Okay so today I’m gonna dump my whole experience testing that pad volleyball portable wood flooring thing everyone keeps asking about. Buckle up because it got messy.

Why I Even Bought This Thing?

Summer rolled around, my backyard’s mostly dirt and weeds, and my buddies kept whining about playing volleyball on uneven ground. Sprained ankles aren’t fun, right? Saw these portable beech wood panels advertised online – looked perfect. “Easy setup!” they said. “Stable surface!” they promised. Figured I’d bite the bullet.

The Unboxing & First Try Fiasco

Package showed up. Heavy as heck, nearly threw my back out hauling it to the yard. Opened it: all these interlocking wooden panels neatly stacked. Seemed solid. Instruction sheet? One crummy little paper showing how to connect them. Simple enough.

 

• Tried snapping them together.

 

• Took some serious stomping. Felt like trying to build Ikea furniture while blindfolded.

 

• • Got a 10×10 section laid out. Stepped on it… wobble city. Like standing on a half-inflated air mattress. The ground underneath wasn’t perfectly flat gravel, so some panels just hung in mid-air.

 

• • Jumped lightly. CLACK CLACK CLACK! Loud as hell. Ball bounced okay, though.

 

• Played one game. Panels started sliding apart like greased snakes. Corners popped up. Almost ate dirt diving for a ball. Had to stop and kick them back together every two minutes. My buddies just groaned.

Round Two: Fight Back Against the Floor

Thought maybe I did it wrong. Watched some sketchy videos online. People used stakes! Ah-ha! Got those cheap plastic tent pegs from the garage.

 

• Hammered pegs

 

• through the panel holes at the corners.

 

• • Worked… kinda. Slides less, wobbles still there. Less separating, sure, but now the whole floor felt rigid-yet-jiggly. Weird vibe.

 

• Tested bouncing a ball hard. Impact felt okay underfoot, but that noise? Forget sneaking a weekend game. Neighbors three houses down probably knew.

The Real Test: Rain & Reality

Left it up overnight thinking, “It’s wood, should be fine.” Mistake. Light drizzle happened.

 

• Morning time.

 

• Condensation underneath turned that gravel patch into a mud slick.

 

• • Stepped on a panel. SPLOOSH! Mud squeezed right up between the cracks. Gross.

 

• • Worse? Edges of some panels started looking puffy. Like they drank water overnight.

 

• • Tried disconnecting them. Stuck tighter than glued LEGOs. Had to pry them apart with a shovel handle.

 

• Cleaning? Forget hosing down. Water would just make the swelling worse. Had to wipe each panel dry like a crazy person.

What Other People Keep Asking Me

Posted some early struggles online. Got flooded with DMs and comments.

 

• “Is assembly fast?”

 

• First time? Like an hour. Stakes included? Add 20 more minutes of wrestling.

 

• • “Does the wood warp?” Any moisture? Hell yes it does. Needs bone-dry ground and perfect weather.

 

• • “Comfortable?” Better than dirt or grass, I guess. Still stiff. Real wood court? No comparison.

 

• • “Stays put?” Only with constant attention and those stakes.

 

• “Worth it?” For backyard fun? Maybe if you’re okay with constant babysitting. Serious play? Save your cash.

Straight Talk: Final Thoughts

Honestly? I struggled with this thing. For the price, I expected better stability and weather resistance. It feels like a compromise pretending to be a solution. The wood looks decent when it’s fresh out the box, and it does give you a flat surface… as long as the ground below is pool-table flat and bone dry. Which mine isn’t. And likely yours isn’t either. That noise? Constant. The maintenance after any dampness? Annoying.

So should you get it? Only if you have a dead-level spot (concrete maybe?), play super casually, and absolutely need something portable you can store easily. For anyone serious about volleyball or expecting low-maintenance ease? Skip it. Pads are cheaper and less hassle, or save up for proper tiles. My pads are gathering dust now. My back hurts just looking at the box.

That’s all.