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refinish or replace? looking to extend wood floors

last year

Hi everyone,

I’m looking to extend the wood floors on the main level in my home. Right now, the kitchen is red oak and everything else is carpet. Maybe around 300 sq ft of carpet and 250 sq ft of existing hardwood. I’d like to replace the carpet with hardwood, but I don’t want the red tone anymore.

Would it be more cost effective to replace the carpet with red oak and then refinish all of the wood to look like white oak (I’d want it to match exactly, so that’s why I’d lay down the same color and species to start)?
Or to replace all of the existing hardwood and carpet with white oak?

Option A would mean buying around ~300 sq ft of new hardwood, and then refinishing all ~550 sq ft

Option B would mean buying ~550 sq ft of new hardwood

Thanks in advance!

Comments (4)

millworkman
last year
Red Oak will pretty much always have a bit of the Red/Pink undertones, it just is what Red Oak is. If you absolutely do not want that rip it all out and start fresh with White Oak.
PRO
Floored You: TileDesigners
last year
Red oak never looks like white oak. It always has a pink undertone, even when chemically manipulated. Expensively manipulating a product to try to make it something it is not will cost more than full replacement with white oak. White oak is a premium choice, and you should be prepared for the entire project to be in the upper end of costs.
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Let's look at the costs of refinishing hardwood vs. removing/installing porcelain tile. Sand/refinish = $5 - $7/sf. Multiply x1,200sf = $6,000 - $8,400 Return on investment = 25-50% (house maintains value + small increase for good looking wood) Removing hardwood and installing tile: Remove hardwood = $2/sf x 1200 = $2,400 Prepare subfloor = $1 - $4/sf x 1200 = $1200 - $4,800 Purchase tiles/materials + labour for tiles = $15 - $18/sf = $18,000 - $21,600 Total: $21,600 - $28,800 ***Return on investment: 25% *** ***ROI relies HEAVILY on location. Example: Cold climates = hate tiles = far too cold on the feet.
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kempek01
last year
At the square footage in your situation, I think it would be better to just rip everything out and get what you want.
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G & S Floor Service
last year
I agree with removing everything and starting all new with the specie you want. You eliminate the need to tone down reds and pinks.

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