Okay, folks, settle in. I wanted to share something I got my hands dirty with recently – putting down some new wooden flooring. The stuff I used was actually rubber tree wood, which sounded kinda interesting.

Getting Started

So, the first step was obviously getting the materials. I headed down to the supplier and picked up the rubber tree wooden planks. They looked decent enough, pretty solid feel to them. Got them back home and let them sit in the room for a couple of days. Heard you’re supposed to do that, let the wood get used to the room’s temperature and humidity. Seemed like a good idea, didn’t want any surprises later.

While the wood was just chilling, I got to work on the subfloor. Mine was concrete, so I gave it a really good sweep, then vacuumed it like crazy. You don’t want any little bits of grit or dust under there, makes things uneven and can cause creaks down the line. I checked it was level too, luckily it was mostly okay, just had to smooth out a tiny rough patch with a bit of filler.

Laying Down the Planks

Alright, the wood had its rest, the floor was clean. Time for the main event. I decided to lay down an underlayment first. It’s like a thin foam sheet, helps with sound and makes it a bit softer underfoot. Rolled that out across the whole floor, taped the seams together. Pretty straightforward.

Then came the actual flooring. Started along the longest wall, like the instructions usually say. These planks had a tongue and groove system, you know, where one edge fits into the other. The first row is always a bit fiddly. You gotta get it straight and leave a small gap along the wall for expansion – wood moves, remember! Used some little plastic spacers for that.

Once the first row was down, things got into a rhythm. Grab a plank, click it into the one before it in the row, then tap it into the groove of the row next to it using a rubber mallet and a tapping block. Don’t hit the wood directly, learned that quick! You’ll mess up the edges. Cut the last plank of each row to size using my trusty saw. Used the leftover bit from the cut to start the next row, which helps stagger the joints and looks better.

• Measure the plank needed.
• Cut it carefully (outside if possible, sawdust everywhere!).
• Fit the tongue into the groove.
• Tap it snug with the mallet and block.
• Repeat. A lot.

Had a couple of tricky bits, like cutting around a door frame. Took some careful measuring and nibbling away with the saw, but got there in the end. Patience is key, rushing just leads to mistakes and wasted wood.

Finishing Up

After hours of cutting, tapping, and kneeling, the whole floor was covered. Looked pretty good! The rubber tree wood has a nice grain to it. The last step was putting back the baseboards, or skirting boards as some call them. Covered up those expansion gaps nicely. Put some transition strips down in the doorways where the wood met other flooring types.

Gave the whole thing a final clean-up, vacuumed up all the sawdust, wiped down the surface. Stepped back and took it all in. Felt pretty satisfying, doing it yourself. It wasn’t perfect, maybe a couple of tiny gaps here and there if you look really close, but way cheaper than hiring someone, and I know exactly how it was put together. The floor feels solid underfoot. Time will tell how this rubber tree stuff holds up, but right now, I’m pleased with the result.