It is important to choose a contractor who carries Liability Insurance, Workmans Compensation and is Bonded. You could become liable for injuries to the workmen if the contractor does not carry insurance.

Find out if the contractor has an up todate reference sheet of customers he has worked for whom you can call.

Screen and coat with one coat ... This process is successful if 1. The polyurethane finish on your floors are not worn down to the bare wood at any one place. 2. It will freshen the finish on the floor and increase the life of the finish but will not remove any deep scratches in the finish or the wood. Not too expensive - it is usually a one day job and depending on the finish, 6-10 hours to dry and 7-21 days to cure.

Sand and coat with 3 coats of ... With this process the wood floors are sanded down to the bare wood and all the scratches and stain are removed. You can choose a new stain and usually three coats of "polyurethane" will be applied to the floor on successive days. Dries in 6-10 hours, cures in 7-21 days. Moderately expensive and is usually a 4-5 day process.

Install #1 Common Oak and finish ... Number 1 common oak is a grade of wood floor boards that is commonly used today for hardwood floors. It comes in various widths but the most common 2¼" wide and ¾" thick. There are higher and lower grades of oak and you can choose red or white oak. You have a choice of many other kinds of hardwoods but for that you will need to speak to your hardwood contractor. The installation will start with the removal of the old floor covering e.g. carpet or vinyl floor and underlayment. You can choose a pre-finished hardwood which you obviously don't need to finish. The next step is to sand and finish the floor which is the same as D above. Depending upon the area to be installed, the whole process will take about 5-10 days.

Oil Modified polyurethane. This is a commonly used finish for the floors and is moderately hard. It usually dries in 6-8 hours. It has a strong mineral spirit odor but is not toxic. The water based finishes dry quicker 4-6 hours, cure sooner and have little odor. They don't tend to yellow over time. After the 4-6 hour dry period you can usually walk on the floor with socks.

Write in the names of the different rooms you want done.

Dimensions: Write down the name of the room and measure the length and the width of the room, including the length and width of all the closets and areas to be sanded or where you want to install new hardwood floors.

Multiply the length and the width and write down the area in square feet in column A or B, or C. It all depends on which process you choose for each room. You may want to refinish one room and install new wood in another. Convert you feet and inches to decimals.If you measure a room say for instance it measures 12' 2", multiply that as 12.1' feet, 12' 3" as 12.25'; 12' 4" as 12.3'; 12' 5" as 12.4'; 12' 6" as 12.5'; 12' 8" as 12.6'; 12' 9" as 12.75'; 12' 10" as 12.8'.

Base Shoe: This is commonly known as quarter round and is the moulding that is installed up against the base board and the hardwood floor to finish off the floor. It can either be pine/primed or stained oak, or any other hardwood to match your hardwood floor. Measure the perimeter of the room in feet, around all the cupboards and in any walk-in closets, and write it down next to that room in the baseshoe column. When you have all the running feet per room, add up the total in the blue column D, Put it into the Blue box at the base of D; write your contractors price per foot and multiply, and type the figure in the green column under totals.

Base Shoe: This is commonly known as quarter round and is the moulding that is installed up against the base board and the hardwood floor to finish it of. Add up all the feet in vertical column D, the Blue column. Write in the Total feet and multiply the price per lin/ft that your contractor gives you and wite that into the Green Totals column.

Add up all the square feet in column A the Yellow column and put that figure into the Yellow box of Screen and Coat labelled A. Extend it out to the right where you see sq.ft@$ Now you have the total number of square feet to screen and coat. Insert the price per square foot from your Contractor for Columns A, (Screen and Coat) multiply it out and put the figure into the Green Totals column.

Add up all the square feet in vertical column B, the Pink column and put that figure into the Pink box of Sand and Coat horizontal label B. Extend it out to the right where you see sq.ft@$ Now you have the total number of square feet to Sand and Coat. Insert the price per square foot from your Contractor for columns B, (Sand and Coat) multiply it out and put the figure into the Green Totals column.

Add up all the square feet in vertical column C, the Aqua column, and put that figure into the Aqua box of Supply/install Sand and Coat labelled C. Add 5 percent to this figure and extend it out to the right where you see sq.ft@$ Now you have the total number of square feet to Install Sand and Coat and coat. Insert the price per square foot from your Contractor for columns C, (Supply Sand and Coat) multiply it out and put the figure into the Green Totals column.

Tear Out. Your Tear Out square footage is usually the same as your installation square footage. Get a price from your Contractor per square foot and multiply it out. Note: There will be a different price for carpet tear out for new installation and carpet tear out for finishing an old hardwood floor covered with carpet (All the staples have to be removed besides the carpet, tack strip and pad) and also for Vinyl floor and underlayment tear out. Sometimes the price will be included in the installation price. Multiply the price/sq.ft. by the total number of sq.ft your contractor will tear out and put the figure into the green Totals column.

Whenever you need to replace boards due to termite damage, water damage or very dark spots which are usually caused by pet urine, find out how much your contractor will charge per board or per sq.ft and work out an approximate cost for this work.Enter the amount in the total column. If your hardwood floors are covered with carpet you won't see the damage until you pull out the carpet.

Find out if your Contractor hangs plastic over your kitchen cabinet and doorways to contain the dust in the area in which he is working and how much he charges for this. Enter the amount in the total column.

If you don't install new base shoe but choose to use the old base shoe when refinishing floors, the base shoe will need to be taken of and renailed when the floors are finished. Find out if this is an extra charge and enter it in to the total column.

Find out if your Contractor charges extra to move out appliances and bathroom fixtures and re-install them and and how much. Write the amount in the appropriate column. Remember to install a Moisture Minder to help to protect from leaks in concealed places.

Carpet kick in. Some carpets may have to be kicked in at doorways where it meets a new hardwood floor. Find out if your Contractor charges extra for this. Enter the price.

Hardwood transition pieces are usually installed where the hardwood meets Tile or Vinyl floor, and the Tile is lower than the floor. Find out if your Contractor charges extra for this. Enter the price.

And last. Find out if your Contractor moves out furniture and moves it back in. Contractors usually don't move out furniture because their insurance does not cover for antique pieces and even if you don't have antiques they would rather not have that responsibility of having to make an extra trip to come and put back furnisher.

All your Cleaning Products and a new electronic device called a Moisture Minder can be obtained from this site, JacWood.com. We hope this sheet will help you and if you have any suggestions please use the contactjac or the askjac form to let us know if it works for you or if we can make it easier. Enjoy your hardwood floors.