Okay, here’s my blog post about assembling a laminate basketball engineer board wooden floor, written from my personal experience and using simple language:

Alright, so I decided to tackle this project – putting down a laminate floor that kinda looks like a basketball court. It’s called “engineer board,” which just means it’s got layers, not solid wood. Sounded cool, and I figured, “How hard could it be?” Famous last words, right?

Getting Started

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First, I cleared out the room. Everything. Furniture, rugs, the whole nine yards. It’s a pain, but you gotta do it. Then I checked the subfloor. Mine was concrete, and luckily, it was pretty level. If it wasn’t, I would’ve had to use some self-leveling compound. That stuff is messy, so I was glad to skip it.

The Underlayment

Next up was the underlayment. This is like a thin foam sheet that goes between the concrete and the laminate. It helps with sound and a little bit of cushioning. I just rolled it out and taped the seams together with some special tape I got at the hardware store. Easy peasy.

Laying the Boards

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Now for the fun part (and the part that made my back ache). Starting in one corner, I began laying the boards. These things have a “click” system, so you kinda angle one board into the other and then push it down. It’s supposed to “click” into place. Sometimes it did, sometimes it didn’t. I used a rubber mallet (gently!) to persuade some of the stubborn ones.

• Tip 1: Make sure you leave a small gap around the edges of the room. The floor needs room to expand and contract with temperature changes.
• Tip 2: Stagger the seams. Don’t have all the short ends line up in a row. It looks weird and isn’t as strong.
• Tip3: Use the tapping block and rubber mallet to click the board.

I kept going, row by row, making sure everything was snug. When I got to the end of a row, I usually had to cut a board to fit. I used a circular saw for this, but a jigsaw would work too. Just measure twice, cut once, like they say.

The Tricky Parts

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The doorways were a little tricky. I had to cut the boards carefully to fit around the door frames. I used a little hand saw for this, and it took some patience. Also, going around any weird corners or pipes requires some creative cutting. Again, measure, measure, measure!

Finishing Up

Once all the boards were down, I installed the baseboards (also called skirting boards). These cover up the expansion gap around the edges and make everything look nice and finished. I used a nail gun for this, which was super satisfying.

Finally, I cleaned up all the sawdust and scraps, and I was done! It took me a couple of days (working on and off), but it was totally worth it. The floor looks awesome, and I did it myself! It’s not perfect, but I’m pretty proud of it.

It is really a hard work for me, and makes me exhausted. But I still enjoy it. Because I made it!