I removed the shoe moulding and replaced it after sanding.

Hire the right Pros, not the low bidders.

https://www.nwfa.org/cp-about.aspx

Have someone carefully remove the shoe moulding. There is no way, they can do a good sanding job, without scuffing them up. I would also shut and lock doors on rooms, that they do not have to enter for any reason, since you are going to be out of the house. Make sure someone stops in and checks things, out regularly, so you know they are being done properly.

When my floors were refinished they removed the shoe molding. I can't imagine them being able to sand to the edges without that being done. I would expect plastic over doorways to other spaces and over cabinetry. HVAC off is a good idea. What's below the floors being finished? We had an unfinished basement below and sawdust rained down through the rafters. Didn't anticipate that and had quite the mess to clean up.

ETA: Also, we learned the first time we turned the heat on after the refinish (a month or so later) that fumes linger and burn off once the heat is back on. Just so you have that expectation...

Schedule a professional home cleaning once the floor is cured and safe to walk on it. That's what we did. In our case, a whole-home renovation. A crew came in and cleaned the place top to bottom, walls, inside of drawers and cabinets, everywhere.

You are pregnant, you probably shouldn't be dealing with it anyway. Hire some experts and get it done in a few hours for your peace of mind.

Just make sure it's a service that specializes in post-reno cleaning.

So many good tips, thank you all. My husband thinks it’d be better to simply repair any damage to the shoe molding than to remove it (the shoe molding is painted on with the trim so would require scoring, removal, then nailing it back in and repainting much of trim and shoe molding to make it seem cohesive again). are we underestimating how damaged the molding will be? We’re thinking some scuffs to Magic Eraser/paint over and maybe some dents we could wood putty over. Or should we expect more serious damage?

As for the dust, I will definitely close the upstairs doors (and the floor guy will also sheet the upstairs hallway with plastic), and I love the idea of a post-reno cleaning service. Has anyone rented a HEPA air scrubber? I was thinking if I had it on while they’re sanding, it would keep the dust from settling everywhere.

I’m worried about damage to the brand new cabinets most of all. Should I put painters tape on the toe kick and maybe cover the cabs with plastic myself? Floor guy said he will do it but I want a really good seal so maybe I should do it myself. Just so paranoid after having so many bad experiences during this process (not with this guy but with my GC and others). Thanks so much.

You could get a lot more damage than that, since they have to use electric sanders right next to them. They may already plan on removing them, and I am betting, they wont remove them as carefully as you do.

Exactly what others have said about the molding... I guarantee your refinishers intend on removing it. If they don't you'll be left with edges of floor that weren't as well sanded and will finish differently from the remainder of the flooring. A good refinisher can get them up and back down without anything more than superficial damage, although you may need to add a little caulk. A not as careful refinisher might not. Tough to know what you'll have.

When the shoe moulding has been left on, I have seen two things: one, the cupping and irregular edge where the floor was sanded with a different sander to get close to the edge.

And two, the quarter round or base shoe gets sanded on the bottom edge by the edge sander used to clean up around the edges of the floor.

Palimpsest, the flooring guy was just here and he said they will do the second one—get under the sander. There might be some scuffs but they never remove the shoe molding unless asked by the customer, and he said it’s fine. I don’t know though, everyone seems to agree that we should remove it. Flooring guy also said if we remove t we’ll probably have to replace it all. Is that true? My husband is convinced it’s way too much trouble to remove it and we should just wait and see. I’m so stressed about all this, I don’t want the shoe molding to look like crap but I also don’t want to spend hours and hours replacing it all (even if we can reuse the pieces). Ugh.

My floors were redone last year and I should have bubble wrapped my cabinets. Seriously. I get it -- the equipment is big and accidents happen, but nonetheless I was not happy. I had just replaced a lot of door trim and that was all nicked up too. These guys were not the low bidders either. So before any more damage could be done, I went to Home Depot and bought some plastic cheap corner protectors for the cabinets and bubble wrap for the bases.

I would just replace all the shoe molding.

The dust was not too bad actually but these guys had some expensive equipment.

Aurora, bubble wrap actually is a brilliant idea. I can so see my brand new cabinets getting dented by their equipment. Like you, I went with the quality company and not the low bidders, but I find that no contractor is as meticulous as I would expect...and I can’t handle more damage and mess. I will bubble wrap the bases and get those corner things you mentioned. Being pregnant and having a 2 year old I just don’t see us replacing all the shoe molding...especially buying new and then having to cut, paint etc. maybe we could replace the damaged pieces if necessary? Honestly I’m regretting this entire thing.

Jen, when it is all said and done you will be very glad you have a new and fresh space. Kind of like being pregnant in a second way. Lots of moments you feel sick, unusually tired and just want it to be done. But the baby (or floor in this case) arrives, and all is okay and you can hardly remember the trials.

The floor guys took up my old shoe molding and replaced it with new. Didn't add much to the cost and was worth it.

The sloppy tradesman are part and parcel to the industry. However, overly meticulous ones are something to behold too. We had a painter once who took weeks to complete the task. He was a perfectionist and that was not easy to watch actually either.

Your pro should be willing to remove the shoe molding as part of the job, and replace the shoe mold as an additional service for a fee. It is honestly not a big deal to a flooring pro. They expect a customer to add it on, and not try to DIY it themselves. There is no way to do the job correctly with it in place. Which is why removal should be included in he job scope. But what is removed does not always go back perfectly. It may split, or no longer fit. It may need all new color matched teplac meant. Which is why replacement is an add on fee. If you want painted instead of stained shoe mold, then they will install primed. But don’t ask a flooring contractor to paint. It’s outside their lane. But you can do that later.

Sophie, the current shoe molding is painted white (so is trim). My pro (who wasn’t the lowest bidder, I’ve worked with him before on simpler jobs) says they are careful around shoe molding and will get under it. I’m not sure how this is possible...but he said they never remove shoe molding for sanding/staining unless specifically asked to and then it’s a charge. I don’t know what to do. Work starts Monday and I signed the contract, haven’t paid yet but I can’t back out now—have booked a rental for 5 days during the work. I’m very worried about cupping by the shoe molding. My guy said same as you said—they can remove it but they’d have to replace it since much of it will break. Then we’re looking at having to wood putty the nails, sand, and paint the entire first floor shoe molding (and possibly trim since we don’t have the original paint so not sure if our matched batch will be exact). We don’t have the time to do all that, and don’t want to pay any more money. But I don’t want the floors looking bad around the edges.

If he doesn’t remove shoe, he is not the Pro you want to work with. Period. There is no way to sand all the way to the edge with shoe in place. There just isn’t.

If you have not factored shoe replacement and repainting all of the baseboards, then you are not looking at doing the project in a complete and proper manner. That is a standard ancillary cost and project to doing your floors. You can. It sand your floors and expect to have zero damage to result from that. It would have to be a zillion dollar all hand sanded job. No way around it. Replacing shoe and painting IS part of the job you need to do.

Jen, I feel your quandary but you be most likely repainting it anyway. Even if you tape the molding, there is no way it won't get all bumped up. Eight inches up on the wall, trim and cabinets dinged up gets on my nerves, but no matter what you do the bottom edges of the trim will get beat up.

We lived without it painted for six months.

Funny this thread came up because painting the shoe is exactly what I am doing today. I actually don't like shoe molding, but I had no choice in my situation.

First of all, shoe molding should be stained the same color as your floor and finished the same way (polyurethane). Painted shoe molding is inevitably going to have the paint chipped. So, it must come off, and new shoe molding should be put in by flooring guys and stained/finished to match your floor. Then you will sand and re-paint your baseboards. Yes, it's a big job, but it must be done and be done properly.

Anglo, I debated that issue and searched long and wide on Houzz and other sources about stained versus painted. There is no clear right or wrong with this one though, in my opinion. When it is stained, the baseboard trim looks squat to me and off balance. But you are exactly right, it will get dinged. This is one reason I am not a fan of the shoe, but in many cases, it is necessary. If we end up hating the painted shoe then we will go back to stained and have short, squat baseboards again. Yes, I could have bought taller baseboards, but then we will be replacing all that as well. Another slippery slope.

ETA: Here is one of the threads I read. There are many others as well. No clear answer, really.

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/painted-or-stained-shoe-molding-for-hardwoods-dsvw-vd~1182492

When I had my wood floors refinished, the price included replacing all the shoe molding with matching stained material. Based on my experience, when you have wood floors in older houses, it is more common to have stained shoe molding the same color as the floor. In my area, painted shoe molding is usually used with tile or carpet. However, YMMV.

Bruce

One more tip . . . remove window coverings in any room dust can infiltrate. Store them away from the work areas, covered, or you'll face a large dry cleaning bill. I learned this the hard way. You might also throw old sheets or blankets -- something that you can put in the washing machine -- over beds and upholstered furniture in closed rooms. Good luck with your project.

I’ve never actually seen shoe molding that wasn’t white...after looking at some images online, the stained trim isn’t really my style—I like the clean look of the painted white trim and shoe molding.

Thanks for the additional tips. I’ll definitely move curtains far away upstairs, and cover beds. I’m waiting to hear back from flooring guy about how much it’d cost to remove and replace shoe. I don’t want the floors looking rough around the edges. I’d just remove the shoe myself but we don’t have time before Monday and my husband is really against it. I really hate this, wish I had done more research on this weeks ago, but we have been preoccupied with kitchen (which is a whole other set of issues).

I am a big painter. So in a recent test, I tried out the new BM paint called Scuff X. It was pretty darn nice to work with and does what it was named to do -- resist scuffs. I should have attempted to use here for my trim and shoe molding rather than the BM Advance. Just something to consider when and if you paint.

Aurora, thank you! I’ve previously used Impervo on trim, it was okay but I like the idea of scuff-resistant! Did it cover as well as typical BM paints (I usually use Regal Select on walls)? If we get stuck painting, I’ll definitely try it!

Yes, your baseboards are skimpy. Perhaps this is the time to correct this and get the entire thing done correctly. It never works doing things piecemeal when one part is wrong. Sort of like buying really expensive shoes and jewelry when the problem is the cheap dress!

Unless this is a really old house with some kind of irreplaceable three-piece capped-and-shoed baseboard with plinth blocks, the shoe, base, and door casing legs should all be removed and replaced by someone who knows what the heck they're doing.

Lhutch, my contractor advised me to do floors last because we were removing a wall (so flooring had to be repaired there) and there was also some damage to the floors during cabinet install (little nicks etc). There was a good amount of dust from kitchen work too, so I’m glad we didn’t do the floors first.

Michelle, I hadn’t even thought of that—will definitely do that. Thank you!!

anglophilia, I have no problem with the baseboards, they’re fine to me. I don’t like the look of the stained trim, and have always had the white trim.

Cole Man, the baseboards are definitely replaceable but again, it’s a significant cost to do so. This guy was certainly not the lowest bidder and I’ve worked with him before, he’s not a fly by night contractor or anything...and he says he doesn’t routinely remove trim or shoe molding. I didn’t even think of it until recently so didn’t think to ask other bidders. At this point just want floors sanded and stained properly and the trim to not look like garbage when it’s all done. I hate that you cannot just trust the workmanship of people anymore...you have to be 5 steps ahead and micromanage them to make sure you’re asking the right questions and getting the right results. I thought I did my due diligence, the guy wrote a detailed proposal, etc but I wouldn’t have known to ask about trim...that’s why I hired a professional. But that’s a different post. :-)

Jen, the Scuff-X covered really well and dried in 3 hours rather the 16 for the Advance. I used it on a basement stairway that gets a lot of traffic in my home. It doesn't level quite the same, but with a little practice I think it can be used for trim and moldings. There are different sheen levels not just eggshell like I used. The trick is not to overwork. That is easier said than done for me.

Cole, replacing baseboards is a pain. Ripping them all out and replacing with something one or two inches taller is not a task I want to do. Yes, I have a electric miter saw and can operate it, but the hassle is not worth it. I know that trim is inexpensive to buy but there is a cost to all that time.

Jen B, I’m really curious to hear how things turned out for you. Our floors were significantly damaged during a kitchen remodel and need to be resanded and we have brand new white cabinets. I’m sick about it. How did you end up protecting your cabinets? Did you bubble wrap them? Did you end up with damage? Did removing the shoe molding damage the cabinets or are you glad you did it? Any advice appreciated. We are debating living with the damaged floors to avoid this giant headache.

Embeth, ah that is a stressful situation! my cabinets were fine during the floor resanding, mine were not very nice cabinets but if they were, I would absolutely bubble wrap the faces of them even the uppers since the crew could accidentally swing their tools and dent them. i might even take them off if thats easy to do…but yes I would absolutely bubble wrap at least the lower ones…but I will say I had no problems. obviously using a good crew who is meticulous would be key. looking back there would have been no way to NOT remove the shoe molding, the sander has to reach the edges and to do that the shoe molding needs to go. we didn have shoe by the cabinets but we did remove it on the entire first floor and got new replacement. would your cabinet contractor be willing to remove and replace the cabinet trim? so it would be done right. my walls weren damaged by the flooring guys so the cabinets should be ok but any shoe mught need to come off so they can get close enough to the cabinets. i hope this helps…i definitely recommend using painters tape to ”seal” the cabinets and yes bubble wrap/packing foam stuff esp around lower parts. im I’m sorry this happened! but if it helps my cabinets were fine after the floors. I wss a nervous wreck but my crew was good and I came by to check a couple times a day. good luck!