Why Maple Wood Flooring?

So yeah, always wanted a proper spot to shoot hoops in my garage. Concrete sucks, kills your knees after a while. Saw maple hardwood stuff at the club and thought, yeah, I can do that here. Gotta protect the knees, right?

Getting Stuff Together

First things first, dragged my old hoop inside. Measured like crazy – had to get enough space for free throws but without hitting the wall. Messed up twice, actually. Cut some padding foam wrong. Gotta check twice, cut once, or whatever they say.

• Materials: Maple hardwood planks (good stuff), thick padding foam, double-sided sticky tape, wood glue.
• Tools: Tape measure, sharp utility knife, heavy rubber mallet, saw for planks, level.

Down to Business

Started with the pad underlay. Swept the garage floor cleaner than I’ve ever done – dust is the enemy. Laid the foam puzzle pieces down, edges tight as I could get them. Punched ’em together hard with the mallet. Used the level – wasn’t flat. Took foam out, leveled the damn floor better with shims. Rookie mistake.

Next up, the maple planks. This is where it got tricky. Started from the hoop base outwards. Glued the tongues and grooves together real tight. Banged ’em edge-to-edge with the mallet. Hurt my thumb like hell twice. Worth it? Probably.

Had uneven gaps halfway through. Sweating buckets now. Realized my cutting was sloppy earlier. Had to rip up a whole section. Trashed three planks. Felt stupid. Re-cut properly. Got it locked together much smoother.

Double-sided tape around the edges? Genuis. Keeps the pad from sliding everywhere without nailing into my garage floor permanently.

Final Touches

Sanded down the seams for like an hour. Didn’t want splinters flying while ballin’. Applied a thin coat of clear sealant. Let that dry for two days – smelled weird. Patience isn’t my strong suit.

Testing it Out

Bounced the ball hard. That maple thump sounds legit. Dribbled around, took some shots. Feel is amazing, like playing indoors. Knees? Zero pain. That padding foam underneath? Does the job.

Honestly? Messy work. Made mistakes. Wasted wood. Sore thumbs and a sore back. But man, that surface? Solid. Worth every cuss word and drop of sweat.

Anyone else tried this kinda DIY? What went wrong for you?