Most floor jobs start by taking something out: carpet and pad, old vinyl, or a hardwood floor that’s beyond saving. As part of our floor work we remove carpet, old vinyl and linoleum, and tear out old hardwood, including carpet pulled from living rooms and stairs before new wood goes in. The photos, from our Google listing, show what we find under old floors.
Carpet out, and the question under it
Carpet and pad come up, then the tack strips and staples. What’s underneath decides the job: good wood we can refinish, rough boards that need a new floor on top, or a slab. In one house the living room carpet came up and we matched the new floor to the oak in the dining room.
“Tony & his experienced team did an excellent job, finally pulled the living room carpet, Tony was able to match the original oak from my dining room for the carpet replacement in the living room for a beautiful flow including entry way refinishing. Communication was outstanding. We worked together choosing the proper stain color & was able to coordinate their schedule with Signature Painting & Custom Finishes (Edmundo) to keep the project running smoothly. If you want the job done right, these are the right guys to hire, thank you”Mary Ann H. · Google review
“Tony and his team at LaCumbre Floor Covering & Design are simply the best! I am am Real Estate Broker in Santa Barbara & have used Tony for my own home as well as refer him out regularly to many of my clients who are incredibly discerning and require the highest level of quality. They are all impressed! From simple carpet removal, floor refinishing, color matching, to new hardwood & manufactured floor installation, La Cumbre Floor Covering & Design has got you covered! I will continue to use and refer Tony & his team any chance I get.”Chris H. · Google review
When the old hardwood has to go
Boards worn too thin to sand again, buckled or eaten through come out. Sometimes that’s a few boards. Sometimes it’s the whole floor, down to the subfloor or slab, which we repair and level before anything new goes down. See the subfloor guide.
Old glue and old finish
A glued-down floor leaves adhesive on the subfloor. We grind it off so the new floor bonds to the wood or concrete.
Where it goes
Old flooring is a construction waste stream with its own rules in Santa Barbara and Ventura, including notification rules for some older resilient floors. See local rules.
Questions
Is there hardwood under my carpet?
Sometimes, in older houses. Lift a corner in a closet to look. If there’s wood, it can often be refinished. One 1919 Santa Barbara bungalow had original oak under its carpet.
Do you remove the old floor, or do I?
We remove it as part of the job. Tell us what the floor is and roughly how big the rooms are when you call.
What about old vinyl or linoleum?
We remove it. Some older resilient floors and their adhesives contain asbestos, so in an older house the safe order is to test the floor before it comes up. If a test is positive, removal follows the state and county rules on the lead and asbestos notes. Say what the floor is and how old the house is when you call.