How to Choose a Flooring Installer in Cary and the Triangle

Find out who actually installs the floor

This is the first question to ask anyone, and the answer is often not the name on the estimate.

Many flooring retailers, including most big-box stores, sell the material and pass the installation to an independent subcontractor. That is not automatically bad — some subcontracted installers are excellent — but it changes who you are dealing with. The person who measured and quoted may never meet the person who installs, and when something goes wrong, the retailer and the installer can each point at the other.

So ask plainly:

• ✓Who will be in my house on install day, and do they work for you?
• ✓Is it the same crew for the whole job, start to finish?
• ✓Who do I call if something is wrong six months from now, and who comes out?

Our answer, for comparison

At APW it is our own background-checked, trained installation professionals, the same crew every day of the job rather than a rotating cast of subcontractors, and the same Angier showroom you can call or walk into afterwards. Our how it works page sets out the process from the first visit to the final walkthrough.

Whoever you choose, get that answer in plain words before anything is signed.

Check the basics: insurance and licensing

Insurance matters more than most people realize, because the risk sits in your house. Ask for a certificate of general liability insurance, which covers damage to your property. North Carolina generally requires workers' compensation coverage once a business has three or more employees; without it, an injury on your property can become your problem.

Licensing is less straightforward. North Carolina does not issue a flooring-specific license, and most flooring-only projects fall below the dollar threshold at which the state requires a general contractor's license, though a larger remodel that includes flooring can cross it. What you can check for any company is how long it has operated locally, whether it has a physical address, and what its reviews say about the months after installation, not just install day.

Industry certification exists, too. The Certified Flooring Installers association and the National Wood Flooring Association both train and certify installers, and that is a good sign where you see it. It is not required, and plenty of skilled installers learned on the job, which is why the questions below matter more than a certificate on the wall.

What a proper in-home consultation covers

A quote produced from a floor plan or a phone call is a guess. The home visit is where a good installer finds the things that change both the price and the outcome, whether the project is luxury vinyl, carpet, hardwood or tile. Watch what they actually do while they are there:

• ✓Measures every room, closets included, and notes where the new floor meets stairs, fireplaces, existing tile and exterior doors
• ✓Checks the subfloor for soft spots, squeaks and height changes between rooms, and asks about or tests for moisture on a slab or over a crawlspace
• ✓Finds out what is under the current floor, lifting a corner or a register cover in an older house
• ✓Asks how the rooms are used: pets, children, where the wet areas are, which rooms get strong sun
• ✓Brings samples to see in your own light, not just a catalog
• ✓Explains transitions and floor heights wherever the new floor meets one that is staying

Why a rushed visit costs you later

If someone measures the main rooms, glances at the floor and is gone inside fifteen minutes, the quote is built on assumptions. Those assumptions tend to come back as change orders on install day, once the old floor is up and the room is empty.

Subfloor problems are the usual culprit. Our guide to subfloor repair covers what turns up and why it is better found at the estimate.

Read the quote line by line

Put two quotes side by side and the lowest total is often not the lowest price, because the difference lives in what is missing. A complete flooring quote names:

• ✓The exact product: brand, collection, color, and the specification that matters, such as wear layer, construction or carpet density
• ✓Square footage, including a waste allowance for the product and layout
• ✓Removal and disposal of the existing floor
• ✓Subfloor preparation: flattening, repairs, and a moisture barrier where one is needed
• ✓Underlayment or pad, named rather than implied
• ✓Transitions, thresholds, stair nosings and base or shoe molding
• ✓Moving furniture and appliances, if they are doing it
• ✓The workmanship warranty, in writing, and how long it runs

Why each line matters

Every one of those lines is somewhere a cheaper quote can save money on paper and cost it later. Our guide to what affects flooring installation cost explains how each one moves the price.

The installation lines also protect the product warranty. Most manufacturer warranties depend on the floor being installed to their specification, including the underlayment and subfloor preparation, which what a flooring warranty actually covers explains in detail.

Ten questions worth asking before you sign

A good installer answers all of these without hesitating.

• ✓Who installs, and are they your employees or subcontractors?
• ✓How will you check the subfloor, and what happens if you find a problem once the old floor is up?
• ✓Will you test for moisture on a slab or over a crawlspace?
• ✓Does this product need to acclimate, and for how long?
• ✓What is included for transitions, trim and stairs?
• ✓Who moves the furniture, and who disconnects and reconnects appliances?
• ✓How do you protect the rest of the house, and what does cleanup include?
• ✓How many days will it take, and will the crew be here every day until it is done?
• ✓What does your workmanship warranty cover, and for how long?
• ✓Can I talk to a customer whose floor you installed a few years ago?

Red flags

None of these proves a company is bad, but each is worth a second look. Our post on how long a flooring project actually takes is a useful check against the schedule you are given.

• ✓A firm price per square foot over the phone with no visit. It cannot include your subfloor, because nobody has seen it.
• ✓Pressure to sign today for a discount that expires tonight.
• ✓An unusually large deposit, or cash only.
• ✓No written quote, or a single total with no line items.
• ✓Vague answers about who installs.
• ✓Skipping acclimation or moisture testing to hit a start date.
• ✓Laying the new floor straight over the old one without checking that the product allows it.

Big-box store, independent installer or local showroom?

Each has a place, and it is fair to say what each does well.

Big-box stores can be competitive on material price and run frequent promotions. Installation is typically subcontracted and scheduled through the store, and the store is your point of contact.

Independent installers can be excellent value and very skilled, and you deal directly with the person doing the work. The trade-off is usually a narrower selection of material, and checking insurance and warranty terms is on you.

A local flooring showroom with its own installers sits between the two. You see and handle the products, the company that sells the floor is the company that installs it, and there is a permanent address to come back to. That is the model APW has run from Angier since 1973.

Flooring installation in Cary

Cary is one of the best-kept towns in the state, and homeowners from Preston and MacGregor Downs to Lochmere and Kildaire Farms tend to judge finish work closely. That suits us. Our Angier showroom is about 35 minutes away, and we bring samples to the house for a free in-home consultation.

Local detail is on our pages for flooring installation in Cary, hardwood refinishing in Cary, tile flooring in Cary and waterproof flooring in Cary, and the Cary service area page covers the rest. We also install across Raleigh, Holly Springs and Clayton.

Every job carries our 100% product and labor guarantee, and 0% financing is available. Book a free estimate and ask us all ten questions.