Sharon, MA Hardwood Floors

Four to five and a half dollars per square foot, which puts 1,000 square feet at $4,000 to $5,500 before stain; single-floor projects in Sharon generally fall between $1,500 and $6,500 and whole houses between $6,000 and $12,000 or more. A 1950s ranch near Post Office Square with 1,000 square feet of oak on one level is the simplest version of that job, with no stairs to hand-sand. Adding a stain color puts 3 to 5 working hours per 1,000 square feet onto the schedule.

Indirectly. About 98 percent of Sharon is served by the town's own gravel-packed wells, every property treats its wastewater on site, and a Water Resource Protection District covers roughly half the town, which tells you how high the groundwater sits under many lots. High groundwater means damp basements and crawlspaces, which is what pushes moisture up into a floor from below, so subfloor readings in Sharon are taken in more than one spot and the 4 percent limit between subfloor and boards is not negotiable. The finish chemistry is unaffected by any of it.

Hold off. Cupping means the underside of each board took on more moisture than the top, usually from a damp basement or crawlspace, and if the floor is sanded flat while still wet the boards dry later into a crown, with the center of each board standing proud. The fix is to stop the moisture, run dehumidification, and take meter readings until the boards and subfloor settle within 4 percent of each other, which in a lakeside Sharon house often means waiting for the heating season. A single sanding then removes whatever cupping remains.

If the finish is intact and only scratched or dull, a screen and recoat; if it has worn through to gray wood in the traffic lanes, a full sand. The median Sharon house dates from 1955, and an original oak floor of that age with two or three past sandings behind it should take the lighter option whenever it qualifies, because each full sand removes another 1/32 to 1/16 inch from a wear layer that started at about 1/4 inch. A Bona Traffic HD recoat is one to two hours per coat and three days to furniture.

Either of the water-based Bona finishes. Mega ONE, one-component at 200 g/L VOC, and Traffic HD, two-component at 150 g/L, are applied with the household at home, dry in one to two hours per coat, and take furniture after five and three days respectively; both hold their color for the life of the finish. Oil-based Bona Woodline at 700 g/L requires an empty house during coating, needs 12 to 15 hours per coat and 14 days before furniture, and ambers over time, which some owners of older Sharon houses want and most young families do not.