The time has come. After years of always finding an excuse to push it off... most notably the dusty mess that would ensue... we are finally refinishing our hardwood floors.Steve and I bought our house 7 years ago. It was a complete and total fixer upper. Though we got an AMAZING deal, a whopping 35-50K below market value at the time, it came with a LOT of deferred maintenance.
Over 7 years, we have pretty much overhauled the bulk of the exterior: windows, siding, roof, gutters, soffits, garage doors, front doors, and a huge landscaping makeover (done completely on our own) including removal of 6 diseased trees and planting 7 new. We are always doing something around here.
Though we have done a few interior projects: paint, all new fixtures, some rewiring, gut of one bathroom down to the studs, some tiling, removal of 1960's paneling, some drywall, and several little aesthetic improvements here and there... there is still a lot to go. The large interior projects are the ones that prove to be a tad more challenging, however, when you have a full-time job, a husband that travels, & 2 little guys running around the house. One typically learns the hard way to prioritize the projects and not bite off more than one can chew at a time.
When we bought this house it boasted gorgeous (NOT) white shag carpeting through out, ala the 2003 MLS listing pic:
How about that light fixture? Quite something, right? Lol. Within 2 hours of closing... the carpet was GONE! Steve and I had it ripped out before the contract was even cool. Though the original HW floors were there and beautiful, they were in need of refinishing. That being said, the project was lower on the priority list, far behind the immediate need to improve the energy-efficiency of the property by completing the exterior work.Good news- the floor's number is up! The time has come. We are biting the bullet and starting the process with the dining room and living room. After getting several bids (5+), thus far we are thrilled with the contractor that we found! My plan is to give all of his info once the project is complete, along with my tips for getting the best local bid and surviving the mess.
BEFORE: high sheen poly with severe scratching (pardon the poor quality Blackberry photos). This was just prior to sanding, after the baseboards were already removed.
