Flooring: Cheap Insurance

[Hugh R]

I had new hardwood flooring installed 18 months ago, one stair nosing got chipped/splintered a little bit, the installer sent out a tech and he sanded it down and it looks fine, but it got me thinking, so I ordered an 8' length of stair nosing, enough for two stairs, for $100. The same flooring might, or might not, be available in 5-10 years, even though the vendor/installer says "guaranteed for life" whatever that means...

I have a box of the flat planking sealed up in an inside closet (humidity and temperature controlled) so I figure $100 is cheap insurance. 5-10 years from now, for $100, I'm happy with protecting my stupid expensive flooring.

[RKDinOKC]

Yep, did the same thing with my wood floors. Installer told me to get it because the batches change over time.

[drkshdw]

I keep my extra wood flooring in a closet. Installed. In the closet. If a piece ever gets gouged or stained a piece from the closet comes out and the damaged one goes in its place.

Tile on the other hand, I keep a spare box of it in the basement. Never know when one is going to crack and you best believe when it does you won't find a spare anywhere.

[look 171]

That floor or nosing can be matched exactly all day long as long as they still sell that same specie of lumber. Someone can replicate it very easily. Tile, on the other hand, keep a couple of extra boxes.

[Evans, Marv]

Sometimes it costs more if you have to find and buy flooring much later on. I paid 80 cents/s.f. for a couple of thousand feet of oak flooring a long time ago (1978). I stored it until I built my house a dozen years ago. Some time after moving in I had a leak from rain that got under a section of my flooring and caused it to cup. I contacted the contractor that had installed it & told him I wanted the section replaced (with the same exact wood) & it would be paid for by the roofing contractor. He came back with a SPECIAL ORDER PURCHASE PRICE OF $10.79/s.f. from Kentucky. Apparently what I had was quarter sawn oak and half sawn was all they sold now days.

[john70t]

Originally Posted by look 171

Tile, on the other hand, keep a couple of extra boxes.

In a pinch, could a border tile be transplanted to replace the broken one?
Then the perimeter edge replaced with an accent tile row of same size?

(I was thinking along the lines of using closet carpet to replace burn patches)

[KFC911]

At this point in my life...I sure as hell ain't hoarding tiles & flooring . I do keep spare tiles...if I have any left. My last box of 3/4" Hickory (finishing a project that expanded) going diaganally into a corner.....was NOT cheap....like I should have gotten 4-5 boxes EXTRA over what I did ....it matches just fine...but I paid . What I try to keep on hand is extra grout....never had to, but good luck matching that....

[Hugh R]

$100 I don’t really care, if I need it in 5-10 years its a bargain and not worth the headache

[Hugh R]

Last year, When I had about 2,000 sq.ft. of real hardwood flooring put in, the crew had to deal with a hard concrete floor on the lower (bedroom) level and wood joist flooring on levels 2 and 3, the crew chief brought in about a 10 foot straight edge and chalked out low and high areas,that needed to be adjusted. His 100% minimally English speaking crew (Hispanic) used rubber mallets and beat the crap out of the hard wood flooring to get it perfect.

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by Hugh R

$100 I don’t really care, if I need it in 5-10 years its a bargain and not worth the headache

I agree 100%....except on one point.

I ain't gonna care in 10 more years...

....green font