Got most of the flooring installed this weekend.  It’s really nice.  It’s a lot better than living on particle board subfloor stained with the remains of squashed ants, dog pee and whatever else spilled on it in the past.

The install went well.  I’m in good physical shape but after three solid days of crouching, kneeling, installing, hammering, sawing, lifting and pressing, I am beat.  Everything hurts.  And it’s not done yet but I won’t get to the rest of it until this weekend.

We put a good vapor barrier down underneath the flooring to help with the expansion and humidity.  The pneumatic nailer was an expensive rental but well worth it as it saved so much time.  I’ve installed flooring by hand, just small jobs, and it’s completely do-able but it takes a lot longer.  This is 500 square feet of floor and I’d hate to have to pin every plank into place with a hammer and tenpenny nails.  Ugh.

Those logs in the corner made for some interesting cuts.  I’d like to take this time to thank Festool for making such nice precision tools to get jobs like this done.  Couldn’t have gotten the job done without them.

I initially wanted to put a solid band around the tile at the entry and at the back patio but the planks didn’t come in very long lengths.  I think 32″ was the longest one.  So they split up a bit around the perimeter of the tile.  Still, I’m happy with the way it turned out.  The color is fantastic; though again, like the tile, it makes the wood paneling look even crappier in contrast.

Inky was completely and thoroughly terrified throughout the entire experience.  Spent most of the time under the bed.  She did NOT like the pneumatic (traumatic?) nailer at all and could not be consoled when I was hammering away with it.

In the end, it’s one of those things that makes our house look like a home.  We’re very happy with it.  I have just a bit of finish work to do in the living room, need to finish the bedroom and put a bit of flooring in the closet, and install some trim pieces.  The trim will come much later, as I want to wait for the garage to be finished entirely and have all my tools available to custom make it.

It’s getting there.  It’s finally starting to feel like a place where people live.