Okay, so yesterday, I finally tackled that project I’d been putting off – installing the new wooden flooring in the living room. It’s that “rubber dancing oak” stuff, supposed to be super durable and have a bit of give, which is nice on the feet.

First things first, I cleared out the entire room. Furniture, rugs, the whole nine yards. Gotta have a blank canvas, you know? Then, I gave the old floor a good sweeping and vacuuming. I mean, really good. Any little speck of dust or debris can mess with the new flooring, so I was on my hands and knees, being super thorough.

Next up, the underlayment. This is that thin, foamy stuff that goes down first. I rolled it out, making sure it covered the whole floor, and taped the seams together. Seems simple, but it’s important to get it smooth and flat.

Laying the First Boards

Now for the fun part – the actual wood! I started in the longest, straightest wall. The instructions said to leave a small gap between the wall and the flooring, for expansion and contraction. So, I used these little spacers to keep everything even. I laid down the first row, clicking the boards together. They have this tongue-and-groove system, which is supposed to make it easy, but it still took a bit of wiggling and gentle tapping with a rubber mallet to get them snug.

After the first row, things got a little easier. I just kept adding boards, row by row, making sure to stagger the joints – you know, so it doesn’t look like a grid. It’s like building with giant LEGOs, but way more satisfying.

• Clicking: Every so many boards, I’d have to really push and click them together.
• Cutting:When I hit a wall or a doorway, I had to measure and cut the boards. I used a simple handsaw, worked perfectly.
• Tapping:I constantly check and Tap the boards with a rubber mallet to make sure the surface is at the same level.

The trickiest part was around the door frames. I had to cut some weird angles to make the flooring fit snugly. It took some patience and a few “oops” moments, but I managed to get it done.

Finally, after a few hours of work, I finished laying all the boards. I removed the spacers, vacuumed up any sawdust, and stood back to admire my handiwork. It looked pretty darn good, if I do say so myself!

The last step was to install the baseboards, which cover up that expansion gap around the edges. That’s a project for another day, though. For now, I’m just enjoying the feeling of the new, slightly bouncy, “rubber dancing oak” floor under my feet. It’s amazing what a difference it makes to the room!