The kids are back in school. Soccer and football practices fill the weekday afternoons while the weekends are jammed with attending the competitions of youth. Yes, autumn is here–with all its color, charm, chill, and preparations for the holida

y season and spending more time indoors, rather than outdoors. Folks seem to notice the little bits of wear-and-tear that the years’ activities had on their home; and, not surprisingly, floor covering seems to get scrutinized the most. Whether it’s the continual sweeping of mud-clods left behind by the soccer cleats or planning the holiday décor, people start thinking about changing their flooring.

Fall is actually a very smart time to address a flooring project. Most manufacturers don’t want to carry a whole lot of inventory into the winter months, and also need the space (and capital) to produce and introduce the new products in the latter part of January. So, in short, there are some incentives and margin-dropping that occurs during these few months in order to spur the market a little bit. Economically speaking, this is the time of year when real buys can happen for a homeowner.

Along the Eastern part of the country the choking humidity has finally subsided as cooling temperatures stabilize the atmosphere. Temperatures are still warm, or moderate, but the humidity is dramatically receding (save any hurricane activity, of course). Given this environmental balance, those who are considering the integration of wood flooring in their home or want to have their wood floors sanded and finished–this is really the ideal time to get it done. New floors tend to acclimate more evenly–providing a better installation (without running the air conditioning); and fresh finish cures without the threat of a humidity haze or drying too fast.

So if your sprucing-up-for-the-holidays plans include the integration of a new finish floor, or dressing-up an older one, know that you couldn’t have picked a better time to do it…’tis the season!