I always though the labor prices for installation of hardwoods was high....until I actually tried doing it myself. Installed about 240 sq. ft. in a bedroom this past weekend.....my back aches and my hamstrings are still burning....and I'm only 24 years old.

I can't imagine doing this sort of work day in and day out. I did roofs for a few summers back in college and I thought that was tough on the body...flooring is even worse.

Nick

I agree that they earn every penny. But, I didn't/don't find the work too physically difficult. I'm 42.

Are you using pneumatic tools?

I hear you Nick. You ought to try installing tile by yourself for a living. This year around 70% of my work was tile floors and showers. I ache everyday, but I also turn 55 this month.

While I agree flooring is hard on the legs and back, people in the trades get used to it quite quickly.

If you are just getting into flooring as a DIY, go to the gym and do some deadlifts, squats, t-bars, and rows.

A few weeks of strengthening your back and legs, and flooring will seem like a walk in the park after a week of actually flooring + the gym.

I don't think I would ever consider laying wood flooring to a walk in the park. Many new to the trades haven't learned simple, effective work habits that reduce repetitive movements and wasted trips. Example: Instead of racking out the flooring and nailing it down in a step fashion, they will put down one row of boards, tap them up tight, then go get the nailer and nail down that row. Then put the nailer back down and repeat this exercise over and over. The results are a lot of needless getting up and down and walking back and forth to get this or do that. An experienced pro hopefully has learned work in a manner that maximizes the results with minimal effort. This is the only way one can do it day in and day out. I'll be 57 this month and I still lay wood floors. Yep, it hurts in the mornings sometimes and I'm not as fast as I once was. But I can still do it, and do it well.

I'm pretty much alright as long as i keep at it. It's when I get a 2,3,4 day break that it really works on me. Don't answer that phone ...

Jerry said " but I also turn 55 this month. "

So we're both born in Dec. heh? Sagittariuns http://www.astrology.com/allaboutyou/su ... arius.html
If you believe in that sorta thing. I don't place any stock in it but kinda fun to read about.

I typed that back in November. My birth date is the 25th of Nov. And yes I'm a Sagittarius.

I knew there was a unique quality I liked about you... Sagittarius guys incorporate good common sense. Blunt is another trait... guess Floorguy is one of us

I'm a Capricorn, as is my wife also. My birthday is Christmas Eve.