Okay, here’s my blog post about installing batten volleyball birch wooden flooring, written from my personal experience, keeping it casual and easy to understand:

Alright, so I decided to tackle a pretty big project – installing new flooring in my makeshift home gym area. I’d been wanting a proper volleyball court feel, and after doing some digging, I settled on batten birch wooden flooring. It looked great, seemed durable, and I figured, “How hard could it be?” (Spoiler: harder than I thought, but totally worth it!).

Getting Started

First things first, I cleared out the entire space. This was a workout in itself! Moved all the equipment, ripped up the old, sad-looking carpet (good riddance!), and vacuumed like crazy. The subfloor was concrete, which was a good start, but it definitely needed some love.

I spent a good chunk of time leveling the concrete. There were some dips and bumps, and I knew that if I didn’t get it right, the floor would feel uneven and probably make all sorts of annoying noises. I used a self-leveling compound, which was kinda messy but did the trick. Watching it dry was like watching paint dry… literally.

The Batten System

Next up, the battens. These are basically strips of wood that create a framework for the actual flooring. I laid them out according to the instructions, making sure they were evenly spaced. This part felt like putting together a giant puzzle.

Then I had attached the battens to concrete subfloor.

Laying the Birch

Now for the fun part (or so I thought)! I started laying the birch planks. They had this tongue-and-groove system, so they were supposed to just click together. Easier said than done. It took a bit of wiggling and, I’ll admit, some gentle hammering to get them to fit snugly. I quickly learned the importance of using a tapping block to avoid damaging the edges of the planks.

I worked my way across the room, row by row. It was slow going, especially around the doorways and corners. I had to make some cuts, and let me tell you, measuring twice (or three times!) is crucial. I used a jigsaw for the tricky cuts, and it worked pretty well, though my cuts weren’t always perfectly straight. (Thank goodness for baseboards!).

Finishing Touches

Once all the planks were down, I installed the baseboards. This made a huge difference visually, covering up any imperfections along the edges.

Then, the final touch, and the second hardest step is apply a layer of protective coating.

The Result

Finally, I stood back and admired my handiwork. It wasn’t perfect, but it was MY imperfect volleyball court floor! It felt solid underfoot, looked amazing, and I was pretty darn proud of myself for tackling such a big project. It’s definitely a huge upgrade from the old carpet, and I can’t wait to actually play some volleyball on it!

If you make the same court as me, remember to celebrate it.