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All floors need a little tender care – including rough and tough natural hardwood floors. Fortunately, today's hardwood floor finishes are about as tough as the hard wood in the floor. A strong protective barrier keeps your floor from experiencing too much harm, but over time even the littlest trail of tracked-in soil can leave scratches and scruffs.

 

To maintain your floor's good looks, keep track of what life naturally tracks in. Frequent dusting will keep the remnants of foot traffic from being embedded into your floor. Vacuuming or sweeping with a dry dust mop will do the trick. Vacuuming might take a little extra effort, but it will pick up dirt from the crevices and seams that a dust mop might just brush over. Just a once-a-week dusting will help your floor retain its striking good looks for years.

 

Dry is always better than wet when it comes to hardwood floor maintenance. Clean up spills with a dry cloth whenever you can. If that pitcher of cold lemonade sitting on your coffee table suddenly takes a tumble onto your hardwood floor and it'll take a barrel of cloths or paper towels to do the job, mop it up quickly. As long as you have a penetrating sealer, polyurethane or resin-based finish you can use a very damp mop. Do not use a drenched mop. A wet mop is as bad for your floor as the spill is. Try not to use any more water than necessary. If it's a small spill and soft cloth will work – all the better for your floor. If you have a wax finish – forget about the damp mop. Dry clean your spills as fast as you can.

 

“Avoid over-using cleaners, and avoid cleaners that have water as a primary ingredient” said the owner. The water could end up being the culprit that stains or discolors your floor. Make sure you only use cleaning products that are created specifically for wood floors. Anything else could warp, discolor or disfigure your natural wood floor.

 

By putting a doormat outside to greet visitors and inside to meet visitors, you'll leave streams of tracked in dirt behind. Don't use a doormat with a black rubber backing on your hardwood floors. The backing has a tendency to stick and shred and can cause even more problems than little specks of dirt and grime. The black-backed mats also have a tendency to keep water trapped underneath. If your hardwood floor is in the kitchen, keep a cotton mat under the sink, by the stove, and/or by the refrigerator if you can. These are legendary spill areas – and a good mat is worth pounds of preventative maintenance.

 

If your furniture didn't already come with furniture gliders on, take a few moments to slip some on. They're very inexpensive, and except for the trick of lifting up the furniture, they're a snap to put in place. They'll keep your furniture gliding without scratching – which means you can look at your hardwood floors without sliding into thoughts about refinishing.

 

If a room with a hardwood floor gets a lot of light through the windows, the hardwood floor will be absorbing that light. Eventually, the sun will affect the original color. If you like to redecorate, plan on rotating carpets and furniture to avoid any uneven discoloration. Shading the room with heavy curtains will also curtail the affects of the sun.

According to , refinishing and resanding your floors takes a bit of work, but if you are diligent about maintaining your floor using the proper procedures, you'll keep your refinishing and resanding needs to a minimum. Properly caring for your wood floor and doing some simple preventative maintenance will keep your floor showing off its natural goodness for years to come.

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When it comes to hardwood flooring or carpentry, in recent years more and more people unanimously agree that hardwood flooring is the way to go. True, at first it is a little more expensive, yet the joy it will bring into your life does not compare with the little pennies it costs to choose it over carpet.

 

An often spoken about benefeit of hardwood flooring is its longetivity. If it treated right it should still be there when your grandkids come to visit the house (if you already have grandkids, your grand grandkids, depending on if you live that long). Another great aspect of the hardwood floor is that no one is allergic to it! Unlike carpet with its mildew and dust and fur, hardwood floor holds none of that and should not induce any medical wrath upon anyone.

 

Another not often spoken about fact of the hardwood floor is that its actually warm. Unlike carpet, which feels lifeless, and laminate which is cold to the touch, hardwood floors are naturally warm! Their chambers lock in heat and keep your little toes and feet cozy.

 

Hardwood floors are easy to clean and maintain. Unless you do something stupid (like allow a flood to happen or scratch it with your furniture) your floor should remain gleaming for yours. And you can always clean it up and recoat it if the need be. But all in all its is FAR easier to maintain than carpet, and looks much better than laminate (feels better too). All these factors factor into the fact that it having a hardwood floor will also increase your houses value. It is unlikely you will spend your whole life in one place, and thus when it comes time to sell, you might make an extra 10k with a prospective buyer.

 

Whatever you choose to do, make sure you feel comfortable with the decision! If you really want that hardwood floor, get it. You don’t want to dread seeing that carpet for the rest of your life. Yet if you really don’t want it, don’t get pressure into it. Get that cheaper alternative of carpet or laminate. Just know you might regret that down the line, but at least it will give you peace of mind.

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Hardwood flooring has a distinct advantage in its knack for adapting with time. Rustic browns and rich reds easily support a Victorian or Colonial home, finely-finished high-gloss browns complement a loft's industrial look, and bleach-white hardwood floors paired with bold black furniture quickly conveys a contemporary look. Swapping modern black furniture for breezy blue turns a modern city dwelling into an oceanside retreat. Hardwood flooring's ability to portray a time or place, to give breadth and depth to a room, and to accentuate specialty furniture, are significant advantages to any home's interior design. If a homeowner's taste changes, a hardwood floor will change with it.

 

Some decorating schemes may at first appear to be unsuitable for hardwood floors. A 1950's diner kitchen theme traditionally calls for large black and white vinyl or ceramic tiles. But if you are in love with hardwood flooring, you can substitute blocks of hardwood flooring, paint them for the era, and finish them with a fifties-sheen. A hi-tech house or space-age office can still maintain a futuristic presence with a smooth, slick finish on high-grade light woods, black-stained dark woods, or gray woods with wavy fine grains. If you decide that you really do want that vinyl or ceramic flooring, you can install it over your hardwood floor. A hardwood floor always adds structural integrity to a house – even if you can't see it.

 

Hardwood floors conform to almost any interior design plan, but each piece of solid hardwood is unique. Higher grades of hardwood are smooth with sparse evidence of grains, knots or other marks of nature. Many expensive hardwoods have very fine fluid grain patterns that add grace and subtle movement to a room. Large planks and strips can show off a floor with wide grain patterns that enliven a room, and noticeable knots that carry the fresh outdoors to the indoors.

Even though hardwood flooring forms a cohesive whole once it is installed, some homeowners might find the individual uniqueness of each hardwood flooring piece too disbarring for them, and prefer the symmetry, preciseness or patterns that ceramic and vinyl flooring can bring. If you prefer more precise patterns in your interior design plans but are intrigued by the structural strength and flexibility of hardwood floors, you still have options. Block parquet flooring with its finely laid strips can create herringbone and basketweave patterns. Specialty parquet flooring and mosaic hardwood blocks can be arranged for dramatic designs. Hardwood floor pieces can be mixed and matched, placed for borders, patterns and insets, stenciled, bleached, finished, and painted in an unimaginable number of choices. If you have a penchant for patterns, perfection and consistency, don't let the unique characteristics of hardwood deter you.

 

What can deter a homeowner from choosing a hardware floor is the price. There is no doubt that hardwood flooring can be expensive. But the expense is justified since it raises the value of the home, lasts for the lifetime of the home, and adds to structural integrity. Unfortunately, budgets don't always allow the best investments.

 

Hardwood floors are rarely recommended for bathroom installation. Wood absorbs moisture. However, with some added expense for prevention and protection, there is no reason that a hardwood floor can not be installed in a bathroom - and they often are according to a Bathroom Remodeling Chicago Company. There are heavy-duty vapor barriers for joists and subfloors and thick waterproof finishes that can make your bathroom hardwood floor dream a reality. Keep in mind that protection efforts will be more extreme for a bathroom catering to young, splashing children than it will be for two grown adults. Added protection means added expense.

 

Solid hardwood floors don't like basements. Basements hold moisture and humidity. Hardwood floors gap and cave under too much environmental pressure. Floating laminated flooring with moisture barriers, vapor protection and a waterproof finish can give you the look of a solid hardwood floor. Moisture testing and household improvements will make a basement hardwood floor cost effective and long-lasting.

 

If you're looking at hardwood floors for a room that is not your basement or bathroom, there is little doubt that the pros outweigh the cons – but it will ultimately be your interior design preference, and your budget, that decides. No matter what flooring material you choose, solid hardwood flooring will always remain a beautiful timeless choice for any interior design.

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There are many reasons one would choose a career in carpentry. First of all, it’s an exciting job offering new opportunities daily. You don’t know what type of project you’ll be doing next, and compared to many other jobs, each day is less of a grind and more of an adventure. Another reason is carpentry is the type of job that leaves you feeling good. Instead of doing something mundane like copying papers and writing reports on nonsensical business meetings, you could be creating some beautiful to help people. The very idea of carpentry in itself is exciting; Using your creativity, strength, and hard work to make a great product.

 

A love for carpentry should start at an early age. It should include a love for building and designing things. In a sense, in the earliest form, it’s a love for block building, like Legos. As you move on into your teenage and early adulthood years, it often involves a passion for do it yourself projects, maybe designing and creating a birdhouse, or a skate ramp. Wherever your passion begins in carpentry, it is wise to do it if you love it. You shouldn’t refuse the idea only because of the somewhat small starting salary. A great carpenter can easily one day make six figures or more, and has a passion for his line of work that few others do.

 

The first thing you should do as a carpenter is to attend carpentry school. It costs much less than college and is just as exciting, if not more. Then it would be wise to set up base with an established carpentry firm to learn the basics. After a few years you should be able to move up the salary ladder, and one day possibly set up your own firm. With your own business the sky’s the limit, and those six figures may well be within reach. But always remember, do what you love, and make it great. Good luck on your path to becoming a carpenter if you so choose to!

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Are you in need of a hobby? Are you tired of paying hundreds, maybe even thousands on expensive contractors on little things like molding a door frame? Then you, my friend, are in need of creating your very own carpentry workshop. But before you jump up in anticipation and joy, there are several things to consider in creating your own workshop.

 

 Location, location, location! Find a place to set up shop that is both plentiful in space, and is far out of the way from the family as not to disturb them too much. If you have large enough of a back yard, creating a carpentry shed could be an exhilarating and exciting idea. A garage can work too, just be prepared to start parking outdoors from now on. Make sure you have large enough exits to get in and out of the workshop, so as to not create any difficult situations carrying important pieces of wood or furniture.

 

 Next, make sure to consider the essentials of the workshop. Make sure you have proper lighting and ventilation. It is important to see what you’re doing at all times, and to keep those lungs of your fresh by keeping clean air coming through. Make sure you have enough power to power all your high tech equipment, (not necessary if your not planning on using any power tools).  The workshop should be a relaxing place, with wide open spaces and ventilation. The last thing you want to do is create something you dread coming to.

 

 Most importantly is the work bench. It has to be strong and durable, and work well with your height. If a work bench is too big or too small, it can leave you constantly straining yourself and your muscles. You should have a workbench created customized just for you and your height. A typical work bench mesaures 8-10 feet long, 28-38 inches wide, and 36-42 inches deep. An added bonus would be to include shelves or drawers with your work bench.

 

 Also, consider dust containment. An excess of dust is a health and safety hazard, and a plan to contain it should be in store. Something as basic as dumping it off at a garbage can at night could be enough, but don’t get lazy. Make sure to keep your working environment dust free and safe.

 

 Once you have created the perfect workshop its on to your first project. Make sure its not too difficult, and if done right, it should hook you right into carpentry! Be careful though, before you know it you’ll be addicted to your new hobby and end up pouring hundreds into it to satisfy your passion.  Oh well, we all have our little needs.

  1. Trim Carpentry Secret

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