Hiring A Professional Flooring Installer Might Save Your Marriage!
Hiring a professional flooring installer might save your marriage! We’re kidding – well, sort of. The good news is that Texas doesn’t have much of a divorce problem. When you compare Texas to the rest of the country, research shows that our divorce rate is about half of a lot of states. Good job, Texans! The bad news is that installing a new floor can be a lot more complicated than what we see on tv, and it’s often an added source of stress.
Depending on the size of your flooring project, the type of flooring you’ve chosen, and the condition of your subfloor, installing your own flooring can be overwhelming. And that’s just on the technical side of things.
When you factor in the impact this external stressor can have on your relationships and all your “free time,” the potential negative effects of DIY installation multiply fast. High stress can affect even experienced DIYers when they get in over their heads with the installation. Never mind keeping everyone else happy during the whole process.
How Handy Are You? Take This Quiz
- How do you acclimatize flooring material?
- What’s the difference between a smooth subfloor, a flat subfloor, and a level subfloor?
- What sort of floor transitions do you need? ’
- Which type of flooring needs to be installed as a “floating floor?”
- What is the standard gap around the perimeter of a floating floor?
- How smooth does a subfloor need to be so that imperfections don’t show through waterproof flooring?
- What sort of subfloor preparation is needed based on the flooring you’ve chosen?
- How can you test the level of moisture present in your subfloor?
- Will it be necessary to install a moisture barrier on your subfloor?
- Will you need to use a floor leveler on your subfloor?
By the way, most of the questions you see here have to do with the subfloor. When it comes to the actual installation, we haven’t even scratched the surface (oops, scratches can happen during installation). Flooring is definitely not a learn-as-you-go type of project when it comes to your own home.
The Illusion Of “Easy-To-Install” Flooring
You see, even if the type of floor you want is promoted as easy-to-install, you’ll still need quite a bit of experience. No one mentions the subfloor and how important it is in home remodeling. You can do a flawless installation, but if the subfloor wasn’t properly prepared, the final flooring might look bad, or it may not last, and you won’t notice it until you’re all done.
Most of the time, you can’t just pull up the floor to properly prepare the subfloor. The glue and the compounds used to install the flooring are designed to be permanent. If you’ve never had to remove a floor, you won’t believe how much trouble it is to undo a permanent installation.
The Trouble With Youtube
Early on, Youtube was a great way to learn how to do things. Experienced professionals would share tips that took them years to learn on the job. If you got stuck on something, you could usually find a video to help. Those videos are still available, but you’ve got to sort through so many “pretend experts” first.
These “pretend expert Youtubers” are only in it for the money. They make videos that look good, but they make everything seem easy. Even though the Federal Trade Commission oversees Youtube and other forms of social media, there’s no real way of figuring out how accurate the content is.
The Secret List Of Tools Some DIY Home Renovation Couples Will Need
- One (1) referee to make sure everyone feels heard
- One (1) marriage counselor on speed dial
- Two (2) pairs of oversized foam boxing gloves
- One (1) matching set of divorce lawyers
- Two (2) battle axes
Oh, and don’t forget to budget for mental health treatments afterward.
Lumpy, Bumpy, Crooked And Cracked – The Movie
Have you seen it? Here’s how it starts; A happy and loving couple save their pennies long enough to upgrade the floors in their love nest. It’s easy to tell how much they truly love one another because somehow, beyond all odds, they’ve managed to confer, collaborate and concur on which floor they want. What joy!
Off they go to purchase the flooring of their dreams. Along the way, a friend calls and says, “Why don’t you install the floors yourself? We did, and boy, did we save money!”
“What a great idea?” Responds our couple.
“We’re smart.”
“We’re hard-working.”
“And, after all, we have plenty of time on our hands.”
You can guess how this fairy tale ends. It’s definitely not on The Top 10 List, and it’s not part of the 2023 Oscar Nominees. Sadly, whatever money the well-meaning couple saved is now being spent on marriage counseling, and as far as what their floor looks like – well, that’s what inspired the movie title, Lumpy, Bumpy, Crooked And Cracked.
*By the way, here are some home renovation classics to enjoy; The Money Pit, Under The Tuscan Sun, Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House and Swiss Family Robinson.
DIY Installation Can Void The Warranty
Almost all types of flooring come with a warranty. And the most common way to void the warranty is by not following the specific installation requirements set out by each manufacturer. The paragraph or two of instructions you find on the box of the flooring is just the start. In order for a manufacturer to honor their warranty, all of the very detailed site requirements and installation instructions must be followed.
It’s normal to have more than 20 pages worth of specific details regarding installation. If you’re not a professional installer, it’s no fun. Reading through these very detailed instructions can seem to take almost as long as it takes a professional to install the flooring.
If for some reason, the flooring fails, the manufacturer will send an expert to investigate, and if the requirements aren’t followed by the installer, they have no obligation to honor the warranty. Is it worth taking this chance? You may want to have a discussion about this ahead of time.
You’re Better Off With a Professional Installation
A new floor in your dining room, living room, or kitchen remodel can add value to your home and become a source of pride. Yes, it does cost more money to hire a professional flooring installer, but in the long run, it’s a lot cheaper than dealing with all the trouble you can run into if you try DIY.
You don’t have to take our word for it. See what our customers say about how we’ve installed their floors in Google Reviews, Angi, Home Advisor, and Best Pick Reports.
(214) 390-0850
Dan Ratcliff
Dan Ratcliff is the CEO and President of Flooring Direct in Dallas / Fort Worth. Over the last two decades, he has grown Flooring Direct into a premier Shop-at-Home traditional & hardwood flooring company. With a true dedication to customer service and integrity, Flooring Direct has become DFW's largest highest-rated Dallas-local flooring dealer. Dan has lived in Dallas all of his life and was raised in Dallas with family roots and love for the community and local sports. It's with that sense of family that Flooring Direct has contributed to and sponsored children's organizations like Jonathan's Place and scholastic athletics like Plano's Girls Soccer.
