How to Make Flooring From Veneer Plywood

Plywood makes great flooring.

Veneer plywood, sometimes called hardwood plywood, is typically used for furniture and cabinet building. It can also be used to create beautiful wood floors for a fraction of the cost of more traditional wood floors. Cutting floorboards from plywood panels is quick and easy and provides a long-lasting floor.

Things You'll Need

• Table saw
• Router
• 1/2-inch rabbbet router bit with bearing
• Hammer and finish nails
• Nailer and compressor (optional)
• Stain
• Clear polyurethane
• Baseboard
• Quarter round molding

Instructions

1. Cut enough ¾-inch-thick veneered plywood sheets, 4 by 8 feet, into floorboards to cover the floor. Floorboards can be cut to the size of your choice. Wider floor boards tend to have a less formal feel. Most hardwood flooring is 3 inches wide. Cut the boards, using a table saw cutting the long way for 8-foot boards.

2. Rout a rabbet into the edges of your floorboards to make them overlap. Use a ½-inch router bit with a bearing set to a depth of 3/8 inch. Run the bit along the long edge of each floorboard to cut a 1/2-by-3/8-inch notch, or rabbit, along its length.

3. Cut the rabbet into the face of one edge, then flip the board over and cut a rabbet into the back side of the opposite edge. This allows the boards to overlap along each edge to seal the floor. Cut the boards in half to a length of 4 feet.

4. Tack down any loose flooring in the subfloor and use floor leveler to fill in uneven areas in concrete or on tile. Make sure that any grease, dust and other debris are removed from the surface of the floor.

Installing the Floor

1. Lay the first row with the rabbet against the floor along the wall so that the second row overlaps the first on the edge away from the wall. Cut the first board of the second row to 24 inches long. This will cause the joints between boards to be staggered.

2. Nail the second row to the first with 5/8-inch finishing nails and a hammer, or a pneumatic brad nailer with 5/8-inch nails. Nail each row to the row before it, keeping the joints between boards as tight as possible. Space nails every 10 to 12 inches.

3. Attach baseboard to the wall overlapping the edge of the outside floorboard. Attach quarter round molding to the bottom of the baseboard snugly against the top of the outside floorboard to cover any gap.

4. Apply a coat of stain to the floor, using a lamb's wool applicator. Work across the floor in sections, slightly overlapping. Work toward a doorway to escape. Follow the manufacturer's recommendations for drying time and application for best results.

5. Roll on at least two coats of clear polyurethane to seal the floor. Allow the manufacturer's recommended drying time between coats and before using the floor after the final coat.

References

• The Family Handyman: Router Basics
• Inside Woodworking: Plywood
• ToolGirl: Plank Flooring for Any Budget