It's a common misconception that putting in hardwood flooring without the help of a trained professional can be a difficult task, but the truth is that DIY hardwood flooring installation can be simple and safe. The only requirement for doing the installation yourself is that you follow directions and wear appropriate safety gear when around dangerous tools. As long as you are willing to put in the work, you'll love your DIY hardwood flooring when you're finished.

Before you start with the installation, you need to make a decision about your old flooring. You will need a flooring base and you can either use your old floor as a base or use your old floor's base as the new base as well. If your floor doesn't have any irregularities, it can be beneficial to leave the old floor in and put the DIY hardwood flooring over it. This will increase your insulation and make the floor more soundproof. If you find that your old floor is too unbalanced to cover it, you can remove the flooring yourself as well. When you have your flooring base all set up you can begin the actual installation.

The wood you are going to use should be adjusted to the humidity inside the house. If it's not, the DIY hardwood flooring installation could be disastrous. Wood can change its shape depending on the conditions of where it is and any subtle changes can ruin the new floor. A few days is all the wood should need to adjust so make sure you let it sit in the room you'll be installing it in pre-installation.

Your first official step in the installation will be to cover the flooring base with a sturdy and secure material. Asphalt felt is used for most DIY projects and can be found in hardware stores, so it's a good choice. You'll use this material to cover the whole floor. Keep track of where the support beams are and mark them when you have finished laying out the asphalt. Once you have finished with this step, you'll start laying down the wood flooring. Start on one side of the room, using the largest plank you have first, and make your way across the room. Use a nail gun to nail down the wood and use a hammer to keep the floor tight together. When you reach the other side of the room, you'll need to use a crowbar to ensure that the last plank fits in snug. Now you'll just need to DIY refinishing wood floors to complete the job.

DIY refinishing wood floors is even easier than installing them. You'll start with sanding the entire floor down, but be careful not to overdo it. Once around the room with a sander should be enough to get the job done. Next will be the stain that you picked out for the wood. Vacuum before you use the stain, otherwise the dust leftover from sanding could be permanently in your floors. Let the stain dry depending on the time the directions say, and you are completely finished with your DIY hardwood flooring installation.

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