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Professional hardwood floor refinishing in Wilmington / Southport.

Floor Refinishing vs. Restoration


Professional Hardwood Floor Refinishing in Wilmington / Southport

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Footprints Floors of Coastal Carolina Flooring Estimate

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So you know your floors need help—but how do you know if they need to be restored or just refinished? There are several factors to keep in mind when making this decision and finding professional hardwood floor refinishing in Wilmington / Southport. Understanding the needs of your hardwood floors can save you thousands of dollars and a good deal of stress.

Determine What Your Floors Need

There are three main factors to consider when determining if you need floor refinishing or restoration: the condition of your floors, the age of your floors, and the type of hardwood.

Hardwood floors in homes built after the 1940s with light scuffs or scratches, some wear from foot traffic and have lost a bit of shine probably just need to be refinished. Floors installed before the 1940s with more significant signs of damage (deeper scratches from furniture, or floorboards that are warped or cracked, for instance) will likely need to be restored instead.

If you’re not sure what your floors need, consult with a professional hardwood floor refinishing company like Footprints Floors. We’ll be able to advise you on whether your floors need to be restored or just refinished and provide you with a free estimate for the work.

Footprints Floors providing beautiful, professional hardwood floor refinishing in Wilmington / Southport.

The Refinishing Process


Broken down, the steps to refinish a hardwood floor are very simple.

  • 1. Strip the floor of its current finishing.
  • 2. Sand or “screen” the floor to remove scratches or other signs of wear and tear from the surface.
  • 3. Give the floor a brand–new finish!

Refinishing a floor is not just a weekend project. Weather, the type of wood and the size of the floors you need refinished are all factors that play into how long a refinishing project takes. Also, despite the simplicity of the steps, a lot can go wrong. Uneven sanding or incorrect application of a finish can make your floors look worse than before.

As a professional hardwood floor refinishing company, the licensed contractors of Footprints Floors can get the job done quickly and correctly, so you aren’t inconvenienced in your home for long. And you can feel confident about the work done, so you don’t have to refinish your floors again for a long time.

The Restoration Process


Restoration of a hardwood floor is more labor intensive than refinishing. Hiring a company that understands different types of wood and how different kinds of damage will impact the restoration process is essential.

Some restoration steps are similar to refinishing—both require stripping away a current finish, sanding and applying a new finish. However, floor restoration involves more significant repairs and may even need patches of complete replacement. Depending on the depth of restoration required, these projects can take more than a week to complete.

Both refinishing and restoring floors are time–intensive, labor–intensive processes involving heavy, dangerous equipment. It is generally much more cost–effective and time–efficient to hire an outside contractor rather than attempt to do the job yourself.

The Best for Your Floor—and Your Budget Professional Hardwood Floor Refinishing in Wilmington / Southport

Professional flooring refinishing near you in Wilmington / Southport - Footprints Floors.

There are many things that homeowners can do to care for the hardwood floors in their homes. For instance, regular cleaning of your floors can help keep them looking nice and prevent long–term damage. Sweeping with soft–bristled brooms, regular vacuuming to remove dirt, and mopping with specialty hardwood floor cleaning solutions can all work wonders on your floors.

Of course, even with care, hardwood floors are not impervious to damage. Your pets might scratch the surface. Water damage might cause a section of the floor to warp or have a loose board that wobbles. You might notice gaps appearing between planks over time and as the weather changes, causing the wood to expand or contract, or you might have dents in the wood from high foot traffic areas. Perhaps your floors just don't look as shiny and new as you'd like. When your own cleaning and maintenance doesn't go as far as they used to, it's time to refinish or even restore.

While it is possible to DIY hardwood refinishing and even restoration, someone without experience can easily damage a hardwood floor. Instead of paying for a costly repair, get it right the first time by calling a professional hardwood floor refinishing company. They'll get the job done right the first time.

Footprints Floors has years of experience working on all kinds of flooring in all types of conditions. From beautiful, rare mahogany floors in Victorian homes to the stunning red oak floors of a mid–century modern suburb house and everything in between, Footprints Floors can do the job right.

We're committed to providing high–quality finishes at the lowest possible rate in a reasonable amount of time. We work to save our clients stress (and money!) as we work to give them floors that look brand new! We won't offer you services you don't need and are confident you will be satisfied with the finished project. Contact us today for a free estimate on your hardwood floor refinishing or restoration project.

This beautiful spiral staircase was refinished by Footprints Floors.

Great Floors & Great Impressions Are What We Are All About!

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What Our Customers Say

Jeff with Footprints Flooring was quick to reply, get me a quote and do the job in a tight time frame. He was communicative and easy to work with!
Claire Luft 05/31/24 — google
The owner Jeff Barnwell was delightful to work with. He and his team have excellent skills and attention to detail. They were all very accomodating and completed 3 different flooring areas perfectly!
Karen Hughes 05/5/24 — google
Jeff was very helpful to identify the cause of some squeaky wood floors.
David Lipscomb 05/2/24 — google
I am a picky DIY'er and in most cases, when I hire someone to come in and do things like cabinets, flooring, countertops, etc., I am not totally, completely, satisfied. However, I have to say that Footprints Floors knocked it out of the park with replacing the flooring in my whole condo with a new Luxury Vinyl Flooring product that we got from Floor and Decor. We just love the new floor, and the workers at our place were very pleasant and diligent about making it perfect. I would recommend Footprints Floors to EVERYONE who lives in this area and needs floor work. We are very pleased!!
Phil Wright 04/15/24 — google
Jeff and his team were prompt, professional, and the work was done very well. Very satisfied.
John Pascoe 04/12/24 — google
Jeff worked with us from day 1 and did what he said he would do. Great recommendations, reliable, timely, and the quality of work was just what we expected. Would recommend Footprints Floors for fair prices and quality work.
Jeff Bickford 04/12/24 — google
Great tile backsplash work.
Lori P 02/29/24 — google
Was a great experience. Jeff really worked with with us due to our timeline and that was really appreciated.
Pam Plesnarski 02/12/24 — google
Excellent detail work. We are vey pleased. Thanks Jeff.
Patrick Nelson 02/7/24 — google
I am very happy with my recent floor installation. Jeff was extremely pleasant, knowledgeable and easy to work with. The installers were very thorough and made sure it was installed properly. Would definitely call again should the need arise.
Lauren Heffernan 02/2/24 — google
Very dependable!! Jeff showed up exactly as promised to give me a quote for the floor installation in our new house. He was very professional and very patient, answering all my questions. He worked with me on securing the date for installation. The fellows who installed the floor could not have been any nicer. They were very neat and very respectful of our property. 10 out of 10 recommend!
Angie Whitley 01/2/24 — google
We recently had them install a vinyl tile floor in our 3 season porch. The installation took less than 4 hours. Jeff coordinated everything to accommodate our schedule. We are very pleased with the installation.
Jana Swan 12/3/23 — google
Awesome job and beautiful results. Five star rating all the way. ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Charles Wilkinson 11/21/23 — google
Jeff arrived on time to measure and provided us with a quote in a very timely manner. The crew he had installing the floors did an excellent job and finished in one day. Everything was cleaned up before they left and the new engineered wood floors look beautiful! We highly recommend Footprint Floors of Coastal Carolina for anyone looking to have floors installed.
Richard Weiss (Rich) 10/20/23 — google
Very professional! The project was completed on time and it looks outstanding! The workmanship was exceptional! Very neat and accurate! Job well done Footprints Floors! Would we use them again, Absolutely 👍
Cheneta Fennell 09/25/23 — google
I have seen Footprints Floors' work in a number of places both commercial and residential and each and every time I have been thoroughly impressed with the work I have seen the quality of the both materials and the installation and in talking with those whose flooring it is, I have come to believe that they are an incredible value too. I can't wait until my next flooring needs as they will be my first call!
Michael Bearak 09/7/23 — google
I had stair treads, bannister & newel post restained & updated to match new wood floors. Work was done quickly & professionally. I wasn't home when the work was completed, after the fact, I saw a few small that I thought needed a touch up. Coming back to touch up was not a problem, scheduled immediately & touch up was finished in no time. Excellent work.
shirley mayfield 08/21/23 — google
Jeff and his team are the BEST you will ever come by! Thank God we met him, his quotes and professionalism beat any quote and flooring job we have ever had done on any of our rentals. Jeff is our flooring guy going forward 👏 we're so happy to find honest professional work at affordable price ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Lisa Perez 08/18/23 — google
I can't say enough good things about Jeff and Footprints Floors. Although our needs were minor, Jeff was courteous, engaged, and professional when no one else was. He truly went above and beyond to help us when we needed help. He was responsive, prompt in reply, and communicated with us effectively too. All in all, we definitely recommend Jeff and Footprints Floors to anyone who needs flooring work done.
Lauren Wipfield 08/15/23 — google
Outstanding customer service and personable. Would use them again.
Tambra Jackson 07/31/23 — google

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