Which type of wood flooring should be used for a certain room in the house? Below are some important tips to consider before making a final decision on your new flooring.

• Entry / Foyer -   Foyers tend to be more formal than not. Making a design statement in this area has most recently become a new wood flooring trend. Custom designs like accents, border medallions and painted design are very common in this area. Using outside walk-off mats and if there is no design, area carpets inside will help in keeping wear down.

• Kitchens/Family rooms: These are most common spaces for wood floor installation in new construction. The ease of care, open floor plans, and the flow of traffic make this a very popular area for wood floors. Dark and white/bleached wood floors do NOT fare well in this area because of the high traffic, food & water continuously being on the floor. In some very grainy species, the direction of the wood floor can add to the wear of the product. NOTE: Kitchen wood floors should be screened (lightly sanded) and recoated as needed, say every 6-18 months, depending on the amount of traffic and cleaning habits. Make sure the finish used is recommended by the manufacturer and/or is a compatible with what you have. Good cleaning habits are very important part of maintaining your wood floor, high traffic or not. Clean regularly, and always wipe food & water spillage immediately.
• Formal Living and Dining Rooms- Most often a more traditional formal setting, darker in color with the combination of oriental carpets. This area also often receives border inlays, with turning blocks or corner accents to add more of a custom-designed floor. Design considerations for this area often will be compatible with the furniture being used. Not matching the exact color but a darker or lighter color in the same family of the floor color, thus complimenting each other. Remember the darker the floor, the smaller the space will appear, and maintenance consideration will increase.
   
  
• Bathrooms - A bathroom that receives daily use would not fare well with wood floors, due to continued moisture exposure. On the other hand a guest bathroom not used on a day to day basis could be considered. Make sure to use area carpets/mats, and always immediately wipe up any water.

• Home offices, Bedrooms - Wood Floors work well in bedrooms, often with area carpets being used. Office settings lean toward the traditional darker colors, and bedroom are a 50/50 tossup on colors used.  NOTE: Rolling furniture, chairs, TV stands etc., can damage the finish very quickly, if used day to day. Make sure the floor is protected and/or the rollers are not made of metal or other damaging materials. Many times placing blue painted tape on the wheels will help.

 A door is likely to be the first thing you see when you enter a room, so it should look nice. Painting a door is easier than painting an entire room, but as with any job well done, quality is in the details.

Step 1 — Remove or tape over the doorknob, the strike bolt and the hinges.

Step 2 — Take the door off its hinges and lay it across two sawhorses or a table to paint. (You can paint it as it hangs, but you get a better effect if you take it off its hinges.)

Step 3 — Check for cracks and holes, and fill with putty. For really big problems (like a hole where a security lock once went), fill with an epoxy filler (such as Bondo brand) - the same stuff that’s used on car bodies.

Step 4 — Apply a coat of primer if you’re down to a raw surface. Allow to dry.

Step 5 — Apply one or two coats (depending on how well it covers) of semigloss or glossy paint; they’re the most durable and easiest to clean.

Step 6 — Paint in even strokes with a high-quality brush, perhaps one with a tapered end.

Tips & Warnings

• Paint the jambs (the area the door closes into) first, the trim around the door next, and the door itself last.
• If you have a drip of paint that gets too dry to spread, let it dry all the way, then sand it down and paint over it.
• On exterior doors, be sure to paint the top and bottom edges, even though you can’t see them. This will help protect against rot and swelling.
• Don’t use a roller on a door, even if it’s perfectly flat. It’s just not a good look.
• Avoid loading up too much paint on your paintbrush, or it will collect in the door’s details, puddle up and perhaps drip.