Alright, guys, let’s talk about my recent project: putting in a basketball court floor. It wasn’t just any floor, though. This was LVL – Laminated Veneer Lumber – basketball hard assembly wooden flooring. Sounds fancy, huh? It’s basically super strong, engineered wood.

Getting Started

First things first, I cleared out the space. This was a big area, so it took a while to get everything out of the way. I mean, empty the place out completely.

Next, I checked the subfloor. It was concrete, and luckily, pretty level. A few minor imperfections, but nothing major. I used a self-leveling compound to smooth out any dips.

I just poured it, spread it, you know. Made it look flat and nice.

The Moisture Barrier

Then, I rolled out a moisture barrier. Super important! This stuff protects the wood from any moisture coming up from the concrete. I overlapped the edges and taped them down securely with some good old duct tape.

Laying the LVL Panels

Now for the fun part – laying the actual floor! These LVL panels were heavy. I had some extra pair of hands to help me, so we just lifted, placed and pushed.

We started from one corner, working our way across the room. Used a rubber mallet to tap the panels together.

It’s all about getting a tight fit, see? No gaps!

• Clicked them into place along the edges – they had this tongue-and-groove system, super convenient.
• Staggered the seams, like you would with any flooring. Makes it stronger and looks better.
• Left a small expansion gap around the perimeter of the room. Wood expands and contracts, you gotta give it space to breathe.

The Finishing Touches

Once all the panels were down, I installed baseboards around the edges to cover that expansion gap and give it a nice, finished look.

Finally, I cleaned up. Vacuumed the whole floor, wiped it down. Took about another hour or so.

And that’s it! A brand new, super sturdy LVL basketball court floor. It was a tough job, I am exhausted, but totally worth it. Looking forward to playing some ball on this thing!