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Volume 1 Number 1/ January 2002 It is common practice here in the United States to wear shoes in our homes. As we all do, know households that do now allow shoes to be worn in the house, there are still many that do. One of the big offenders to hardwood floors is women’s high-heeled shoes. Weather they were to be your own or a guest of yours you need to be aware of the damage they can cause. Once the little hard plastic tip on the heel starts to wear below a certain point and the little nails they are installed with that can cause the damages. These hard pieces of plastic can and will most defiantly leave scuffmarks on hardwood floors but will come off with a little bit of elbow grease. “Well done is better than well said.” Ben Franklin Volume 1 Number 2 / February 2002 As we all know energy concerns have become a big issue. New homebuilders are producing houses now with almost no outside air intrusion. With older homes we have all tried to add a little caulking, weather stripping and new windows. All of these along with vacations and weather changes can drastically affect the humidity inside of a house. Here comes along the “greenhouse effect”. During the winter months when heaters are run without a humidifier most of the moisture will be removed from the air. This condition can cause cracks and shrinkage, which will show up in all areas of your wood floor. It will also help if you are going to go on an extended vacation to have someone come over and open your house and even keep the climate control system to a minimum. “We are not retreating–we are advancing in another direction”.General Douglas MacArthur Volume 1 Number 3 / March 2002 This is just an update on our website, company practices and future endeavors. SPECIALS: Some items are on special; due to close out, product labels being changed, deals we received form the manufacture, monthly sales and new item promotions. We try to monitor our site traffic as to run specials that our customers want . If you have an idea or want to see your favorite item go on sale, just let us know and we’ll see what we can do. We will ALWAYS try to make sure that all specials go to our web customers first as some will only go to them. We have a current special of Junkers cleaner for only $1.00, reg price of $10.00. Look for your internet only promo codes coming in the future. OUR SITE: You will notice in the near future that we will have a picture for every item (some are done already), coverage ( if applicable) and many new and exciting items. We work everyday with our suppliers as to get lower pricing which in turn we will pass on to you. “If I were two faced, would I be wearing this one?” Abraham Lincoln Volume 1 number 5 / April 2002 As we have all seen warranties come with everything. 30 days, 5 years and all the way up to lifetime. Flooring manufactures have stepped up thee warranties lately by dramatically increasing the ones they offer. It is not uncommon to see 15 year, 25 year and even lifetime warranties on flooring. The one important factor to remember is that they are not “unconditional”. One of the main factors in not voiding your warranty is proper maintenance. This has to do with all floor coverings vinyl, carpet, tile, stone and last but not least hardwood. A very essential key to proper maintenance is reading your warranty literature. This will explain a lot of the details that you will need to know to maintain your floors properly. Little do most people know that improper maintenance can void your warranty and this could turn out to be very costly and bring on lots of frustration. One more little tid bit to remember, just because a maintenance product manufacture is a member of the CRI ( Carpet and Rug Institute), NWFA ( National Wood Flooring Association), ect., does not mean that their product is O.K. to use on your floor. If you do not have the warranty information and are having trouble contacting the manufacturer please let us know and we will get it for you. “When ideas fail, words come in very handy.” Goethe Volume 1 Number 6/ May 2002 There is a new product out that everyone is selling, the locking, glueless laminate. (Laminate ie: pergo style) All of these new products snap together in some form or another without the mess of adhesives. As they have gained popularity most of the manufactures have brought one into their product line. As there is no track record on repairs, joint stability and maintenance we would have to caution on the side of sticking with a major manufacturer. A couple of the new products on the market even the “stone” look. These floors are somewhat more durable and can be great for a kids room or a game room. "It is human to make a mistake; it is stupid to persist in it". Latin proverb Volume 1 Number 7 / June 2002 Lately there have been quite a few questions about vinyl “touch-up” kits. Although there are a few repair options there is not any one specific repair kit. The first choice would be to apply the manufacturer specified seam sealer to a cut or slice in the vinyl. This will not make the damage go away but is the simplest of repairs. The second option would be a patch. This would be necessary if the damage was a tear or gouge in the material. As with the first repair, seam sealer would need to be applied to where the cuts were made. These two methods are to help prevent moisture from getting under the vinyl and further ripping or tearing. A professional best performs both of these repair methods. For all intent and purposes it appears easy to make the repairs, but if it is not done correctly it is possible to cause more damage. “My advice is to get married: if you find a good wife you’ll be happy; if not, you’ll become a philosopher.” Socrates Volume 1 Number 8 / July 2002 “Refinishing: Sand, Screen or Top Coat?” In the past we have tried to help a few people with some information on the above items so we thought it a good topic to touch on. Which one should you do? Can I do the area just around my bar stools? How do I sand and refinish my floor? These are all good questions and I will try to help out with all of them. Top Coat- These products, such as Bona Kemi’s Refresher and Bruce’s Fresh Finish, are for periodic maintenance. When used correctly they help bring back the luster of your hardwood floor especially in high traffic areas. Topcoat products are easily applied and can be used many times over the life of the floor to help maintain its beauty and restore that new look. Screening/Sanding- The process of “screening” a hardwood floor consists of using a professional buffer with a “Scotch” style scrubbing pad on it to first rough up the existing urethane and then applying new coats. Sanding is the more involved process that is performed when there has been extensive damage to the floor that the screening process will not repair. The next two questions then arise. Should I screen the floor or sand it? Can you tell me how to sand my floor? Whether you are to screen or sand depends on the severity of the damage to the floor. In general, if most of the scratches are to the finish and not through to the wood you can have the floor screened with excellent results. If there is severe damage, such as deep scratches, gouges or damage from other things you will probably need to sand the floor. So you want to sand and refinish your own floor? There are so many variables such as grit of sandpaper, which stain to use, which finish to use, how do I keep the bubbles out, how do I keep the animal hair out? And so on that we feel that mechanical refinishing of floors is best left up to a professional. There are products available for the DIY such as Basic Coatings Tykote kit www.floorcleaners.net/ssi/osb/showitem.cfm?category=30 that need no abrasion, which can be used fairly easily if you feel this is a project that you really want to tackle. I could go on and on about refinishing but I do not want to take up too much of your time, so if you need more info or have some questions please contact me. “I have not failed. I have just found 10,000 ways that do not work.” Thomas Alva Edison Volume 1 Number 9 / August 2002 Dark spots, sometimes referred to, as “animal spots” are very common on wood floors especially ones that have been covered up by carpet. They are usually associated with some form of moisture that has come in contact with the floor and stayed and penetrated it for a while. The biggest challenge is how to get rid of them. Considering the fact that most of the time the only way to get rid of them is to sand and refinish the area, prevention is the best cure. Take for instance if you have potted plants on your floor, even though you have the catch in the bottom in case you over water the plant you should move them on a monthly basis to make sure moisture is not building up underneath. I know it seams like another thing you have to do but it will be well worth it in the long run. If you are living in a house that has carpet over hardwood floors and have realized that either spike or boots have decided to relieve themselves inside your wonderful house the best option, if possible, is to pull the carpet and pad back at that point and let it air out. I know I know you don’t like the wood floors and you will always have carpet, but never say never. A little note: There are some companies on the Internet selling products they say will remove these spots please be cautious as we know of no products that work. This is not to say that they are all snake oils but we do not want you to ruin your floor. “I don’t know anything about music. In my line you don’t have to.” Elvis Presley Volume 1 Number 10 / September 2002 “America; The greatest country in the world” In light of what happened one year ago tomorrow and the amount of coverage we will all be exposed to we will keep this brief. On the way to work today I saw a sign that said “All gave some and some gave all”, how true that every American was affected in some way or another. Peace to all of those that lost their lives in this tragic incident and do not forget that there really is no better place to live. “The truth is more important than the facts” Frank Lloyd Wright Volume 1 Number 11 / October 2002 Sheet vinyl has come a long way in the last couple of years. The durability and resilience of today’s product is so far superior of the products made just 5 years ago. There are products out now that even warranty against rips from appliances being move across the floor. We received a call the other day from a young lady who was very upset that the plumber who had come to work in her house has used such a strong cleaner and scrubbed with such an abrasive pad that he actually rubbed the wear layer through the vinyl floor in her kitchen. Even though the warranties have greatly improved this is not covered. She was inquiring about a product to repair her floor. Most of the manufactures make a floor polish product that is for routine maintenance and will help restore the shine when the floor has become dull but unfortunately they are not e replacement for the wear layer. If some thing gets on your vinyl floor try to clean it up as soon as possible with an appropriate vinyl floor cleaner and never use a “scrubby” pad. Even though the installer has sealed the seams in the floor you should try to keep moisture out as much as possible. If you have mats on the floor you will need to make sure that they do not have a rubber backing of any kind as the backing can have a reaction with the wear layer. As most of the vinyl’s today have great stain warranties, if you were to get a stain that normal cleaning will not remove you should contact the local manufacturer representative to come and look at it. “Be slow to choose your friends and even slower to get rid of them”. Ben Franklin Volume 1 Number 12 / November 2002 No, not that separation, the ones in your wood floor. So you had your floor installed in the spring and now you are getting some gaps. Winter has come along (unless you live in southern California) and you have started to use your heater. Most of us, when we do this we close our doors and windows and run the heater all night. This in turn starts to remove the moisture out of your floor. The term used in the flooring industry is that wood is a natural product and is alive which means that it will always be moving. At this point it is shrinking which is causing some gaps. Not to worry as this is o.k. Throughout the life of the floor it will always be moving, sometimes shrinking and sometimes expanding. I have seen floors that are 30 to 40 years old and still moving. There is a possibility that some of the gaps you have might need to be filled. You will need to monitor it and see if has arisen due to the change in weather or it is something that needs attention. “Three o’clock is always too late or too early for anything you want to do” Jean-Paul Sarte
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