If your floors are solid hardwood and the boards are sound, refinishing is almost always the better value. Replace them when boards are water-damaged, soft, badly warped, or already sanded too thin, or when you simply want a different kind of floor.
Signs your floors can be refinished
Most "ruined" hardwood is only worn on the surface. A full sand removes the top layer of wood along with the old finish, so these problems usually disappear:
- Scratches, scuffs, and dull spots
- Gray or worn traffic paths in hallways and doorways
- Finish that's peeling, cloudy, or yellowed
- A stain color you're tired of
- Small areas of damage that can be patched with new boards
Signs it's time to replace
Refinishing can't fix problems in the wood itself. Replacement, at least of the affected area, makes sense when you see:
- Soft or spongy spots, which can point to rot or subfloor damage
- Water damage that has blackened, split, or permanently warped boards
- Boards sanded too thin, where nail heads or the tongue of the board start to show
- Engineered flooring with a very thin wood layer that can't take another sanding
- Deep pet stains that have soaked far into the wood
How to check what you have
Pull up a floor vent cover or look at the edge of a board at a threshold or the top of a stairway. Solid hardwood is wood all the way through, usually about 3/4 inch thick. Engineered hardwood has a thinner layer of real wood glued over plywood or another core. The thicker that top layer, the more sanding it can take.
If you can't tell, that's one of the first things a contractor should check at the estimate.
The middle ground: repair, then refinish
You often don't have to choose all or nothing. Damaged boards can be cut out and new ones woven in, then the whole room is sanded and finished together so the repair blends in. Natural wood varies in color and grain, so a perfect match isn't guaranteed, but a good refinish gets close. One of our customers had mixed red and white oak matched and damaged sections replaced as part of a single refinishing job.
Sometimes the news is even better. On one recent job, a section the homeowner expected to replace turned out to be fine once the old finish came off.
What drives the cost
Every job is priced after measuring, but these are the factors that matter for both options:
- Refinishing: square footage, the condition of the wood, stain or natural, water- or oil-based finish, number of coats, stairs, and board repairs
- Replacing: the new material, tear-out and disposal of the old floor, subfloor repairs, and baseboard and trim work
Because refinishing reuses the wood you already own, it usually costs far less than replacing the same area.
Planning a refinish
- Plan on the rooms being empty and off-limits for a few days.
- Sanding creates dust; a good crew contains it and cleans up daily, but no one can promise zero dust.
- Water-based finishes dry faster with less odor; oil-based finishes add a warm amber tone and take longer between coats.
- Ask for stain samples on your own floor. Color looks different on every species and every house.
See how we do it on our hardwood floor refinishing page, or request a free estimate below.