What happens on the visit
We start by walking the rooms you want done and listening to what you have in mind, including the pictures you have saved. Then the measuring, every room and doorway, with notes on which direction the floor should run and where it transitions to tile or carpet. We look at the subfloor wherever we can see it, at a register or by pulling back carpet in a closet, and take moisture readings on the existing floor and the deck. If there is existing hardwood we check how thick it still is and whether a refinish beats a replacement. Then the planks come out. By the end you know which species and width we recommend, whether solid or engineered fits the room, prefinished or site-finished, and roughly how many days the job takes. The itemized estimate follows, broken out by room and task.
Sample boards and full planks in your own light
A two inch chip on a showroom ring tells you almost nothing about how a floor will look across a room. We bring full-length planks and large finished sample boards and lay them on your existing floor, next to your cabinets, in the light the room gets in the afternoon. White oak that looks gray in a showroom reads warm against a cream wall; a mid-brown that looked safe online goes orange next to cherry cabinets. We also bring the opinions. Maple should stay light. Red oak is the smart way to save on a dark floor. Hickory is wonderful in a cabin and a lot of pattern in a modern kitchen. If you want a custom stain, we mix samples on raw stock of your species, because the same stain on red oak and white oak comes out two different colors. Leave the boards for a few days if you want to watch them in morning and evening light.
How to get ready for the consultation
Not much is required, and a little preparation makes the visit more useful. Have the rooms you are thinking about roughly clear so we can measure and see the floor, and know where the furnace and any floor registers are so we can get a look at the subfloor from below. If you have plans for a remodel or a new build, have them out; we can price from plans before the house exists. Pull together the pictures that caught your eye, and be ready to say what you dislike as well, which is often more useful. If the house has in-floor heat, a basement walkout or a slab, tell us when you book so we bring the right engineered samples. And decide who needs to be there. Floor color is a decision that goes better when everyone who will live with it sees the boards at the same time.
What drives the estimate you get after a hardwood floor consultation
The estimate that comes out of the visit is built from what we measured and saw, not from a square-foot average. Species, grade and width set the material line. Solid or engineered and prefinished or site-finished set the install method and the number of days. The condition of what is there, from a tear-out of tile to a soft spot in the subfloor to carpet staples by the thousand, sets the prep line. Room count and layout change the labor per foot, and stairs and pattern work get their own lines. Finish choice and any custom stain add to it. Every item is listed separately, so if you want to see what dropping the stair package or moving from seven inch to five inch plank does to the number, you can, and so can we.
When we would talk you out of it
- A quick price over the phone for a whole house. We can give a rough range by square footage, but an estimate worth signing needs the measurements and a look at the subfloor, and we would rather be right than fast.
- A floor that is clearly a buff and coat. If your hardwood is dull but not worn through, you do not need a design consultation. Book a buff and coat, or an assessment if you are not sure which it is.
- Comparing twelve bids on identical specs. We will put our estimate next to anyone's, but if the decision is lowest number only, our itemized scope will usually not be it and we would rather say that up front.
What you get
- Measurements, subfloor check and moisture readings on the first visit
- Full planks and large sample boards laid in your own light
- Custom stain samples mixed on raw stock of your species
- Honest opinions on species, width and finish, including the ones that cost us a sale
- Pricing from plans for remodels and new builds
- Shop visits in Cokato by appointment for a wider range of samples
How the job runs
- 1
Book the visit
Tell us the rooms, the rough timeline and anything unusual such as radiant heat or a slab, so we bring the right samples.
- 2
Walk, measure and read
We measure every room and doorway, check the subfloor where we can reach it and take moisture readings.
- 3
Planks on the floor
Full planks and sample boards go down in your light and we talk through species, width, finish and what each one means for the job.
- 4
Itemized estimate
You get a written estimate by room and task, with the days on site, and the sample boards can stay a few days while you decide.
Questions we get on the first call
How long does a hardwood floor consultation take?
Plan on about an hour for a typical house, longer for a whole-house project or a new build from plans. Most of that is measuring and looking at the subfloor; the rest is planks on the floor and your questions. The written estimate comes afterward, once we have priced the material and the days.
Do you bring samples or do I have to go to a showroom?
We bring them. Full-length planks of the species we install most and large finished sample boards come to the house, because color reads differently in your light than under showroom bulbs. If you want to see a wider range, the shop in Cokato has more on hand and you can visit by appointment.
Can you help me choose between refinishing and replacing my floors?
Yes, that is often the main question on the visit. We check how thick the existing floor is, whether the boards are sound and what a refinish can and cannot fix, and we compare that against the cost of new. Most original oak in a house around here is worth refinishing. If it is not, we will tell you.
Will I get a price at the end of the visit?
You will get a clear idea of the range and what drives it, and the itemized estimate follows within a few days once material is priced. We do not write a number on the spot because the species and width you pick change it, and we would rather you have a sheet that shows each line than a figure from memory.
Related hardwood services
Where we do this work
Floor Consultation across the west metro: Wayzata, Orono, Minnetonka, Excelsior, Edina, Eden Prairie, Chanhassen, Plymouth, Maple Grove and the lake towns between them. See everywhere we work.