Starting My Volleyball Court Project

Needed proper flooring for the backyard volleyball setup. Kept sliding on dirt when playing with friends. Decided to hunt for those thick wood pads everyone uses.

The Search Begins

Googled for hours about Hevea wood kits. Big mistake. Kept getting flooded with ads for random sports stores. Most places either sold cheap foam mats that’d warp in rain or INSANELY expensive professional stuff. Got frustrated hitting dead ends.

Key things I realized fast:

• Real Hevea wood matters – doesn’t rot or splinter like pine.
• Need interlocking panels to stay flat.
• Must handle outdoor sun and rain.

Contacting Suppliers

Emailed three manufacturers directly. First one ghosted me completely. Second wanted a $5k minimum order – like dude, I just need a backyard court not the Olympics! Third guy finally replied with actual options. Explained:

• Basic kits: Just wood pads. Cheapest but no borders or underlayment.
• Pro kits: Pads + shock-absorbing foam layer underneath.
• Deluxe bundle: Includes flexible border strips to lock everything in place.

Almost cried seeing shipping costs though. Those panels weigh a TON.

Making the Choice

Went deluxe. Paid extra for borders cause I ain’t chasing loose panels after every storm. Ordered extra pads too ’cause one pack never covers enough area. Accounted for at least 10% waste from cutting around corners.

Assembly Day Drama

Delivery guy cursed me unloading that pallet. Panels looked smaller than I imagined stacked up. Laid them side-by-side dry first… yep, DID NOT FIT my space. Spent an hour shifting the whole layout like Tetris blocks.

Slammed pads together hard with a rubber mallet to interlock. Took forever getting the pattern tight without gaps. Then fought with the border strips – had to soak some in warm water to bend them around corners. Sweating buckets hammering anchors through pre-drilled holes.

Lessons learned:

• Site prep is EVERYTHING. Ground must be PERFECTLY flat.
• Don’t skimp on underlayment foam. Prevents shifting and cushions falls.
• More people = better. Solo assembly sucks.

Final Result

Took two weekends and three bags of frozen peas for my sore back. But dang – got a court now. Dumped water on it during testing and drained like a champ. Friends already demanding a BBQ tournament weekend. Mission accomplished, shipping trauma aside.