Okay, so I’ve been wanting to redo the flooring in my makeshift home gym for ages. It’s in the spare room, which used to have this awful, stained carpet. I ripped that out ages ago, but the concrete underneath was cold and, well, concrete. Not exactly inspiring for a workout. I finally decided to tackle it and install a batten volleyball-style sprung wooden floor. Think larch – nice and light-colored.

Planning and Measuring

First thing, I measured the room. Twice. Measure twice, cut once, right? Then I spent ages watching online videos and reading, trying to figure out the best way to do this. I wanted that nice “bounce” you get with a proper sports floor, but I’m definitely on a budget.

Getting the Materials

I got a bunch of 2x4s for the battens (the support frame) and then some lovely larch tongue-and-groove boards for the actual floor surface. Also, don’t forget, I picked up a load of screws, some construction adhesive (just in case), and those rubber pads – the key to the “sprung” part. These are meant to go under the battens to give it that little bit of give.

Building the Batten Frame

This was the sweaty part. I laid out the 2x4s, spacing them out evenly. I think I ended up with about 16 inches between each one, going across the shorter width of the room. Then I started screwing them together to make the frame. It looked like a giant wooden ladder lying on the floor.

I put these frames according the the measurement, and made it more stable.

Adding the “Spring”

Before I fixed the frame to the concrete, I stuck those rubber pads underneath each batten, spacing them out along the length. This was a bit fiddly, to be honest, but I just used a bit of construction adhesive to hold them in place while I worked.

Securing the Frame (Carefully!)

I didn’t want to go crazy with fixings into the concrete, so I used just a few concrete screws here and there, mainly around the edges, to hold the frame in position. The rubber pads were doing most of the work, and I didn’t want to compress them too much.

Laying the Larch Flooring

This was the satisfying bit! Starting along one wall, I started laying the larch boards, clicking them together with the tongue-and-groove system. It’s like a giant, satisfying puzzle. I used a rubber mallet to tap them gently into place, making sure everything was nice and tight.

• Tip: Leave a small gap around the edge of the whole floor – this is for expansion. Wood moves with temperature and humidity, so you need to give it space to breathe.

The Finishing Touches

Once all the boards were down, I used some trim around the edges to cover that expansion gap and make it look neat. I also gave the whole floor a couple of coats, It’s really brighten up the room.

It’s not perfect, but it’s way better than the concrete, and it definitely has that nice, slightly bouncy feel I was going for. Now to actually use it for some volleyball practice (or, you know, just general jumping around!).