My Floor Replacement Experience

This is a second part of my recent renovation experience at our house. An accident with water pipe freeze this past winter caused some major damage to our home. It needed a complete repaint of our house and replacement of our first floor flooring. We decided to hire a local floor specialist and they did an excellent job. They were very professional.

The name of the company is RD Flooring Inc. in Croton NY. I would recommend them highly.

- Apr. 2018

The floor of my house measures approx. 980 sq. feet. It is on a concrete slab, built in the 1960s. The problem is sagging. The middle of some rooms are warped and there is a gap of almost 2 inches drop in the middle compared to the walls. The estimate I received is for leveling the rooms, building a plywood base, adding a vapor barrier and finally installing a 3/8 inch engineered hardwood flooring of natural oak from the Bruce Company.

The time estimate for the job was to take approx. five days.

It ended taking 6 days, starting on a Monday and finishing on Saturday around 7 pm. They did a fantastic job and the work was professional. The various workers came and did their work and helped move the furniture out of the way from room to room. They had the tools to do the work. They carted away all the garbage and left over scraps. They left me some unused wood planks in case for future repairs. My wife and I were completely satisfied with the work. Their skills and professional attitude is what impressed me. They are also hard workers and did not waste any time. They came, did the work, took short lunch break and continued till end of the day.

Before we settled on this contractor, we checked out quite a few places and received estimates. We also seek out about various methods to perform the leveling. Some said they would use concrete, others would use the self leveling compound. Some recommended gluing the wood down, while others recommended a floating floor arrangement.

The estimates all came in approx. similar in range, perhaps a thousand dollars lower or higher. We decided on this particular contractor because they are a local outfit and they have been in business for 20 years. I just trust someone who has that kind of stability.

I was watching and paying attention as they worked. I was curious how they would handle the leveling. As it turned out, it was simple. They basically used a plum line and stretched across the floor from one wall to the opposite wall. They then measured the gap about every 12 inches and cut tappered wood strips radially and glued them down to the concrete base. Them they placed the 3/4 inch plywood over it and used a nail gun to secure it. It is as simple as could be and it is the right solution for our case. The warping is too great for self leveling compound. They would have to use much more material and have to do it with several layers. The self leveling is only good for about a half inch gap.

The other thing that made this job easy is the snap on wood strips. They come in a box approx. 22 sq. ft. and of various length. The strips snap together like a puzzle and lego and they interlock to create a tight seam. Once the floor was leveled, the wood floor installation went quick. What is time consuming is near the edges and transition.

My experience with RD Flooring is a positive one. I would recommend them to anyone. They did an excellent job and cleaned up everyday. They did what was promised and finished the job without any loose ends. We are very happy with the final product. It is one of the few times I witnessed the boss getting his hands dirty and help complete the job at hand. It took a little longer than estimated but he and his crew pitched in on the final day and worked past 7pm to complete it. We really appreciated their dedication.

Thanks to Ricardo and his crew.