Alright folks, today’s project was wrestling with this Pad Volleyball Birch flooring I ordered online. Honestly, packing boxes felt like dragging tree trunks up the stairs – seriously heavy stuff! Got ’em into the spare room, just stared at the pile thinking “Right, now what?”.

Getting Started: Tools & Headaches

Cracked open box one. Found these long birch planks and a baggie full of little clicky-lock plastic bits. Instructions? Yeah, there were some drawings… kinda useless though. Dug out my toolkit: rubber mallet (thank god!), measuring tape, utility knife, and the pencil I always chew on. Cleared a big space on the old subfloor, swept it real good – no dust bunnies allowed!

Figuring Out the Puzzle

Laid down the first row. Held up a plank, tongue facing the wall. Gotta leave that little gap, they called it an “expansion thingy,” so wedged some spacers in there. Grabbed a second plank, tilted it up close to the first one. Needed to get this click system right. Pushed it down kinda hard and at an angle. Heard a solid “SNAP!” – hey, that’s one down! Gave it a gentle tap with the mallet just to be sure. Measured the end plank for the row – mark it, score it with the knife, then snap! Took way longer than it should’ve, messing up the scoring twice.

Building Momentum (Kinda)

Second row started. Slide that groove onto the first row’s tongue? Took me three tries to understand the angle. Push down and forward? Weird motion. Finally felt it lock in place with a satisfying “CLICK.” Then the mallet tap dance along the side – tap, tap, slide, click, repeat. Sore knees already. Had to cut around this heating pipe – traced it on the plank, drilled starter holes like the sketch showed (sketch was actually useful here!), jigsawed out a chunk. Fiddly work.

Where It Started Showing Its Good Sides:

• Survived My Awkward Moves: Dropped the mallet on a plank. Panicked! Scratched? Cracked? Nope! Just a tiny dent. This birch stuff seems tough.
• Surface Feel: Barefoot test felt good – not freezing cold like tile or slippery like vinyl. Just… solid, firm, kinda warm? Nice under the feet already.

The Final Stretch & Real Benefits

Getting towards the far wall was murder – crawling, stretching, cursing the guy who invented undercut door jambs. Jigsaw got another workout. Last plank? Had to cut lengthwise. Sweating buckets. Positioned it, used the special pull bar to lock it in tight with the mallet – felt like I was summoning Thor. Yanked out the spacers. Stood up, wobbling on jelly legs.

Third Big Win: Looked back at the room. Damn. Consistent color, smooth finish across the whole thing. No ugly gaps popping open, no wonky planks. Even though I did it, it somehow looked kinda pro? Solid. Expensive? Yeah. But looked permanent. Thumped it with my foot – solid thunk, no hollow sound.

Done! (Mostly)

Still need that trim around the edges to cover the gap, that’s a problem for future-me. For now? Swept up the mess of wood shavings and sawdust. Floor’s down. Looks good. Feels stable and strong underfoot. Seems like it can handle getting stomped on during a game. Jury’s out on how long it lasts, but for tonight? I’m calling it a win. Cheaper options? Maybe. But this feels right for the court vibe I wanted. Time for a cold one!