Okay, so I’ve been wanting to redo the flooring in my living room for, like, forever. I finally decided to go for it and picked “keel dancing birch” – sounds fancy, right? It’s basically this really pretty, light-colored wooden flooring. I wanted something bright and airy, and this seemed perfect.

First, I had to rip out the old carpet. Man, that was a dusty job! And the staples… so many staples! I used a pry bar and a hammer, and just went to town. It took a whole afternoon, and my back was definitely feeling it.

Prepping the Subfloor

Next up, I had to make sure the subfloor was level. This is super important, apparently, or the new floor will be all wonky. I used a long level and found a few dips and bumps. For the low spots, I used this self-leveling compound – it’s like a thick, goopy liquid that you pour on and it magically finds its own level. For the high spots, I rented a floor sander (that thing was heavy!) and ground them down.

Once the subfloor was all smooth and level, I rolled out this underlayment. It’s basically a thin, foam-like sheet that helps with sound insulation and a little bit of cushioning. I taped the seams together with this special underlayment tape.

Laying the Flooring

Then came the fun part (well, sort of fun… it was still a lot of work!). I started laying the birch planks. The “keel dancing” part refers to the locking system – the planks kind of click together. You have to angle one plank into the other and then push it down. It took a few tries to get the hang of it, but once I did, it went pretty smoothly.

I used a tapping block and a rubber mallet to make sure the planks were really snug together. You don’t want any gaps! And I remembered to leave a small expansion gap around the edges of the room – wood expands and contracts with temperature changes, so you need to give it some space.

• Measure and cut the planks to fit around doorways and corners. I used a miter saw for this, which made it way easier.
• Keep checking that the rows are straight. A crooked row will throw everything off!
• Stagger the seams. This makes the floor look better and also makes it stronger.

Finishing Touches

After all the planks were down, I installed baseboards around the perimeter of the room. This covered up the expansion gap and gave it a nice, finished look. I used a nail gun for this, which was super satisfying.

Finally, I cleaned up all the dust and debris, and… voila! New floor! It took a few weekends, and I was definitely sore, but it was totally worth it. The room looks so much brighter and more modern now. I’m pretty proud of myself for tackling this project!