4TH Generation Hardwood Flooring Experts

Q. Describe the most common types of jobs you do for your clients.

A. Hardood flooring installs, sanding and refinishing of existing hardwood floors.

Q. What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

A. Don't just ask for referals ask for pictures.Sometimes contractors will give people money just to use as a contact. you should always ask as many questions as possible to your contractor to ensure that they have the proper knowledge to get your project done correctly.

Q. What important information should buyers have thought through before seeking you out?

A. Homeowners should have a basic idea of the type of flooring that they may be interested in.It will help us help them in making a choice of what type of flooring would best suite their in home needs. Sometimes we can find the homeowners a more cost effecient way to have their flooring needs taken care of.

Q. Why does your work stand out from others who do what you do?

A. Our work stands out above the rest because we area 4th generation flooring company. Detail, quality, craftsmanship,family tradition,and cutomer service are very important to us at Estes Custom Hardwoods.

Q. What do you like most about your job?

A. We enjoy meeting new clients, and seeing the transformation of their homes into a new living showroom. We enjoy seeing their smiles when our flooring projects are completed, it is one of the best rewards we as craftsman can ask for.

Q. What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

A. Q: How long is the process going to take?
A: It depends on the size of the job, whether the customer wants a custom stain, and the type of finish being used.
Q: Is there alot of dust?
A: There is some dust but we use a dust containment system that helps reduce the amount of particles that flow through the air. We also provide a free cleaning service at the end of the project to insure a clean enviroment for application of flooring finishes.

Q. What do you wish customers knew about you or your profession?

A. I wish that customers would understand that the flooring trade is not as easy as it looks. Sometimes we get behind by a day or two, but it is only to make sure that their flooring project is done correctly, and that no small details are over looked. We only prefer to do perfect flooring for our customer's.

Q. How did you decide to get in your line of work?

A. The hardwood flooring trade has been in our family for over 89 years, I have been in the trade since I was about 10 years old.Starting so young has made me more passionate about what I do.

Q. Tell us about a recent job you did that you are particularly proud of.

A. We have been working on one job over the past 17 months.It has been ongoing due to its size and the amount of cstom details in the home.It is 4,000 square feet of stained oak, we have also build 4 staircases, we have also inlayed a custom handmade flooring medallion in the entryway.Soon we will be installing tile at a 45 degree angle on all of the staircases as well as all of the bathroom floors and showers in this home. Last but not least we will concrete staining the upper garage and engraving it as well. We will also be concrete staining and engraving the entire downstairs basement. The concrete slab will have a cobble stone grout line etched into it to reproduce the look of a 3 foot tile at a 45 degree angle, and the concrete slab will be stained to match the custom tile.

Q. Do you do any sort of continuing education to stay up on the latest developments in your field?

A. Yes, we are constantly using new products that are provided by our hardwood distributors in order to get feed back from us. Flooring materials are always on the cutting edge of technology.

Q. What are the latest developments in your field? Are there any exciting things coming in the next few years or decade that will change your line of business?

A. New changes in flooring would be types of hardwood flooring finishes. Oil based polyurethanes are always changing as well as waterbourne finishes. In the concrete staining business, concrete stains are always changing.We use '' water reducable concentrates '' also known as (WRC). These are basically water based pigmented dyes that are now the new thing and replace dangerous acid cure concrete stains. (WRC) are also considered a green material along with its packaging.

Q. Describe your most recent project, what it involved, how much it cost, and how long it took.

A. There are to many jobs going on at once to list a recent job.One job starting last year brought in about 42K.

Q. If you have a complicated pricing system for your service, please give all the details here.

A. Hardwood flooring installs start at a base price and depending on the area to be installed the price may go up, an example would be we charge more to install kitchens and bathrooms than we would if it were an open area due the cabinets.Sanding and refinishing starts at a base price and goes up depending on if the floor will be stained a dark tone or if it will remain a lighter tone.The darker the color the more hand work and prep their will be inorder to ensure a nice even stain tone, throughout the flooring project

Q. If you were advising someone who wanted to get into your profession, what would you suggest?

A. I would advise them to make sure that they had the proper knowledge and understanding of the hardwood flooring trade.Make sure that you understand about subflooring conditions, and moisture contents of materials, and how they affect your installs, and your sanding and refinishing.