Hardwood Floor Refinishing in Wichita, KS
A lot of Wichita houses are sitting on a good floor they can't see. Homes from the 1940s through the 1960s in College Hill, Riverside, Crown Heights and Sleepy Hollow often have original oak under decades of carpet. Refinishing costs far less than new flooring, and the result can look close to new.
- Full sand and refinish or screen and recoat
- Board replacement and pet-stain repair
- Stain samples on your floor before we commit
- Old floors uncovered from under carpet
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Quick answer
Hardwood floor refinishing in Wichita usually costs $3–$6 per square foot, so a typical 300 to 500 sq ft area often lands around $1,000 to $2,500. Most jobs take three to five days from sanding to the final coat, and you can usually walk on the floor in socks a day after the last coat.
What does hardwood floor refinishing cost per square foot in Wichita?
Most refinishing jobs we quote in the Wichita area run $3 to $6 per square foot. The low end is a natural finish on a floor in fair shape. The high end covers stain, extra finish coats, repairs and heavy wear.
| Area | Typical total |
|---|---|
| One bedroom, about 150 sq ft | $500–$900 |
| Living room and hall, 300–500 sq ft | $1,000–$2,500 |
| Most of a main floor, 800–1,000 sq ft | $2,400–$5,500 |
Extras that change the number: pulling carpet, pad, staples and tack strip; replacing damaged or pet-stained boards; and stairs, which are priced per step. A screen and recoat (a light buff and a fresh topcoat, no bare-wood sanding) costs well under a full refinish. See our hardwood refinishing cost guide for more.
Is there hardwood under your carpet?
There's a good chance if your house was built before the late 1960s. Lift a corner of carpet inside a closet or at a floor vent and look for narrow oak strips, usually about 2 1/4 inches wide. Many ranch homes from the 1960s and later went straight to carpet over plywood, so it varies street by street.
Floors that spent 50 years under carpet are often in decent shape, with a ring of wear at the edges and a line of tack-strip nail holes along the walls. We pull the carpet, pad, staples and strips, then judge what the floor needs. Gaps between boards, a few water-stained spots near an old radiator or door, or a patch where a wall was moved can all be repaired before sanding. If you'd rather have something new on top, hardwood floor installation can tie in with the old oak.
How many times can a hardwood floor be refinished?
Standard 3/4 inch solid hardwood usually allows about three to five full sandings over its life. Each sanding removes a thin layer, and the limit is how much wood sits above the tongue. We check the board thickness at a floor vent before quoting.
Engineered hardwood is different. It depends on the thickness of its real-wood wear layer. A thicker layer can take a sanding or two; a thin one may only take a screen and recoat. If a floor has already been sanded down close to its nails, we'll tell you so and talk through replacement instead.
You can stretch the time between sandings with a screen and recoat every several years, before wear reaches bare wood.
Do you need a full refinish or just a screen and recoat?
Run a simple test. Drop a little water on the most-walked spot, like the path from the kitchen to the back door. If it beads up, the finish is still sealing the wood, and a screen and recoat is usually enough. We buff the existing finish, clean it and add a fresh topcoat. It takes about a day and costs a fraction of a full refinish.
If the water soaks in and darkens the wood, the finish has worn through. That floor needs a full sand and refinish. The same goes for deep scratches, gray or black water marks, or a stain color you no longer like, since a recoat can't change color or remove damage below the surface.
One caution: floors that have been waxed or treated with some polish products won't take a new topcoat well, and need a full sanding instead.
What happens during a refinish, and how long does it take?
A full refinish in a 300 to 500 sq ft area usually takes three to five days:
- Prep. Furniture out, base shoe removed where needed, vents and doorways covered.
- Sanding. A drum or belt sander cuts down to bare wood in several passes, from coarse to fine grit. An edger and hand scraping reach the walls and corners.
- Stain, if you want it. We apply small samples on your floor so you see the real color. Oak takes stain well; maple and birch can blotch.
- Finish coats. Typically three coats of polyurethane. Water-based finish dries clear, has less odor and allows faster recoats. Oil-based finish adds an amber tone and takes longer to cure.
Light foot traffic in socks is usually fine a day after the last coat. Furniture can go back after a few days, and rugs should wait a couple of weeks while the finish fully cures. Our sanders hook to dust collection, which cuts down on dust a lot, though no sanding job is truly dust-free. More on timing is in how long flooring installation takes.
What about lead paint and asbestos in older Wichita homes?
Two things to know if your house was built before 1978. Painted baseboards, base shoe and door trim may have lead paint, and sanding or prying them can create lead dust. And some older vinyl tile and its adhesive, especially 9x9 tiles in kitchens or hallways next to the wood, can contain asbestos.
We test or arrange testing before disturbing suspect trim or old tile. If anything comes back positive, we plan around it using lead-safe work practices or proper removal. Most refinishing jobs never touch either, but it's worth checking in a 1950s house.
Permits aren't usually needed to refinish floors. If a repair uncovers structural subfloor or joist damage, we check with the Metropolitan Area Building and Construction Department (MABCD), 316-660-1840, before that work starts.
Our process
How hardwood floor refinishing works with us
- 1
Free floor check
We measure, check board thickness and look at wear, stains and gaps.
- 2
Written quote
Sanding, repairs, stain and finish coats each on their own line.
- 3
Repair and sand
Damaged boards replaced, then sanded to bare wood with dust collection.
- 4
Stain and finish
Stain samples approved by you, then multiple coats of finish.
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Hardwood Floor Refinishing questions
What is the cost per square foot to refinish a hardwood floor?
In the Wichita area, usually $3–$6 per square foot. Stain, repairs, carpet removal and stairs push it toward the top of that range.
Is it cheaper to refinish or replace hardwood floors?
Refinishing almost always costs less, often a third to half of new hardwood. Replacement makes sense only when the boards are too thin, badly damaged or the wrong product for the room.
Can you refinish just one room?
Yes. If the floor runs continuously into the next room, we stop at a natural break like a doorway, or refinish the connected area so the color matches.
Do we have to move out during refinishing?
Not always, but you'll need to stay off the floors being worked on for several days. With oil-based finish, many families stay elsewhere for a night or two because of the odor.
Can pet stains be sanded out?
Light surface stains often sand out. Deep black stains from urine usually go through the board, so we replace those boards and weave in matching wood.
Can you change the color of my oak floors?
Yes. A full sanding takes the floor back to bare wood, so it can go lighter, darker or natural. We test samples on your floor first.
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