Description
Install, repair, and refinish hardwood and engineered wood flooring in residential and commercial settings. Prepare subfloors, lay underlayment, and fit, secure, sand, stain, and finish wood floors using nail-down, glue-down, or floating methods. Install transitions and trim, perform moisture testing and floor leveling, and may remove existing flooring and provide maintenance and repair services.
- • Follow established safety rules, use PPE, and maintain a clean, dust-controlled jobsite.
- • Review plans, specifications, and manufacturer instructions to determine layout, materials, and methods.
- • Measure rooms and mark reference and cutting lines for flooring and trim.
- • Acclimate wood products and verify environmental conditions meet installation requirements.
- • Inspect and test subfloors for moisture, flatness, and structural soundness.
- • Remove existing floor coverings, baseboards, and thresholds as needed.
- • Repair, level, or replace subflooring; install underlayment, moisture or vapor barriers, and sound-deadening membranes.
- • Lay out patterns, starting lines, and expansion gaps for straight, diagonal, herringbone, or parquet installations.
- • Cut and fit boards around walls, vents, door jambs, stairs, and irregular openings.
- • Install hardwood and engineered flooring using nail-down, staple-down, glue-down, or floating systems.
- • Set and operate flooring nailers, staplers, saws, drills, sanders, edgers, and buffers safely.
- • Install stair treads, risers, nosings, transitions, reducers, shoe molding, and baseboards.
- • Sand, stain, and finish floors; apply sealers and topcoats; buff between coats.
- • Mix and apply adhesives per manufacturer specs; select trowels and maintain proper spread rates.
- • Verify floor flatness, alignment, and joints; maintain even reveals and tight seams.
- • Leave required expansion gaps and install expansion joints or trims where specified.
- • Repair or replace damaged boards and perform spot or full refinishing.
- • Protect adjacent surfaces and contain dust; erect temporary barriers as needed.
- • Maintain job records, document actions, and provide written progress reports.
- • Estimate material quantities and labor; prepare cost proposals for clients or employers.
- • Select and order flooring, adhesives, underlayment, and related materials.
- • Coordinate scheduling with general contractors and other trades.
- • Comply with OSHA and EPA lead-safe practices and handle hazardous materials safely.
- • Dispose of waste properly and clean the work area upon completion.
- • Provide clients with care, maintenance, and warranty information for installed floors.
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O*NET occupational data (work activities, skills, knowledge).
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This site includes information from O*NET by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. Career Clutch has modified some of this information for student readability. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Last reviewed: Jan 2026
