What Are the Signs That Indicate a Hardwood Floor Needs Restoration?

Hardwood flooring is timeless and an elegant and durable feature in any space, residential or commercial. But it turns dull, scratched, and worn out over time, just like aging humans. What do you do when your wooden floor loses its elegance? You restore or refinish it to its original look and feel.

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5 Signs That Your Hardwood Floor Needs Restoration

Let’s talk about Restoring wooden floors. Restoration is perfect for heavily damaged floors. It involves sanding, staining, and finishing to restore their style and increase their longevity. Opt for restoration when you notice:

Deep Scratches and Dents

These are typical problems nearly every wooden floor undergoes. They damage the floors’ protective finish and make them look ugly. Although hardwood is durable, it is not free from wear and tear in high-traffic areas.

When the protective finish is damaged, the planks are exposed to dirt, moisture, and other factors that lead to future damage. Once the finish is down, stains, scratches, dents, and discoloration quickly catch up.

Fading or Discoloration

Do you remember your floor to have a different color, which now looks reduced to a not-so-appealing hue? A restoration plan can help.

Foot traffic and sunlight can cause wooden floors to lose their original shine and color, reducing their aesthetic appeal. Apart from the look, fading or discoloration can also indicate further damage. Restoration can improve the floors’ appearance and keep them looking good for years.

Water Damage

Speaking of damage, hardwood floors in humid areas are prone to water damage. Flooding or leakage too can cause water damage.

Water causes the planks to expand and contract, which leads to warping. Also, your floor can catch mold and cause health issues at home. It is best to address water damage ASAP to prevent permanent damage you can not repair.

Warping or Buckling

Various factors can cause the warping and buckling of wooden floors. Humidity, moisture, or changes in temperature are the usual causes. Warped or buckled planks cause lifting or gaps in the floorboards.

Leaving warped or buckled floors unattended can compromise their appearance and pose serious risks. You or someone else can trip on them. Bulges or gaps make the floor uneven and walking difficult.

Warps and bulges can also indicate critical issues with your subfloor, which can jeopardize your safety. So, initiate a restoration plan at the earliest opportunity.

Age

Just like us, floors age with time, leaving a noticeable impact on them. They age faster with exposure to heavy footfall, scratches, and discoloration.

Wooden floors have natural oil that dries out as time goes on. Eventually, they become brittle and more susceptible to damage. They also start to crack, ruining the floor’s structure. You can fix this with hardwood floor restoration.

These are the most prevalent signs of hardwood floors in need of restoration. All of them can affect the appearance and functionality of your space, whether it’s your home or business. If you have noticed any of these signs, contact your hardwood flooring specialist right away.

Restoration vs. Refinishing

Avoid confusion between the two; they differ from each other. Restoration takes more time and money than refinishing wooden floors, making it a preferred choice for most homeowners. However, refinishing can not fix all damages, resulting in dissatisfaction. You wouldn’t want to start over and spend more money and time than needed. So, it is necessary to identify the issues to choose the required method.

Hardwood Refinishing: It is simple, quick, and cheaper than restoration but can only repair mild to moderate wear and tear to the finish. If the damage is deep and involves the wood underneath the protection, choose restoration instead. Choose hardwood food refinishing for:

Light scuffs or scratches
Wear and tear from foot traffic
Loss of shine

Hardwood Restoration: If your floor suffered heavy damage, which permeated the finish and harmed the wood, restoration may become necessary. Here are a few scenarios where restoring hardwood floors becomes necessary:

Deep gouge or scratch resulting from dragging heavy furniture or pet claws
Parts of the floor with a worn-away finish and visible wood underneath
Cracked, uneven, warped, or water-damaged floorboards
Walkways that became black or gray from foot traffic

Signing-Off

Either way, you should seek professional flooring contractors to initiate repair work on your floors. Hardwood floors are expensive, and you must maintain them to keep them looking new. If you want to save yourself the trouble of researching and finding reliable hardwood flooring restoration or refinishing services, talk to us today!