Okay so today I’m sharing how I put together that shock-absorbing volleyball floor in my garage. Seriously, oak planks plus rubber bits sounded fancy, but man, was it a sweaty weekend. Here’s the whole messy story.

The Pile of Stuff Arrived

First off, boxes showed up. Heavy ones. Dragged ’em into the garage, sliced ’em open with my box cutter. Inside: these thick oak planks, bundles of weird rubbery blocks, and a bag full of screws and weird plastic clips. Felt like Christmas, but with splinters waiting to happen.

Thinking “How Hard Can It Be?”

Started by just laying the rubber blocks on the concrete floor. Like puzzle pieces, kinda clicked together. Easy enough! Slapped the first oak plank down on top. Looked straight? Hammered some screws in at an angle like the blurry picture online showed. Felt solid! Slapped another plank next to it, locked the groove into the tongue of the first one… bam! Confidence peaked.

Then Came The Bonk Test

Jumped right on it to test the “shock absorption.” Stomped my foot. Bonk! Sounded like hitting regular wood. Felt… hard. Like, zero give. That sinking feeling hit me – total mistake. All that sweat for nothing? Yup.

Big realization hit: The rubber blocks NEEDED to be floating between the wood and the floor, not glued or screwed tight. My super-secure screws? They nailed everything down solid, killing the bounce. Ugh.

The Demolition Derby Phase

Spent the next two hours being best friends with my screwdriver. Backwards driver drill action, unscrewing every single screw I just put in. Sweating like crazy. Planks lifted off, rubber blocks pried apart. Felt like double the work now. Shoulders screamed.

Round Two: The Float Method

Reset everything properly. Rubber blocks? Just dropped ’em freely on the concrete, side-by-side, like a giant checkerboard. No sticking them down. Then, gently lowered the first oak plank onto them. No screws biting into concrete this time! Used those little plastic clips instead between the planks to join their edges together. Hammer swinging, clicking plank after plank together on top of the floating rubber foundation. Felt totally different.

Finally, The Magic Moment

Got the last plank clicked in place. Took a deep breath. Stepped on gently… slight give! Jumped properly… nice bounce back! Dropped the ball… it thudded softer. Legit shock absorbing!

Lessons Beaten Into Me:

• Instructions? Yeah, actually glance at ’em next time before grabbing the hammer.
• Shock absorption means stuff needs wiggle room. Locking it down kills the bounce.
• Rubber blocks float! Like magic hidden pillows under the wood.
• Those plastic clips? Annoying tiny pieces, but totally key for keeping it together without fighting the float.

Totally worth the sweat and curse words. Floor feels amazing now. Still a little dusty, but the ball bounces right. Garage gym just leveled up.