Okay so today I wanted something better for pad volleyball in the yard than just dirt and weeds. Saw some fancy wooden sports flooring online? Yeah, way outta my budget. Got thinking… plywood! Cheap, sturdy, seems easy enough to slap together. Here’s how it actually went down.

Getting the Stuff Together

First thing, measured the space where the old swing set used to be. Needed roughly 18 feet by 9 feet. Headed straight to the hardware store.

• Grabbed eighteen pieces of 4×8 foot, 3/4 inch thick plywood sheets – exterior grade because rain happens.
• A whole bunch of 2×4 lumber for the frame.
• Boxes of super long deck screws, figured 3-inch ones would bite deep.
• Sawhorses, because kneeling on gravel gets old.
• Cordless drill. Lifesaver.
• Tape measure, speed square, pencil – the basics.

Unloaded it all in the driveway. That stack of plywood looked way bigger out of the truck. Feeling kinda intimidated already.

Cutting the Frame Pieces

Laid the 2x4s on the sawhorses. Started marking cuts for the perimeter frame using the speed square and pencil. Wanted the frame sturdy, so planned on joists spaced about 16 inches apart underneath the plywood too. So, needed long pieces for the outside rim and shorter ones for the crossbeams.

Fired up the circular saw. Man, sawdust everywhere instantly. Tried to cut straight lines… mostly worked? Couple of wobbles, but figured it wouldn’t show underneath. Took way longer than I thought just chopping all that lumber down to size. Hands smelled like pine tar forever after.

Building the Base Frame

Started laying the longest 2x4s on the flat ground, roughly outlining the court shape. Used the corner pieces to butt the long sides against, trying to keep it square. Yeah, right. Measuring diagonally corner to corner showed it was slightly off, shoved it around with my foot until the diagonal measurements were kinda close. Good enough.

Screwed those corner connections together, driving the deck screws deep with the cordless drill. Felt solid! Then added the other perimeter sides. Okay, rectangle-ish frame achieved.

Adding the Brains (The Joists)

Time for the crossbeams – the joists. Measured the distance between the two long sides of the frame. Divided it to figure roughly where each joist should go for that 16-inch spacing. Pencil marks on the frame tops.

Grabbed a short 2×4, held it standing upright at one end where a pencil mark was. Threw a couple screws through the side of the long perimeter board into the end of the joist. Had to keep it absolutely vertical while screwing, which was harder than it sounds. Hands were shaking a bit holding it and drilling. Did this for both ends of the joist. Repeated like crazy down the whole length. Tedious as heck, but slowly the ribcage formed underneath where the plywood would sit.

The Plywood Puzzle

Alright, the moment of truth. Positioned the first 4×8 sheet in one corner of the frame, overhanging the frame edges slightly. Used the cordless drill again to sink screws down through the plywood surface into the frame and every joist underneath it. Made sure screws were flush with the plywood surface, didn’t want trip hazards!

Butted the next plywood sheet right up against the first one, edges touching tightly. Screwed it down into the frame and joists. The joists underneath helped tie two adjacent plywood sheets together nicely. Just kept working my way across and down the frame, covering the whole skeleton.

Hitting a joist dead center with a screw from the plywood felt satisfying. Less satisfying when I hit a knot in the 2×4 and the screw head stripped out. Had to back it out and try another spot nearby. Ended up with a lot of screws! Plywood doesn’t bend much, but this stuff wasn’t perfectly flat, so screwing it down firmly was key. At the edges, the overhanging plywood got trimmed later with the circular saw.

Crossing Fingers for Flatness

Finally stood back. Covered a huge area with plywood now. Walked across it gingerly. A little bounce here and there? Tightened down some screws that felt a little loose. Seemed pretty solid. Used a long level? Hah, no. Rolled a basketball across it. Mostly rolled straight? Okay, “flat” enough for volleyball!

Sanded the plywood surface quick with coarse paper to take off any splintery edges. Made a world of difference to the bare feet test run.

Was it perfect? Nope. Not like the pre-fab stuff. Maybe not quite as bouncy? But honestly? It works! Kids were bumping and setting within minutes, didn’t complain once about the floor. Felt like a win. Sweaty, tired, covered in sawdust, but totally worth it. Next project? Maybe a net holder that doesn’t tip over…