Fine, I'll do it myself

[mousme]

Having been told that it would cost me a minimum of $700 to replace the little section of floor in my dining room (that the cats ruined: thank you, Feline Forces of Entropy), I am seriously considering doing it myself, given that the cost of materials would be about 1/3 that price.

Has anyone on my flist replaced hardwood flooring before? It's the stuff made out of little squares... *rummages online to find a picture*

Okay, this:




I figure it can't possibly be that hard to do, given time, application, and the right tools. So I appeal to you, dear flist: what the hell kind of tools would I need for this? I'd need to pull up the existing floor, and then put down the new one. I know I need the wood itself (it comes in convenient packages) as well as the glue-stuff to stick it in place, but what else? Is there a specific tool to pull up the floor, or can I use the back end of a hammer?

Eventually I will know how to do all this myself, but right now I'm still at the bottom of the learning curve.

Comments

[taxlady.livejournal.com]

It's really hard to match the colour and sometimes the size of the pieces. We could get some second hand for free for our floor, but the squares are off by about 1-2 mm ;(

[mousme.livejournal.com]

Mine does appear to be pretty standard stuff, and I found a colour that looks very similar to the one I have. It might be a little bit off, but no so much that you'd notice.

[taxlady.livejournal.com]

If it were me, I would remove some of what you have now and bring it to the store for matching and measuring.

Hey, you said the place belongs to a friend. Have you asked if they had any leftover? Have you looked in the closets? Would it be possible to steal from the closet floor and replace that with something else, subject to your friend's approval of course?