Here are two examples of what humble pallets can be transformed into. Check out these pallet wood floors two ways! There are two different finish styles in different rooms, and they’re both FANTASTIC!
In the beginning:
This project took considerable time and effort, but mostly because of my work schedule. It is a busy time of the year for me, but I couldn’t resist! I did my install in two phases, or it would’ve taken a lot longer to have done the prep. Taking wood from pallet form to planks ready for installation, even on 500 sq ft. would take several weekends. I did one room earlier in the summer and only had minor work to finish. Then, when I had more time to prep more pallet wood, I completed the first room and then the second room on the same weekend.
Prybars and shade trees:
First, I started by sawing the two outside boards of the pallets off with a circular saw. This only removes maybe 2″ of wood on each end and is well worth it for time’s sake. This also dramatically reduced the number of nails to pull and made it MUCH faster to break the pallets down. Also, it reduces the number of broken boards from prying them free of the pallets. Then I made a DIY pallet breaker tool to pry the boards off the pallet’s middle runner. I suggest using pallets with only 3 runners so that the pallet breaker works much better, as it has no nails on the other board to hold the plank down against your prying pressure and reduces breakage.
After I broke down 15-20 pallets, I took breaks, sat in the shade with a hammer, and pulled nails out. This may sound time-consuming, but the nails really aren’t that hard to pull. Usually, one tap on each nail will drive it out far enough to snatch it right out with the hammer claw.
Read more: How to dismantle your pallets
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1 | Vestil SKB-DLX Deluxe Steel Pallet Buster with Handle, 41",blue | 3,679 Reviews | $66.39 | Shop Now | |
2 | Pallet Buster Tool with 41‘’ Handle, Carbon Steel Heavy Duty Deck Wrecker Pry Bar Puller Wood... | 32 Reviews | $43.99 $38.61 | Shop Now | |
3 | BISupply Pallet Buster Tool with Handle 3 Section 41in - Deck Wrecker Dismantler Wood Pallet Tool... | 778 Reviews | $44.84 $37.99 | Shop Now |
The plane, the plane:
When you have plenty of planks ready, it’s time to plane! If you don’t want a smooth, flat finish, you can skip this step, but our family likes to be able to walk around in our socks or bare feet. I planed all the boards to the 1/2″ thickness, mainly because all the boards were very close to that, and you can only trim 1/32″ or MAYBE 1/16″ off on a pass through the planer; so the fewer passes through the planer, the faster it went.
After running all the boards through the planer and getting them to a uniform thickness, I used a miter saw to square the boards’ ends. This step is HIGHLY recommended since you probably didn’t get a very straight cut with the circular saw on the first cut to remove the outside runners. For this step, you can cut 3 or 4 boards at once, depending on the size of your miter saw.
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1 | DEWALT Planer, Thickness Planer, 13-Inch, 3 Knife for Larger Cuts, Two Speed 20,000 RPM Motor,... | 8,866 Reviews | $719.00 $599.00 | Shop Now | |
2 | CRAFTSMAN Planer, 15 Amp, For Benchtops, Two Knife Solid Steel Cutter Head (CMEW320) | 1,140 Reviews | $469.00 $299.00 | Shop Now | |
3 | WEN 6528 3.8-Amp Electric Hand Planer, 2-3/8-Inch | 1,655 Reviews | $39.74 | Shop Now |
Just a little off the edge:
I used a table saw to straighten the edges of the planks lengthwise. This is a critical step! If this step is skipped, you will see HUGE gaps in the finished pallet wood floor when you start laying it. I tried to skip it, and once I laid down three or four rows as a dry test (no glue), I already had gaps starting to show, and they only get worse because you end up trying to run straight lines off of crooked lines from previously laid runs.
Set the table saw to shave as little as possible off the first edge and run every board through one edge first. Then move the fence in just a hair so that every edge has at least SOME removed so that the lines are straight. **This is where you want to keep an eye out for warped, cupped, twisted, or otherwise not VERY close to perfectly straight**.
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1 | SKIL 15 Amp 10 Inch Portable Jobsite Table Saw with Folding Stand- TS6307-00 | 1,582 Reviews | $299.00 $269.00 | Shop Now | |
2 | DEWALT Portable Table Saw with Stand, 8-1/4 inch, up to 48-Degree Angle Cuts (DWE7485WS) | 6,030 Reviews | $469.00 $329.00 | Shop Now | |
3 | DEWALT (DWE7491RS) 10-Inch Table Saw, 32-1/2-Inch Rip Capacity, Yellow/Black/Silver | 5,152 Reviews | $669.00 $549.00 | Shop Now |
Laying it down:
The rest is simple… just like laying any other floor… mostly.
I used Roberts R1530 wood floor adhesive. It is around $180/4gal bucket and should cover around 120 sq ft per bucket. It has a vapor barrier, sound reducer, and adhesive all in one.
Start at one wall, after ensuring the room is square! I used a 1/4″ spacer along the walls to leave the floor from being right against the walls. Time to begin! After each row or two, I took duct tape and taped the boards together to keep them from drifting out of line when they were touched, or pressure was applied inadvertently from the board going down next to it.
- For use with engineered wood planks, plain back parquet flooring and acrylic-impregnated planks up...
- Bonds with concrete (on and above grade), APA rated plywood and acoustic cork underlayment
Duct tape fixes everything… but lead helps:
I mentioned previously that you shouldn’t use warped, cupped, twisted, or otherwise out-of-shape boards. This is something I had to overcome with a little extra ingenuity from my wife. I reload ammunition for my guns, and as part of that hobby, I have a bunch of lead ingots that I use to melt and pour my own bullets. These lead ingots came in IMMENSELY helpful. When I placed a board down that wasn’t perfectly flat, I would take a few ingots (each weighing about 3 lbs) and place them on the high spot and the other board’s end. This helped hold the board down until the glue set. The next morning, or later that day, if I started early enough, I would pull the tape off, remove the weights, and there it was… fully glued, set in place, and ready to finish.
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1 | The Original Duck Brand Duct Tape, 1-Pack 1.88 Inch x 60 Yard, Silver (394475) | 12,419 Reviews | $9.99 | Shop Now | |
2 | XUXU 2 Pack Duct Tape Heavy Duty Waterproof Silver Duct Tape, 40 Yards x 2 Inch Strong Adhesive Duct... | 70 Reviews | $7.99 | Shop Now | |
3 | 3M Multi-Use Colored Duct Tape, Black with Strong Adhesive and Water-Resistant Backing,... | 12,438 Reviews | $6.99 $5.78 | Shop Now |
The Finish Line:
After the entire room is set and dry, I highly suggest using a floor sander to even out and smooth out the high points, knock off any burrs from the saws, and ensure a smooth floor that your kids won’t get splinters from.
I have two different types of finishes in my house for comparison. When sanding is complete, you can either apply a stain of your choice before sealing or seal it with polyurethane for a natural look. Both look amazing and are beautiful in their own way.
I want to put a pallet floors down in my house in Jamaica. My floors are concrete, do I have to put down something for moisture control or can I just put down thin plywood then the pallet boards?
You can also us a sawall to cut the nails between the boards, the best metal saw blade is the dibiablo
I saw where you said you wished you had done a tongue and groove. We’re about to do this same thing thought the whole house. Once planed to the boards remain thick enough to be about to do a tongue and groove on them? I’m really trying to avoid using the glue if at all possible but I figure the boards would wind up too thin. Thanks!
I’m hoping to do this to my floors and I was just wondering how well they have held up since you just glued them?
Is there a reason you didn’t tongue and groove them or do all the finishing work prior to setting them?
I didnt have the tools and didnt THINK it would be necessary. in retrospect, i wish I would have done it though. that is the ONE thing I didnt do that I wish I had, and it would have made a big difference.
as for finishing work, I was only doing these two rooms and there was no way to know how many planks I would need so I wasnt wanting to have extra left over or not enough done to finish the room.
Hello! I recently purchased a 1420sqft mobile home much in need of upgrading. I’m patching the wood panels so I can prep and paint them, then the next step is the flooring. The carpet and linoleum is straight from the 70s – it’s awful. Once I get the space opened up with neutral colors on the walls instead of the dark paneling, I think these pallet flooring would look nice. I don’t have any of those tools you mentioned but I can rent them. Do you know what would be the best way to start in on this? Having never… Read more »
Awesome work! Would you recommend laying this type of flooring over exisitng ceramic tile? Your projects are really inspiring
I havent tried that. I only went over bare concrete. the glue i am certain will work. the problem you may run into is the uneven surface of the tile causing the boards to not sit flat.
This is by the the best article I ever read in my life. You answered all my questions. The floors look amazing. I only have 3 square metres to do for my laundry. I don’t however have the mitre saw and the planer. I assume you used an actual planer machine (conveyor belt thing). Thanks again
I used the Dewalt planer from Hmoe Depot/Lowes. $600+/-
If you have a table saw, yoiu can build a crosscut sled to make perfectly square (as long as your crosscut sled is perfectly square.
Gary Chambers, kitchen floor?
My floors have old linoleum on them (the square kind you see in schools and offices). Do I need to remove that before I put down the pallet boards? Should I put a backboard or plywood down before putting the pallet boards down?
Thanks!
It will depend on the glue you use. The glue I used should do fine with the tile. If you decide to pull the tile up, 9’ve you pull the first one up there’s no turning back because the floor will be un level or have hollow spots where the tiles are and are not there.
Can you describe your DIY pallet breaker tool? Haven’t seen any info on this site on how to make one.
Your work is absolutely amazing.. I love the floors. They make my oak wood floors look so boring. I just looked at all the things I can do with pallets on this site an I haven’t found anything yet that I don’t think is beautiful. I’m one of your huge fans now. Thank you for showing me all the things I can make. Biggest Fan, Denise
Thank you for your kind words. The floors were by no means a simple day project but they are so worth the effort!
Wahoo Prune Nicolas
This is awesome Jason Steves
Je ferai sa Marie Poux
Si c cool !!!!