Hardwood Floors: Laying, Sanding, and Finishing

I bought this book after having success with Taunton Press's incredible 'Setting Tile' book. Unfortunately 'Hardwood Floors' fell short for me.The author seems quite knowledgeable about the topic, but the writing isn't always clear for a beginner. The author falls into the trap of using lingo to teach a beginner; if I knew the lingo, I wouldn't need the book. At times it felt like five pages worth of material were crammed into one page. Elsewhere it felt like terms were defined and explained after they were used. I don't want to talk shop and feel cool...I want a book that guides me (like books are supposed to). Granted, I don't think the author meant to do be opaque. It just shows that 'expert' does not necessarily mean 'teacher'.I also found the info on gluing to be rather skimpy. Unless you plan to use strip-and-screed, you're out of luck if you have concrete and don't want to raise your floors. This might be due to the book's age - there might be more options now than when it was written (such as moisture-resistant underlayment/adhesives).I ended up buying 'Wood Flooring' by Charles Peterson (also from Taunton Press), and I used that for my project. That book has more about gluing and preventing moisture. Bollinger's book was a decent effort, written with good intentions I'm sure, but I got way more out of Peterson's. Your mileage may vary.

I prepared myself for my first hardwoor flooring project by reading this book. It turned out really good (according to my wife). Without this book, however, it would be hidden underneath a new carpet right now!Too many DIY books are written by technical writers who work for companies that supply product. They suffer from a marketing agenda and a lack of real-world experience. Others are written by some guy who did it the first time, and took pictures to write a book.The author of this book on the other hand, is a real-world practicing professional "floor mechanic" with years of experience. He has done everything from budget-restorations of FHA-home floors that weren't that good to start with, to state-of-the art projects in high-end homes and public facilities, where money is no object.He is a true artisian. DIY flooring is not for the faint-of-heart, and this book will help you make wise choices, and even if you end up contracting your project out, you will be a better informed client after reading it.The only (extremely mild) criticism is that there are new products which post-date the book. 4-disk orbital sanders are FAR safer than the mondo-drums and I used one with great success. Also, new water-borne finishes are getting better every year. It would be nice to have a new edition with Don Bollinger's current opinion and experience with these products.

It has been just over 3 years since we ripped out carpet and linoleum and installed red oak floors in most of our home to match the existing floors in the bedrooms (circa 1961). My wife and I did all of the demo work and the install and we brought in a professional for the sand and finish. While researching this major project I purchased several books but this one quickly became my #1 resource as it focused on just what is needed for a typical home and didn't waste chapters and huge glossy photos on advanced marquetry and high end jobs done in mansions like some of my books did.Of the most help to me were the sections showing trimming around the fireplace, trimming around the floor vents, trimming around exterior doors, and how to remove underlayment the ran underneath the kitchen cabinets. The other books touched briefly on some of these topics, but Don just lays out simple and effective ways to address these common issues in the typical home which is what most of us live in.Also try to get the companion DVD. Seeing the techniques in action is very helpful and he walks through a complete install in a typical home like you or I would need to do.

I recently bought two books on flooring to tackle a pine flooring project. I found this book to be far less helpful than the other, Wood Flooring: A Complete Guide to Layout, Installation & Finishing]]. I had the same issue with both books but found the photos in this one to be less illuminating. That might simply be because these were b&w.Anyhow, my problem with the book is that the section on laying out flooring is so short. It is not hard to figure our how to lay-out a rectangle, but this is what this book (and the other) does. I wanted to figure out how to lay out an odd-shaped room -- I have 4 of them to floor. My rooms have many, many, angles -- one has 26 different corners.I know everyone will have different needs and expectations, but I found some of the information overkill-- like what kind of wood to buy. Let's face it, that decision will be dictated by the money you have to spend. I would have loved a nice, expensive hardwood, but what I can afford is good old pine. I did not need a primer on wood types, I needed help with lay out.I would recommend this book to somebody in the shopping phase and also if you have concerns about your subfloor and what is acceptable.

I purchased this to learn how to install hardwood floors in my home. I believe i paid about 15 dollars total with shipping. The book wont make you a hardwood pro, but will give more than a sufficient foundation to install flooring. Its an older book but the techniques being used today are still the same. I found it very helpful especially for determining the starting points, and how to measure and or come up with a starting point. I had a hallway, stair bull nosing and a living room on my install with no breaks between. Overall its a good book and it is a good purchase to learn and tackle hardwood flooring.

Dry read. Very informative. Very good ideas and methods in it. Some I have done, some I have never tried. If you are serious about doing hardwood for a living, it isn't a bad investment.

Good read

Good tips for installing hardwood floors. I read it and then installed 2,000ft2 of hardwood by myself.

the price was good I've laid floors before and this book gave me a few good pointersi would recommend it to anyone

Explained all you need to know

If you are considering laying a new Hardwwod floor this book is brilliant an absolute must read.Very infomative and deteailed.