Once the original subfloor was clean of all its dog hair and dirt debris, we were ready to start installing the subfloor.
Shimming
Just like last time, we checked to see where there were any peaks and valleys in the floor. Luckily we didn’t have a hearth to worry about, but we wanted to make sure that the floor was installed relatively flat and level. Luckily the floor wasn’t as wavy or slanted as downstairs and we only had to concentrate on the closet areas.
Because we plan on installing PAX closets, we had to make sure that the closet location was completely level otherwise there would be a noticeable gap between the bottom of the closet and the floor.
The master bedroom only had one saggy area – exactly where we were going to put the closet. It was a bit tedious and took us an entire morning, but we managed to create a flat, level surface for the closet. At its lowest point, we had to raise the floor more than an inch and a half with shims.
The middle bedroom was more complicated. One direction required significant shimming (like the master bedroom). The only problem was that the other direction was perfectly level, so adding a shim to one un-level spot would have made the level direction un-level. So we decided to not shim. I’m still not sure if this was the best move, but we’ll have to make it work.
Luckily the back bedroom didn’t require any shimming! Yay!
Cutting the Trim
Before the plywood could be installed, we had to cut the trim so the plywood and hardwood would fit below.
I had a pretty detailed plan of how the subfloor would be installed, so it was just a matter of following the plan and cutting the boards to size. This helped us plan how many sheets of plywood we needed and also sped up the process during the installation because the cuts were already figured out.
Marking the Floor
Before starting the installation, we also made sure to mark the original ‘straight’ line from the old boards on the walls. In our downstairs reno, this was the easiest way to figure out what would look straightest. As we installed each plywood sheet, we kept marking the floorboard gaps on the plywood itself.
Installing the Subfloor
Because we phased our work, it took a few months to install the subfloor on the second floor. We started with the master and middle bedrooms in November and then moved on to the hallway in January. We have a few other projects on the go, so we’ll deal with the back bedroom later.
Installing the subfloor was straight forward. Once the floor was completely ready, it took us about a full day per room to install the subfloor in the master bedroom.
A full day for the middle bedroom:
and a full day for the hallway:
