I have some friends who are trying to open up a dance studio, and can’t figure out what to do about the floor.
The particulars go something like this:
The building is being rented. They can’t disturb the woodwork (trim) or pull up the carpet that’s on the floor.
They asked me if I thought they could lay 7/16 OSB on the floor and then put a dance mat on top of that. But the mat they want to put down has to adhere to the floor, and is only 1/8″ thick. (I think – Not sure exactly what it is yet)
The mat they want to put down has an adhesive back, from what they told me. So I figure the OSB would move a lot (since it’s over carpet) and the mat would break along the edges of the plywood.
The only solution I could come up with is to put down the OSB, then put 1/4″ luan on top of the OSB, but perpendicular so the seams didn’t line up. But I’m not even 100% sure that would work.
If this was a customer, I’d steer clear of it. But these are my GF’s parents. (My GF is Carly, the one I got bikes for, if you remember that story)
Any ideas floating around out there?
I could dance with you till the cows come home, on second thought I’ll dance with the cows till you come home.
Replies
Boss
If there going to be in the place for a long time(relatively speaking) then one suggestion would be to put down tongue and grove ply and maybe glue it together, then put down the mats over it.
When they move out they might have to sacrifice the plywood to some degree but they wouldn't disturb anything underneath.
Could always cut the t&g ply to save some of it but I'm sure there would be some damage.
could always buy some cheap laminate flooring, you know the floating floor system, get the kind that just locks together, then when they leave they could take it up.
That's all I got. I assume cause your in red-neck country that it will be square dancing? :)
Doug
" I assume cause your in red-neck country that it will be square dancing?"
Actually, Carly's Mom teaches tumbling and dance to kids.Don't ask me no questions, and I won't tell you no lies. [Lynyrd Skynyrd]
I think you're on the right track with a second layer. What about 5/8" for the bottom layer, then the 7/16" and screw them together with 1" sheetrock screws? That should give a solid floating floor that would move as one unit, and shouldn't separate at the seams.
Whenever you are asked if you can do a job, tell'em "Certainly, I can!" Then get busy and find out how to do it. T. Roosevelt
I read a tip a while ago for protecting floors during demo.
The author used truss connectors to hold sheets of OSB together. If you used 5/8 OSB (for more screw/staple purchase) and overlayed with Luan, I think you would have a good system.
Now, if you can just find somewhere to get truss connectors...
Jon Blakemore
"...used truss connectors to hold sheets of OSB together."
Not sure how they did that. Truss plates have to be pressed into place. And I wouldn't think they'd hold very well in OSB.
I appreciate the ideas everyone's tossing out. Please keep 'em coming.Be concerned about your future. You'll spend the rest of your life there.
I assumed they used a deadblow mallet or something like that. Is that more difficult that I imagine?
Jon Blakemore
From my days in the hotel biz... I can tell you that many of the big hotels have portable dance floors. They are specifically designed to go over a carpeted floor.
You may want to ask a Chief Engineer of one of these hotels to let you have a look at one. (BTW, a chief engineer will talk your leg off if you aren't careful... they are normally stuck in a boiler room somewhere with a poor excuse for an office and very little contact with the outside world. LOL)
I am sorry, but I never paid much attention to the construction of the things before they went down.
Off hand, my thoughts would be to lay a frame on the floor first... attach a non-skid surface to the bottom of the frame, such as rubber. Then, stretch furring strips (or whatever) across the frame, creating a pseudo effect of floor joists. Then , use whatever flooring material you think will give the proper support. Shoot... you could even use some hardwood flooring scraps from a liquidator and give them a darn nice portable dance floor if ya wanted to! Parquets flooring would work too.
Another idea would be to use thicker plywood... say 3/4". Then interlock the pieces with cam-locks and pins. The pieces could be coated on the backside with a non-skid surface. I would have an outer frame with this design too... just to be on the safe side. If you really wanted to get fancy, make the pieces interchangeable... thus allowing them to take their floor "on-the-road" for their dance lessons.
Just brainstormin'... hopefully it will help.
More details on the portable dance floor. These are 3 foot square and about an inch thick and weigh about 50 bounds each. Each unit has aluminum tongue and groove edges, two male and two female. These are locked in place with a set screw using a 1/8" allen wrench. Also there are aluminum edge ramps to transition to the carpet to avoid tripping.
The system is modular and can form a square or a rectangle or even a walkway but additional edge pieces would be needed. The surface is pre-finished parquet.
~Peter the former accidental janitor
while at Burning Man last year our camp puy together a dance floor outside on the playa (dry lake bed). We screwed two layers of plywood perpendicular to each other and it never whent any where. I would recomend a 3/4 base with a 1/4 tempered hardboard screwed on top. The hard board will give you a relitvly smooth slick surface which is what you whant when you are dancing(I swing dance) and the carpet will provide a level of cushining.
Several years ago, I had to cover an indoor tennis court for a pro clinic. Bleachers were set up and the 1/2" cdx I laid down served as a walkway and overall protection for the expensive court floor. I used Scotch fasteners, sort of a mini truss plate, to attach sheets to one another. This was only a weekend event. The fasteners did not work for long due to the plywood wanting to curl and the foot traffic. There wasn't enough thickness to the sheets for screws. I feel even a double layer would not have laid flat. Screws would not get much purchase and adhesive would not have been easy to remove. I also had to be careful not to mark the floor. Quite a few sheets to cover a tennis court.
A Google search will yield all types of portable floor systems. Without some framing underneath or another method of fastening down, I don't think a site built solution will make a great dance surface. The floor is a dancers workbench so it has to stand up to the job. I'm sure these floors are expensive but once you own one, it can be taken with you, rented out or sold later. They are also pre-finished and easy to care for. Probably a lot more than your free labor!
We looked at the portable dance floor rental when we got married, and I remember it was e-x-p-ensive, several hundred dollars for a small one, and bad enough to make us go a different route. What about that subfloor they're selling now for homeowners, big boxes carry it and it's like 2 x 2 interlocking osb boards but pretty heavy duty? If I remember it was like $60 for a 4 x 8 sheet when you bought enough pieces, or maybe like $7 a 2x2. Could you use a pocket screw jig and square-head screws to hold the pieces together? I use pocket screws for a lot of things.
remodeler
If you want to research this a little more, do I google for "Sprung Floor". I recently designed an outdoor dojo with a sprung floor, and that's how I found alot of good info. There are systems you can order that do just what you want Boss, but they are expensive.