New floors are one of those projects that look simple from the outside and get complicated fast once the furniture's in the garage and the old carpet's ripped up. Truth is, a lot of people put new floors off for years — not because they don't want them, but because the whole process feels intimidating and it's hard to know where to even start. I get it. But it really doesn't have to be that way, and making it easy for you is the entire reason we put this together. The difference between a job you brag about and a job you regret usually comes down to what you asked — or didn't ask — before anyone picked up a nail gun.
Print this, screenshot it, bring it to every estimate. If a contractor gets cagey on any of these, that tells you something too. And if you don't have an installer you trust yet, just ask us — we keep a list of folks we've come to trust over the years and we're always happy to point you to them. They don't work for us, and we don't make a dime whether you use them or not. Our only goal is to make this easy for you.
The logistics questions (get these settled up front)
1. Will you move my furniture, or do I need to clear the rooms myself?
Some crews move it as part of the job, some charge extra, and some won't touch it — which matters a lot when it's a piano or a wall of built-ins. Know before the truck shows up so you're not hauling a sectional at 7 a.m. And here's the honest truth nobody tells you: however careful a crew is, they will never value your things the way you do. If something's truly valuable or special — the china, the heirloom, the framed photos — move it yourself ahead of time. I've heard too many horror stories of somebody's valuables stacked in a wobbly pile on the sofa. Better safe.
2. What happens to my baseboards and quarter-round?
This is the one people forget, and it changes how the finished room looks more than you'd think. Honestly, we almost always recommend new baseboards — putting old, dinged-up trim back against a beautiful new floor is like wearing an old tie with a brand-new suit. Fresh trim is the little detail that makes the whole room look "installed" instead of just "laid down." Just ask the questions up front so there are no surprises on cost: will they remove and reuse your trim, or replace it? And here's the part people miss — new baseboards usually need to be painted, and flooring installers don't paint. It's one more step and one more cost, but trust me, it's worth it.
3. Will you haul away and dispose of my old flooring, or is that on me?
Tearing out old carpet or tile is dusty, heavy work, and disposal fees add up. Make sure you know whether it's included or you're renting a dumpster.
4. How many days will this take, start to finish?
Get a real number, not "a day or two." Tear-out, subfloor prep, acclimation, install, and trim all take time. You're planning your life around this — where the kids sleep, where the dog goes — so pin it down.
5. When can I walk on the floors, and when can furniture go back?
For a lot of engineered and laminate installs, you're good to walk fairly quickly. For glued-down or finished-in-place hardwood, rushing it is how you get footprints in the finish. Ask specifically about rugs, too — some floors need to breathe before you cover them.
The questions that separate a pro from a guy with a nail gun
6. How do you prep the subfloor — and what happens if you find damage underneath?
This is the big one. A beautiful floor over a bad subfloor won't stay beautiful. Ask how they check for level and moisture, and get in writing what it costs if they open things up and find rot or a dip that needs leveling. A pro expects this question. Somebody who waves it off is somebody who's going to hand you a surprise invoice.
7. Do you acclimate the flooring in my home before installing it?
In North Texas this matters more than people realize. Wood and engineered products expand and contract with humidity, and our swings are no joke. Flooring that goes down straight off a hot delivery truck can gap in winter or buckle in summer. The right answer is yes — usually a few days sitting in the actual room where it's going.
8. Will my doors still clear the new floor height?
A thicker floor plus underlayment can mean a door that scrapes or won't close. Ask whether they check clearances and shave or rehang doors if needed. Small thing, big daily annoyance if it's missed.
9. How do you handle transitions to tile, carpet, or the next room?
Those little strips where one floor meets another are where sloppy work shows. Ask how they finish thresholds so you don't end up with a lip you stub your toe on for the next ten years.
10. What's your dust plan?
Tear-out and cuts kick up a mess. A crew that plastics off doorways and runs a vacuum saw is a crew that respects your house. It's a small tell that says a lot about how they work.
The money questions (ask them plainly)
11. What's included in this quote, and what's an add-on?
Underlayment, trim, transition strips, disposal, moving furniture, subfloor repair — any of these can live outside the base number. Get the full picture so you're comparing real apples to real apples between bids.
12. Can I supply my own flooring and just hire you for labor?
Yes — and it's often where the real savings hide. When you buy your material from a wholesale outlet instead of paying a contractor's markup, you keep that margin in your pocket and you get to see and touch exactly what's going in your home. A good installer is usually happy to do labor-only — in fact, installers pick up at The BOSS every single day. Come pick out your floors, then just tell your installer where to grab them. It's that easy, and it saves you so much money.
One important thing, though: have your installer measure first. Always let the person doing the install be the one who measures — never hand them someone else's numbers. This matters everywhere, but it's especially true with carpet, where one bad measurement can cost you a whole extra roll. Pick out what you love, let them measure, then order.
13. How much overage should I budget for cuts and waste?
Always order more than the room's square footage — cuts, mistakes, and future repairs eat into it. Ten percent is a common rule, more for diagonal layouts or busy rooms. Ask your installer for their number, and buy the extra from the same lot so it matches down the road.
14. Will you be doing the work, or a subcontracted crew?
No wrong answer here — plenty of great installs are done by subs — but you want to know who's actually in your house and whether the person you're trusting is the person doing the work.
15. What's your labor warranty, and what does it cover?
Materials come with a manufacturer's warranty; the labor is on your contractor. Ask what happens if a board lifts, squeaks, or gaps a year in. Get the length and the specifics in writing. A pro who stands behind their work will tell you plainly.
The bottom line
A great floor is half the product and half the person who puts it down. Ask these questions, trust the ones who answer straight, and start your project by choosing the material yourself so you know exactly what you're getting.
That's where we come in. The BOSS keeps engineered hardwood, laminate, and the trim and underlayment to go with it in stock at outlet pricing — and when you've got your heart set on carpet or any other floor, we special-order from thousands of options and have it here in just a few days. So you can see it, price it, and hand your installer exactly what you picked, without the wait you'd expect. Come see us on Harry Hines, and floor it like a boss.
The BOSS — Builders Outlet Super Store · 10850 Harry Hines Blvd., Suite 100, Dallas, TX 75220