Pats wrote:
I just started pulling up the wall-wall in my dining room tonight. The
beige carpet is really stained and stinky from pets. To my horror,
there is padding under the carpet, then an underlayment and under
that, plywood. The plywood looks like it's really stuck to the floor
(nailed or glued?). I stopped and laid it back down. My sister thinks
this is a good thing that the previous owners may have done to protect
the hardwood. (snip)

What year was your house built? If you are finding underlayment and
plywood under the carpet, there is probably NO HARDWOOD down there. When
hardwood started getting expensive, and synthetic-fiber carpet started
getting cheap (in late 60s/early 70s), lots of builders decided to save
a buck by including 'free wall to wall carpet' in cookie-cutter houses.
If you bought the house early enough, you could even pick the colors.

Quick check to see if hardwood is present- if you have forced-air
heating with floor vents, pull one out, and look in the cracks with a
flashlight. May need to pry a crack open with a screwdriver. You should
be able to see the various layers of the floor.

--
aem sends...