth it when the floor proves to be more durable and effective enough to add value to your home.
Of course, you still don’t want to end up paying more than you should for installing a wooden floor. There are companies out there that will try to charge extra for premium services without delivering on that promise. Therefore, it helps to get some fair quotes to help you find the right company and get a good deal. Take the time to compare options and see how good a service you can get for your budget.
Wooden Flooring Is Worth The Expense
There is no getting away from the fact that these wooden floors can be expensive and can have people questioning their worth. If you’re really struggling to make the idea work within your budget, there are alternatives. Still, it is worthwhile getting a quote for your main living area and seeing what sort of a deal you can get. When you work with professionals who pride themselves on efficiency and quality materials, the extra cost ends up paying off. You can end up with something to be proud of and that could make a big difference to your home’s value for a long time to come.