Q: Do I need to wait any amount of time between installing hardwood floors and sanding/refinishing them, or can they be sanded immediately after they are installed?
A: Of course you can sand them as soon as they are installed. However, I hope you acclimated the floors to the home environment before you installed them, and checked the floor and sub floor to make sure the moisture content of both is agreeable and will not cause serious expansion after installation.
Related Q: We just put in new red oak hardwood floors. The contractor says we need to wait a month before sanding and staining, because wood needs to expand and set. In the meantime we have another contractor that needs to finish putting base and door molding on, but he would like floors to be completed first. Hardwood floor guys says is okay to put molding on first and finish floors last.
What needs to be done first? Is a month necessary for the wood to set?
A: I don’t see the point in waiting a month. What should have been done is have the flooring on site for about 5 days before installing. Try to maintain some control over RH in the home. But do sand and finish the floors. I also think it would be best to install the baseboard now, and if you are also having quarter round installed, that can be done after.
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