My Volleyball Floor Mess Begins
Okay folks, time to share my latest wild project: trying to put down removable hard maple flooring for my home volleyball setup. Honestly? Didn’t think it’d be half this annoying. Here’s how it played out.
First up, needed stuff. Rushed to the big hardware store downtown:
- Big piles of those tough maple wood planks – felt heavier than I imagined.
- This weird rubber stuff they called “underlayment,” looked like puzzle pieces.
- Special locking thingies made of plastic.
- Usual tools: my measuring tape (dusty!), carpenter’s square, rubber mallet, utility knife, saw.
Got it all tossed in my truck bed. Already starting to sweat.
Getting the Space Ready
My garage is never truly clean. Spent a whole morning shoving bikes, tools, and forgotten junk into corners. Swept the concrete floor like crazy – tiny rocks and dust seem magnetically attracted to that spot. Used a long, straight piece of wood to check how level the floor was. Yep, found a couple of dips. Thought, “Eh, maybe the underlayment will fix that?” Famous last words.
Started laying down that rubber puzzle-piece underlayment. Pushed and stamped those pieces together until they covered the whole volleyball area. Cut the last piece with the knife – harder than cutting butter, nearly nicked my thumb off!
Wooden Floor Puzzle Time
Now for the maple planks. Took the first board, nice tongue-and-groove edge facing outwards. Squeezed it real gentle against the rubber underlayment at the corner. Seemed good. Got the second plank, lined up the groove with the tongue of the first one. Started at like a 45-degree angle. Lowered it slowly… snap! It clicked! Felt pretty cool. Whacked it softly with the rubber mallet to get it tight. Went okay for the first few rows.
Midway through… trouble. Hit one plank that just refused to lock. The groove or tongue looked weird, maybe dented? Took it apart, flipped the plank around. Nope. Got another plank entirely. Finally got it sorted with some shoving and awkward mallet hits. By this point, my knees were yelling – forgot the knee pads entirely.
Reached the opposite wall. Needed to cut a plank to fit perfectly. Measured like crazy, drew a line. Sawed it slow, made sure that side would lock onto the previous plank’s tongue. Took a couple tries to get the cut just right.
Finished (But Not Really “Finished” Finished)
Stood up, stretched out my poor back. Whole volleyball court area covered in this beautiful, smooth maple wood. Looks sharp! Called over the family. The kid stomped on it a bit, bounced a ball. Seems sturdy, no weird creaks where the planks meet. Felt good.
But here’s the kicker, the “removable” part? Ha! Yeah, technically you could unlock the planks one by one and store them. But who wants to do that every week? Maybe if you’re moving house, great. Otherwise? Forget it. Once it’s down, it’s down. Still, having a proper wood volleyball surface at home? Worth the sore knees.
Would I do it again? Probably. But next time? Buying way more knee pads.
