Should I refinish my wood floors first, or paint the room first?

The consensus amongst the trades is….”Let me go first”. Why is this? Most of the time, we don’t want to damage someone else’s work and then be responsible. The thing is, if we all are careful, we can minimize any type of damage, causing less stress for you, the client. The most important thing is to set the expectations with the client, first, so we are all on the same page.

Sometimes, it’s a timing issue, with the trades and who can fit you in when. As a compromise, often we recommend, getting the painters in there first, do all their wall prep and repair, prime and prep the woodwork, then we can come in and perform the sanding and finishing/recoating the floors, then the painters can come back in and finish their work. If the schedule allows it, this is generally the best-case scenario and will be the most cost effective for the client, using the least amount of trade hours.

Sometime the painters need to start first and finish before us. That happens often, although we don’t recommend it, especially when dealing with stair treads and freshly painted (white) risers, there will always be some touch up work after that process. If the painters do need to get in first to paint the walls/woodwork, we set the expectation that after our work is completed, that painters may need to come back in an address certain touch up. We are very conscious of making those as minimal as possible. Most of the time it is around the baseboard, by the small (shoe) molding that touches the floor, as our sanding machines move against that woodwork, or if we are staining the floors a very dark color, next to white moldings, again, touch ups may be necessary.

Ultimately, it is all about setting the expectations with you the client, so there are no surprises down the line.