I’ve had this dancing oak wooden floor in my bedroom for years, and it kept squeaking and shifting whenever anyone walked on it—like it was doing a little dance. It got so annoying, I decided to fix it once and for all by assembling the pieces right and nailing them down proper. Here’s how it all went down from start to finish.

Why I Even Bothered With It

First off, let’s just say my cat hated it. Every night, she’d walk across the floor, and it sounded like a whole orchestra of creaks. I tripped over a loose piece once and nearly spilled my coffee, and that was the final straw. So, I dug out some tools I had lying around from an old project—nothing fancy, just a hammer, measuring tape, screws, and some wood glue.

Getting Everything Ready

I started by clearing out the whole room. Moved all the furniture into the hallway, swept the floor clean, and checked every single plank. Found a couple that were warped or broken at the ends, so I chucked those in the trash. Then, I measured the space with my tape measure—just eye-balled it, no super precise stuff—to see how many good pieces I had left. Turned out, I was short by two planks, so I ran down to the hardware store and picked up replacements. They weren’t perfect matches, but hey, close enough.

The Actual Assembly Part

Now for the fun bit. I laid out all the oak pieces on the floor, fitting them together like a big puzzle. Started at one corner and worked my way across, tapping them gently with the hammer to lock the tongues and grooves. Sounds easy, but boy, was it fiddly. At first, a few pieces wouldn’t stay put—kept sliding around like they had a mind of their own. I got frustrated and almost gave up, but then I remembered to add a thin layer of wood glue between each joint. That stuff made a huge difference—slipped into place smoother.

• Applied the glue with an old brush.
• Tapped each piece down until it clicked.
• Made sure everything was lined up straight.

Once it was all assembled, I stood back and looked at it. The pattern was kinda pretty now, no gaps or weird angles. But it still felt wobbly.

How I Fixed It All Down

To stop the dancing for good, I decided to screw the planks down to the subfloor. Grabbed my drill and set the screws every few inches along the edges—just guessed the spacing, didn’t bother with a ruler. Hit a problem when I drilled too hard in one spot and cracked a plank. Oops. So, I slowed down, put lighter pressure on the drill, and added extra screws where it seemed weak. Wiped away any glue drips with a rag, then gave the whole thing a test walk. Still a bit shaky, but better.

Thought about leaving it like that, but my neighbor popped in and suggested adding weight to set it. So, I piled on some heavy books overnight—dumb trick, but it worked wonders.

After All That Hassle

Woke up the next morning, removed the books, and walked across the floor. Total silence—not a single creak! My cat strolled over, gave it a sniff, and curled up like nothing ever happened. Felt proud as punch, like I beat the thing. It’s been solid ever since, no more trips or noise. Might not be perfect—a couple spots look a bit messy up close—but hey, it’s fixed and cost me almost nothing. Way better than paying some pro to handle it.