Hardwood floors,built by hand.

Labor for solid hardwood installation in Massachusetts starts at $10/sq ft. Refinishing starts at $4/sq ft. Custom staining adds at least $1.75/sq ft on top of a refinish. Pre-finished plank install is $5/sq ft labor. Engineered hardwood over slab is $10/sq ft labor (adhesive runs roughly $4/sq ft on top). Luxury vinyl plank is $6/sq ft labor. Material is always quoted separately and varies dramatically by species and width: a 1,000 sq ft room can run anywhere from $4,000 in select red oak strip to $18,000 in wide-plank European white oak.

For an 800 to 1,200 sq ft install, plan on the floors being walkable in stocking feet at day 4 and fully ready for furniture at day 7. A refinish is typically 4 to 5 days end-to-end: one day for sanding, 2 to 3 days for stain panels and finish coats, then 24 hours of cure before you can walk on it. Rugs go down at 14 days. We work in phases when needed so most Massachusetts families can stay in the house.

Refinishing is the right call 9 times out of 10 if the boards are structurally sound and have at least 1/16" of tongue depth left above the nails. Solid 3/4" plank can typically be refinished 4 or 5 times across its life. Replacement is the right call when the wear layer is gone, the boards are cupped beyond what sanding can level, or there's structural damage from water or termites. We measure remaining tongue depth at the assessment so you know exactly where you stand. Refinishing is usually less than a fifth of the cost of replacement.

We run HEPA-filtered dust-containment sanders connected to powered vac systems that capture 95%+ of airborne dust. Adjacent rooms are sealed off with zip walls during sanding. The dust you'll have in your home is less than from a typical week of cooking, and your kitchen cabinets, your HVAC system, and your lungs all do better than under traditional sanding.

For most Massachusetts homes we recommend water-based polyurethane (specifically Bona Traffic HD or equivalent commercial-rated systems): low odor, fast cure, doesn't yellow over time, walks in 24 hours. Oil-based polyurethane gives a warmer amber tone and deeper grain pop but takes longer to cure and ambers further over years. Hardwax oil (Rubio Monocoat) gives a matte European feel and is repairable in spots without doing the whole room, but requires more thoughtful maintenance. We bring physical samples to the estimate so you can see and feel each option before committing.

Solid 3/4" plank is the right answer above grade in dry environments where you want the maximum refinish count (4 to 5 cycles across its life). Engineered hardwood is real wood on top of a stable plywood core; it's the right answer over concrete slabs, in basements, and over radiant heat, places where solid plank can cup or buckle. Engineered can typically be refinished 1 to 2 times depending on wear-layer thickness. To the eye, a quality engineered floor reads identical to solid plank.

A national chain dispatches whoever is closest and racks up their margin on top of the actual installer's pay. The person who estimated your floor often isn't the person who shows up to do the work, and the warranty disappears the moment the franchise changes hands. We're a two-owner shop with a permanent address in North Easton, Massachusetts, a 98-year track record, and a phone number that the same two people answer. Tim or Steve runs every estimate and is on every job site. You get a written workmanship warranty in plain English, and if something we did fails, we come back.