Since this was way outside of my DIY skills, the process began of collecting estimates from contractors. Most were good. A few didn't bother calling me back which told me that I absolutely didn't want to hire them anyway. One actually basically ridiculed me for getting more than one estimate. He actually said, "Most people just call me and don't bother calling anyone else". He was also substantially more expensive than all of my other estimates, but he was the highest rated on Angie's List. I'm thinking that a. his ego was getting the best of him, and b. he made the price so high because he just didn't want to mess with all of the challenges of this floor. I found two contractors that I really liked and it was a difficult decision. I ended up picking the one I did because when he came in he immediately not only told me what kind of wood my floor was made from, but also informed me that I had TWO different types of wood on my floor. None of the other contractors mentioned that. Apparently the half at the bottom of the above pic is red oak, but the rest (from the big hole up) is all pine. He scraped tested areas of the floor to check the condition and he had a pretty reasonable plan of action. He confirmed that this would be a challenge and it wouldn't look perfect, but it would have character. I happen to LOVE character, so that was fine. I mean, isn't the main reason on having an old house is because of the character?? What was amazing too is that he was actually the lowest bid. YAY!!
So, Monday morning he arrived right on time and got to work. We had lots of little meetings as work progressed because that hole and the concrete needed to be removed and repaired. He came up with an idea of an inlay which would not only fix the problem but provide a pretty transition between the two different types of wood. I thought it was a great idea. When I saw it after he created it, I really loved it.
The more I heard him work, the more thankful I was that I hired a professional. There was absolutely no way I could have been able to do this and have it look even remotely decent. This is where my brilliant father's economic lessons really resonated with me. He always told me that it is great to be cheap (meaning frugal), but always remember that there is a big difference between being cheap and being "stupid cheap". Stupid cheap will always cost you more in the long run. This was definitely one of those cases where a DIY attempt on my part would have been stupid cheap. It is important to know one's limits.
SO...after two good days of sanding and various repair and two more days devoted to poly coating I now have a beautiful new floor...with character!
It turned out so much more beautiful than I even dared hope it would, AND I was actually $200 under budget for this project! YAY!!!! I really wish I had done this sooner, but I think if I hadn't lived with the icky white carpet for so long I wouldn't appreciate this as much as I do. Every evening during the process I would turn on the light in the kitchen and just stare at how beautiful the floor looks. In fact, a week later I am still doing it. It was so hard waiting the 4 days for the poly to cure so I could move my furniture back. It looks SO great now. My kitchen is becoming a beautiful blend of rustic and modern which I totally love.
My DB hasn't seen it yet. He's still on his business trip and I purposefully didn't send him any pictures or post anything specific on Facebook. That's been the hardest part for me is keeping the surprise. I'm TERRIBLE at keeping surprises!!! I've done well with this one. He comes home tonight and I just can't wait to see his reaction.
Now I want to rip up ALL of the carpet in the house! I'm trying to be patient and save up. I'm definitely going to call this same contractor to do the rest of the house. I probably could handle the DIY on the rest since I shouldn't have holes and old walls, but Joe did such a FABULOUS job that I think it is worth it for me to spend the money to have him do it. It helps out a local businessman who is actually really good and a joy to work with, and also frees me up from the mess and work of doing it myself. I can tinker elsewhere.
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