For my daughter's 13th b-day I bought the cheapest laminate flooring I could find and assembled a 10x10 dance floor. For my son's 10th b-day, I did the same thing. Both times it was a tad over $100 and worked well enough.
I looked at buying an actual dance floor, but 144 sq feet would run $850 at a minimum. And the reviews on Amazon are mixed at best.
Renting a dance floor would cost $420. It is nice that it is delivered / assembled / picked up and I do not have to do anything. But afterwards, I do not have anything to show for my $420.
I am going to purchase 5 sheets of 4x8 3/4 plywood. Three of the sheets will lie side by side, creating a 8x12 space. Then two pieces at 4x6 each up against those will make it a 12x12 space.
I am going to paint the surface, probably black and white checkerboard. And then coat with polyurethane. The pieces will be laid on a concrete surface and I will use small flat brackets on the 3/4" side and screws to hold everything together.
Most things online suggest building sprung or floating dance floors. But these pieces will be used once per year by kids, so I am not really worried about cushion or wear and tear on the joints.
Before I go spend $300 on wood and some more on paint, anything I am overlooking?
October 17, 2023, 05:55 PM
parabellum
Don't stop 'til you get enough.
October 17, 2023, 05:59 PM
229DAK
quote:
anything I am overlooking
The mirror ball.
_________________________________________________________________________ “A man’s treatment of a dog is no indication of the man’s nature, but his treatment of a cat is. It is the crucial test. None but the humane treat a cat well.” -- Mark Twain, 1902
October 17, 2023, 06:17 PM
kz1000
Don't put Baby in a corner
------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Yidn, shreibt un fershreibt"
"The Nazis entered this war under the rather childish delusion that they were going to bomb everyone else, and nobody was going to bomb them. At Rotterdam, London, Warsaw and half a hundred other places, they put their rather naive theory into operation. They sowed the wind, and now they are going to reap the whirlwind." -Bomber Harris
October 17, 2023, 06:22 PM
HRK
LED strip lighting, put it around the outside, you can get them with controllers that will flash the lights to the music sounds.
You'll be the talk of all the soccer moms and envy of all the dads as they mumble and curse you under their breath since they'll have to step up their game LOL
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October 17, 2023, 07:41 PM
armored
Stripper pole?
October 17, 2023, 07:45 PM
blueye
My uncle died dancing.......
At the end of a noose.
October 17, 2023, 07:58 PM
SigSentry
quote:
Originally posted by armored: Stripper pole?
Come on now
But seriously, it should be a larger scale chess board then.
October 18, 2023, 08:51 AM
Aglifter
So, this might be hard for kids, but two step and waltz are nice on very slick floors.
October 18, 2023, 09:57 AM
Patrick-SP2022
quote:
Originally posted by Aglifter: So, this might be hard for kids, but two step and waltz are nice on very slick floors.
This should help with that.
October 18, 2023, 11:28 AM
ArtieS
Many years ago, I helped to build an Actor's Equity spec rehearsal floor. It was that gray, soft 4x8 fiberboard as an underlay with Masonite (slick side up) as a surface.
"I vowed to myself to fight against evil more completely and more wholeheartedly than I ever did before. . . . That’s the only way to pay back part of that vast debt, to live up to and try to fulfill that tremendous obligation."
Alfred Hornik, Sunday, December 2, 1945 to his family, on his continuing duty to others for surviving WW II.
October 18, 2023, 11:33 AM
HRK
quote:
Originally posted by holdem:
I am going to purchase 5 sheets of 4x8 3/4 plywood. Three of the sheets will lie side by side, creating a 8x12 space. Then two pieces at 4x6 each up against those will make it a 12x12 space.
Before I go spend $300 on wood and some more on paint, anything I am overlooking?
Well, yeah, take the plywood and put it over some windows of the house, mark and drill for installation and when they aren't dancing it's great hurricane window protection, you get two uses out of it!
October 18, 2023, 11:36 AM
a1abdj
I would hop on Craigslist or Facebook marketplace to see if there are any used dance floors for sale. I've seen them fairly regularly in my neck of the woods for $500.
Originally posted by HRK: LED strip lighting, put it around the outside, you can get them with controllers that will flash the lights to the music sounds.
Love it, I will have to add this to the project.
quote:
Originally posted by armored: Stripper pole?
Ummmm, no. This is for a sweet 16 with 20-30 teen age girls.
quote:
Originally posted by Patrick-SP2022: This should help with that.
Wow, that's real stuff?!? Will be ordering a can. Thanks!
quote:
Originally posted by ArtieS: Many years ago, I helped to build an Actor's Equity spec rehearsal floor. It was that gray, soft 4x8 fiberboard as an underlay with Masonite (slick side up) as a surface.
Very interesting. I will have to look in HDF board. I can buy a 4x8 sheet at Home Depot for $13. That would cut my cost dramatically.
October 18, 2023, 12:06 PM
Nismo
quote:
Originally posted by Patrick-SP2022:
This should help with that.
We use this stuff in the printing industry. We sprinkle some of this every now and then on the rails to help books slide across raceways.
October 18, 2023, 01:14 PM
ArtieS
quote:
quote:
Originally posted by ArtieS: Many years ago, I helped to build an Actor's Equity spec rehearsal floor. It was that gray, soft 4x8 fiberboard as an underlay with Masonite (slick side up) as a surface.
Very interesting. I will have to look in HDF board. I can buy a 4x8 sheet at Home Depot for $13. That would cut my cost dramatically.
This floor spec was specifically designed to both slide properly, and provide enough spring to protect the feet, ankles, and knees of the dancers. It was fastened together with sheetrock screws set flush with the Masonite.
We screwed the entire thing to the floor of the building to prevent it from sliding. If you don't want to do that, I imagine that some of those sticky rubber throw rug mats would work.
"I vowed to myself to fight against evil more completely and more wholeheartedly than I ever did before. . . . That’s the only way to pay back part of that vast debt, to live up to and try to fulfill that tremendous obligation."
Alfred Hornik, Sunday, December 2, 1945 to his family, on his continuing duty to others for surviving WW II.
October 18, 2023, 08:29 PM
Rey HRH
quote:
Originally posted by parabellum: Don't stop 'til you get enough.
I heard the music in my head soon as I got to "Don't stop."
LOL
"It did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us. We needed to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned by life – daily and hourly. Our answer must consist not in talk and meditation, but in right action and in right conduct. Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfill the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual." Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning, 1946.
October 19, 2023, 06:44 AM
bendable
Entrance to the floor and egress should be flush, No lip to step up on or off.
Many a law suit are waiting for trip and fall " victims" .
It's always dark, and people aren't thinking about walking .
And 10' x 10' is too small. 16' x 16' is considered a small dance floor.
Safety, Situational Awareness and proficiency.
Neck Ties, Hats and ammo brass, Never ,ever touch'em w/o asking first
