5 Mistakes to Avoid When Remodeling Your Floors

There’s nothing like a fresh, spring project to usher in the gorgeous weather. If your plan is to remodel your floors, there are a few common pitfalls you want to avoid for a stress-free renovation, whether you’re hiring professional flooring contractors or opting for DIY. Take it from experienced flooring contractors: these are the most common floor remodelling mistakes, but if you pre-empt these during the planning stage, your flooring project will be smoother and much less stressful (and who doesn’t want that?). 

The 5 Most Common Flooring Remodelling Mistakes 

As experienced flooring contractors, we encourage you to consider these common flooring mistakes before you refinish or lay any flooring to save yourself a headache or two down the line. 

Not Doing Your Homework

Don’t just dive into a renovation without doing some research. Some things you should consider before you or a flooring contractor lays the first board include:

• Measurements: Step one is figuring out the square footage of your renovation.
• Flooring: You don’t want to pick the wrong type of flooring for your space, so assess the needs of your space (we’ll get into that more below) so you get the right flooring for your room.
• Cost of materials: Once you know the best flooring for your room, you can start to determine how much the flooring will cost. You can do this by going into home renovation stores or flooring stores near you to understand how much quality flooring costs. Once you narrow down your choices, you can accurately price out how much your material costs will be thanks to your measurements in step one.
• Cost of labour: You can consult with an experienced flooring contractor to quote you on labour and flooring materials costs or just on their hourly rates! Our best advice is to get a few quotes and always go with the flooring contractor that can answer your questions, is well rated and that you connect with because you will be working closely with them, so an open line of communication is a must!
• Budgeting: You can plan your project until you’re blue in the face, but running out of funds can seriously derail your project. Make sure you can comfortably afford your flooring project before starting, thanks to all your research in the steps above. 

Not Setting a Realistic Budget

Whether your renovation project is installing flooring or otherwise, it’s in your best interest to have a realistic budget. Not only should you put a budget in place to start, but it also needs to be flexible. Your budget should have wiggle room so that if anything unexpected pops up, you can afford to cover the additional expenses without stalling your project.

• Pro Tip: If you’re not sure how much a flooring renovation will cost, give The Brothers Flooring a call for a free, no-risk consultation; let us help you set a realistic budget for your project. 

Don’t Cut Corners

As experienced flooring contractors, we can’t stress this enough: don’t take shortcuts or cut corners to get the job done faster or cheaper. This almost always leads to problems. 

Some shortcuts you want to avoid making include:

• Using bargain flooring: You get what you pay for when it comes to cheap flooring. That’s not to say there aren’t some good quality bargain flooring to be found, but don’t base your budget around the most affordable flooring you can find. Installing high-quality flooring may cost you a bit more upfront, but the long-term gain is it’ll outlast cheap flooring. 
• Attempting DIY without experience: Not all flooring contractors are created equal. If you base your decision on the contractor’s cost, then like cheap flooring, you may get what you pay for. Do your research and read reviews on prospective flooring contractors. If you’re interested in reading what clients are saying about The Brothers Flooring, check out our HomeStars reviews here.

Not Choosing the Right Flooring

One of the most common flooring mistakes is installing the wrong type of flooring for your space. For instance, a cheaper hardwood is not ideal for your kitchen as it will not tolerate moisture and is easily susceptible to nicks. 

When it comes to selecting the best flooring for your space, you can figure out the right flooring for each space by asking yourself the following questions:

• Function: Which room are you renovating — does it see a lot of use? Does the flooring need to be waterproof? 
• Lifespan: Do you want floors that will last a lifetime? If so, you’ll want to go for something timeless and durable, so luxury vinyl would not be a good option. Ceramic tiles in a neutral colour (cream, white or grey) may be a better choice. 
• Lifestyle: Do you have kids or pets? Do you have company regularly? The needs of a busy family differ from the needs of a senior couple. Active or busy households would benefit from durable and waterproof flooring.

Falling For Trends

Watch out for trendy flooring that will be outdated by next season. For instance, if you install colourful ceramic tile or a trendy tile shape, these “current trends” have a shelf life. If you want to avoid having to redo your floors soon after installing them, then steer clear of bold trends. 

Note: Installing hardwood or wood-look flooring is the only exception to the rule, as wood is synonymous with home and will never go out of style!

Skip These Common Renovation Pitfalls For a Stress-Free Project!

Renovations can be stressful. However, you can help mitigate the stress of your flooring renovation by addressing these five common mistakes before you lay a single piece of flooring. 

If you’re beginning your flooring renovation preparations or you have additional questions, then don’t stress. Give The Brothers Flooring a call for a free consultation and let us help you with the tricky planning stage so that you can remodel with confidence.