Samples on Your Own Wood
Prepare a trial where the wood is representative. View it beside the original trim near a window and again under the room's evening fixtures.
Prepare a trial where the wood is representative. View it beside the original trim near a window and again under the room's evening fixtures.
Approve the sample once it dries. Plan the application around access to the rooms and allow the drying time specified for the products.
Check the width of each area that will be stained. Identify where the old floor meets later repairs or changes to a different species.
Record the shade and finish used on the floor. Ask when heavy furniture and rugs can return, and follow the written maintenance advice.



Staining is $2.00/Sq Ft. The scope should identify separately any sanding, repair or finish work that is needed.
Look at the test shade in the morning and again when the direct light moves away. Compare the trim and adjacent floor under the same conditions.
Test the original wood and replacement material separately. The same formula can look different where species or sanding history differs.
It can narrow your options. A sample on prepared flooring in the room shows how the surface that will be stained actually absorbs the color.
Review a clear finish on a test area. It can deepen the color even without stain, so let the sample dry before deciding.
A single formula may read differently on each species. View separate samples at the shared opening before approving either one.
Compare both from the lower floor and from the hall. You can decide whether a close match or a deliberate contrast fits the space.
Use the schedule for the finish applied over the stain. Ask for the return-to-use timing in writing before moving furnishings.