Preparing Your Poor-Smelling Home For New Flooring and Painting
New flooring in any home will improve the appearance and possibly increase the value of the home. If you are looking into updating some areas of your home this year, the planning process begins now. Here, you'll find a few tips to help you prepare for a flooring installation project with perfect results.
Are you planning on painting the walls and ceiling during this update?
If painting is in the plans, try to get it done before the new flooring is installed. This will help to reduce the chances of paint getting on the flooring after it has been installed.
Are you battling pet or smoke odors in the home?
If you have noticed smoke and/or pet odors in the home, now is the time to do something about it. Putting new flooring or a fresh coat of everyday paint will not undo the odors trapped in the building materials.
To eliminate these odors for good, pick up a bottle of odor eliminator. These cleaners are simply sprayed on all stinky surfaces. They are safe to use on pretty much everything—including furniture, wood, and carpeting. After the surfaces are coated well, the cleaning solution just needs to dry. As it dries, it kills all of the enzymes in the urine and eliminates the odor quickly. Highly pet-damaged areas may require a couple of treatments before the odor is gone.
Once the surfaces that you are going to paint are dry, apply a coat of odor-blocking primer. Some are oil-based and some are latex, so be sure to find a primer that will work with the paint you plan on using to finish the project. Apply at least two coats of the primer, allow it to dry, and then move on to the next steps of your project.
Are there dips and rises in the sub-flooring?
For the best results, the sub-flooring must be completely level. This is especially true when installing linoleum, carpeting, and other thin or flexible flooring materials. To level the low spots, you can use self-leveling material that's much like concrete. Just apply it to the dipped area and allow it to spread and level naturally.
For rises in the flooring, sanding may need to be completed.
Talk with your local flooring installation professional to learn more about what you can do to prepare for the flooring installation without trapping all of the pet and smoke odors underneath. Eventually, that odor will rise up without this pre-treatment.
Contact a local flooring service to learn more.
