Des Moines Wood Floors: Wood Floor Refinishing in Urbandale, IA

What Urbandale houses from the ranch era are working with

The housing in Urbandale runs mostly from the 1950s to the 1980s, ranches and split-levels with oak strip through the living areas and, very often, carpet in the bedrooms over the same floor. The wood is younger than the pre-war stock and has usually been sanded once, which means there is still depth to work with.

The complication here is not the wood. It is what is under it. Almost every house of this era in the metro has a basement, and a basement that has never been dehumidified puts moisture into the underside of the floor all summer. That is where cupping comes from, and sanding a cupped floor before the cause is found removes wood you will want back.

What we are asked for most here: hardwood floor refinishing, screen and recoat, why hardwood floors cup, hardwood over a basement.

What we install in Urbandale

Floor sanding

• Hardwood Floor Refinishing, sanding a floor back to bare wood and building a new finish on top
• Sand and Finish, the full three-pass sand and a fresh coat system
• Dustless Floor Sanding, sanding with the dust pulled straight off the drum instead of into your house
• Hardwood Floor Restoration, bringing a neglected or carpet-covered floor back into service

Refinishing

• Hardwood Floor Refinishing, sanding a floor back to bare wood and building a new finish on top
• Dustless Floor Sanding, sanding with the dust pulled straight off the drum instead of into your house
• Sand and Finish, the full three-pass sand and a fresh coat system
• Screen and Recoat, abrading the old finish and adding a coat without sanding to wood
• Hardwood Floor Restoration, bringing a neglected or carpet-covered floor back into service

Finishes and colour

• Hardwood Floor Staining, changing the colour of the wood before the finish goes on
• Water-Based Polyurethane Finish, the low-odour finish that dries clear and lets you back in sooner
• Oil-Based Polyurethane Finish, the amber-toned finish that wears longest and smells the most
• Hardwax Oil Finish, a penetrating finish you can spot-repair instead of resanding
• Matte, Satin or Gloss, how much sheen hides dust, scratches and Iowa winters

Repairs

• Hardwood Floor Repair, replacing damaged boards and blending them into the existing floor
• Board Replacement and Weaving, cutting out bad boards and weaving new ones in so the repair disappears
• Water-Damaged Floor Repair, drying, flattening and replacing what a leak or a flood lifted
• Squeaky Floor Repair, finding and fastening the movement that makes the noise
• Gap and Cupping Repair, diagnosing whether the movement is seasonal or a moisture fault
• Pet Stain and Scratch Repair, removing urine staining that has reached the wood, and refinishing over it

What it costs

• Hardwood Floor Refinishing Cost, what a sand and finish actually costs in this market, room by room
• Hardwood Floor Installation Cost, material plus labour, and what changes the number
• Cost to Refinish 1,000 Sq Ft, the whole-main-floor number most callers are trying to work out
• Cost for a 12x12 Room, the smallest job worth mobilising for, priced out
• Refinish or Replace?, how much wood is left above the tongue, and what that decides
• Engineered vs Solid Hardwood Cost, the price gap and where each one is the wrong choice
• LVP vs Hardwood Cost, what you give up for the lower number
• Stair Refinishing Cost Per Step, why stairs are priced by the step and not by the foot

What floor work costs in Urbandale

These are the ranges we quote across Urbandale and the rest of the Des Moines metro. Every number is per square foot, and every quote we write states the number of coats, the grit sequence and the finish system, so you can hold it next to another contractor's.

Those are the same rates we quote as wood flooring contractors in Des Moines, IA anywhere in the metro, the location does not change the price, the floor does. The one thing that moves an Iowa price more than any other is how much wood is left above the tongue, and we check that at a floor register before quoting, so the number you get is the number you pay rather than a change order on day two.

Permits in Polk County

Interior floor work needs no permit in Des Moines or any of the metro suburbs. What it does need is a moisture reading before anything is laid, and a written note of what that reading was, because when a floor cups two winters later, that number is the only thing that settles whether it was the wood, the subfloor or the basement.

Questions we get asked

My floor is cupped. Do I need to replace it?

Usually not. Cupping means the underside is wetter than the top, and in a house of this era that is almost always basement humidity. Fix the source, wait, and most floors flatten out.

Is a screen and recoat enough, or do I need a full sand?

If the finish is worn but the wood is not grey and there are no pet stains through to the board, a recoat is enough and costs a third as much. If bare wood shows in the traffic path, it is a sand.

Nearby areas

West Des Moines · Ankeny · Waukee · Johnston · Clive · Altoona · Norwalk

Get a quote in Urbandale

Call . We come out, measure, talk through the finish, and leave a written price. No charge for the visit.