You've picked the floor, you've got your estimate, and installation day is on the calendar. Here's what you can do ahead of time to make the day go smoothly — and a few things you don't need to worry about because we handle them.
1. Clear the rooms. Everything that sits on the floor needs to come out: furniture, rugs, floor lamps, plants, pet beds. If you can't move something heavy — a piano, a large sectional — let us know when you book so we can plan for it. Please empty low drawers and shelves in anything that has to be moved.
2. Take care of the breakables. Pictures on the walls, items on floating shelves and anything on top of tall furniture should come down. Floor installation involves some vibration, especially tear-out and sanding, and we'd rather nothing rattles off a shelf.
3. Think about the pets and kids. Tear-out is noisy and installation days have doors opening and closing a lot. A closed-off room, a day at a friend's or a day at daycare keeps everyone safe and calm.
4. Give us a path. We'll be carrying boxes of flooring in and old flooring out, so a clear route from the driveway to the rooms helps a lot. In winter, a shoveled walkway is much appreciated.
5. Let the floor acclimate. If we've delivered your LVP, laminate or hardwood ahead of time, leave it in the rooms where it will be installed, in its boxes, at your normal indoor temperature. Colorado's dry air makes this step especially important — it lets the planks adjust before they're locked together.
6. Plan around the finish. For hardwood sanding and finishing, you'll need to stay off the floor for a period between coats and after the final coat. We'll give you exact times. Plan to keep pets and heavy furniture off it a little longer than foot traffic.
What you don't need to do: remove the old flooring (we do that), remove baseboards (we'll tell you if that's needed and handle it), or clean the subfloor (that's part of our prep). We'll also vacuum and tidy the rooms before we walk the finished floor with you.
Questions about your specific installation? Call or text Quality Floors LLC at (719) 491-2574 and we'll talk it through.