WOOD FLOOR REFINISHING · LINCOLNSHIRE, IL
Around Stevenson High School, homes sit between Half Day Road and the Des Plaines River, and many still have their original oak floors. We sand, stain and refinish them with dust collection and stain samples right on your floor.
01 / STEVENSON HIGH SCHOOL
Adlai E. Stevenson High School sits at 1 Stevenson Drive in Lincolnshire, just off Route 22, the stretch locals know as Half Day Road. The school opened in 1965 and serves Lincolnshire, Long Grove and parts of Buffalo Grove and nearby villages, so many of the families we meet in this part of Lake County have a student there or did not long ago.
The homes around it span several eras. Lincolnshire began as a subdivision laid out in the mid-1950s and became a village in 1957, and the village grew fast from the 1980s through the 1990s. That means you find older ranches with narrow oak strip floors next to larger two-story homes whose oak has turned honey or orange under the original finish.
This page is about wood floor refinishing near Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire and the streets around it. It covers the areas we serve nearby, the jobs we see most often, finishes that suit local homes and what to know when new boards must be added to an old floor.
If your floors look dull, scratched up or simply the wrong color, call (847) 781-0100 or send us a few photos. Peter will come out for a free in-home estimate, measure with a laser and give you a written estimate you can take your time with.
02 / MAP
Our crew is based in Hoffman Estates, about 20 miles from Stevenson High School, and we work in Lincolnshire regularly.
03 / AROUND STEVENSON HIGH SCHOOL
Our crew is based in Hoffman Estates and works across Lincolnshire and the villages that border it.
Route 22 runs east to west through Lincolnshire past the Stevenson campus toward Milwaukee Avenue. Homes along this corridor range from older ranches to newer two-story houses, and most of them have oak floors in the main rooms and hallways.
The village started as a subdivision built by Ladd Enterprises, which also gave the village Spring Lake Park. Homes from these early decades often have narrow red oak strip floors that have been sanded before, so we check how much wood is left before we plan the job.
The Des Plaines River runs north to south through Lincolnshire, and the Des Plaines River Trail starts at Half Day Forest Preserve off Milwaukee Avenue. Houses on wooded lots near the river see a lot of foot traffic from the yard, and entry and kitchen floors usually wear first.
Riverwoods borders Lincolnshire along the river and is known for its woodlands and many midcentury homes. Homeowners there often want a quiet, natural look for older oak, much like the homes we refinish closer to the lake around Hubbard Woods in Winnetka.
Buffalo Grove grew quickly in the decades after it was founded in 1958, and Long Grove keeps a rural feel with large homes around its historic downtown. Both send students to Stevenson, and both have plenty of oak floors ready for a fresh sanding or a recoat.
Head east on Route 22 past the Tri-State and you reach Bannockburn and then Lake Forest, where many older homes have oak floors and stairs worth saving. We also refinish floors near Market Square in Lake Forest.
04 / SERVICES IN LINCOLNSHIRE
Many Lincolnshire homes have been updated room by room, so floors rarely match from the kitchen to the family room. We look at the whole main level, repair damaged boards and plan the work so the finished floor reads as one surface.
Oak in the 1980s and 1990s homes near Stevenson has often yellowed to honey or orange under the original finish. We sand to bare wood with dust collection, test stain samples on your floor and finish with Bona Traffic HD or Loba Supra A.T.
When a kitchen loses its tile or a wall comes down, we lace new solid oak into the existing floor so the boards run through without a visible patch. We can supply unfinished red or white oak or install flooring you have chosen.
Two-story homes around Half Day Road often have oak stairs that see more wear than any floor in the house. We refinish treads, risers, handrails and posts, replace worn treads and install new wrought-iron spindles to match the refinished floors.
RECENT PROJECT · LINCOLNSHIRE, IL
Lincolnshire, IL
In Lincolnshire, we refinished about 2,500 square feet of hardwood on the main level of a home. The kitchen had tile, so we took it out and laced about 500 square feet of new 2¼-inch select red oak into the existing floor, so the kitchen and the rooms around it now share one continuous oak floor.
The whole floor was sanded and stained with a custom beige color, then finished with three coats of Bona Traffic HD in satin. The project took seven days from start to finish.
05 / STEVENSON HIGH SCHOOL
Many homes in this part of Lincolnshire still have the floors they were built with. The oak is solid and still has life in it, but it looks tired, the color feels dated and the busiest paths are worn gray. Others are getting ready to sell or have just bought a home and want the floors done before furniture moves in.
A full sand and refinish is the usual answer when the finish is worn through or the color has to change. If the floor is only dull and lightly scuffed, a recoat may be enough, and we will tell you honestly which one your floor needs.
06 / STEVENSON HIGH SCHOOL
07 / STEVENSON HIGH SCHOOL
Many homes get remodeled in stages. A kitchen gets opened up, a wall comes out or old tile is removed, and suddenly there is a gap in the hardwood or a strip of bare subfloor. Covering it with a transition piece looks like a patch. The better fix is to lace new boards into the old floor, weaving them in at staggered lengths so the new and old wood run together.
To make the repair disappear, the new boards should match the species and width of the existing floor, which in many homes here is red oak. Then the whole area is sanded at the same time, stained one color and finished with the same coats. New oak and old oak can take stain a little differently, so testing samples on both before staining is worth the extra step.
We plan this work at the free estimate, so you know how many square feet will be added and how long the job will take before we start.
OUR WORK
Photos from Access Wood Flooring projects around the North Shore and northwest suburbs.
HOW IT WORKS
We come to your Lincolnshire home, look at the floors with you, measure with a laser and send a detailed written estimate.
If you want a new color, we apply samples about 12 by 12 inches on your own wood so you choose in your light.
We sand with Oneida Vortex DCS or Bona Portable DCS 2.0 equipment and wrap cabinets and doorways in plastic.
We apply the finish system we agreed on, then walk you through drying times, furniture and floor care.
WHY A LOCAL FLOOR TEAM
You choose your color from samples applied on your own oak, not from a small chip in a store.
We sand with the Oneida Vortex DCS and Bona Portable DCS 2.0, and wrap kitchen cabinets in plastic before we start.
Peter Dudzik and the same small crew handle your floor from the estimate to the final walkthrough.
LINCOLNSHIRE QUESTIONS
Have a question about your floor? We can review it during your free estimate.
(847) 781-0100Yes. Red oak often turns honey or orange because the old finish yellows over time. Once we sand the floor down to bare wood, that color goes away with the finish. From there you can keep a natural look or pick a stain such as a warm beige, a soft brown or a gray tone. We apply samples directly on your floor, about 12 by 12 inches each, so you can see them in your own light before we stain the whole room.
In most cases, yes. We lace new boards of the same species and width into the existing floor, staggering the joints so there is no straight seam where the tile used to be. Then the old and new wood are sanded together and finished as one floor. We test the stain on both old and new boards first, because new oak can take color a little differently. At the estimate we measure the area and explain how much new flooring the job needs.
A typical sand and refinish takes about four working days, and more if we are adding new flooring or doing stairs. You can usually walk lightly on the floor in socks about two hours after the last coat, and furniture can go back after about two days. Those times depend on the finish and the conditions in your home, so we give you clear instructions for your project at the final walkthrough.
It depends on the damage. If the finish is dull and has light surface scratches but the wood itself is not exposed or gray, buffing and recoating can bring back the shine in about a day. If you see bare wood, deep scratches, dark spots or you want a new color, the floor needs a full sand and refinish. We look at your floor in person and tell you which one makes sense, rather than selling you the bigger job.
Calls are answered directly or returned within about an hour, and we set up the free in-home estimate at a time that suits you. Urgent projects can usually start within about a week.
LET’S TALK ABOUT YOUR HOME
Tell us about your floors and we will set up a free in-home estimate in Lincolnshire.