When you think of laying a solid or engineered wood flooring using an under lay is not usually the first method that comes to mind. However an increasing amount of people are starting to go for this method and more and more people are starting to discover its advantages. If you have been searching the market you will know that there are a wide range of different underlays out there ranging in price. However we always try and deter our customers for settling for cheaper alternatives. Reason being, they are simply not as good. The last thing you want to do is spend good money on a beautiful floor and have the underlay let you down after a couple of years so make sure you get a quality underlay and not a cheap alternative.
Ok, so lets discuss the actual advantages of using a quality underlay to lay your solid or engineered wood flooring. To start of with we’ll talk a little about the time it takes to lay the floor. If you use an underlay you can save a huge amount of time. It has been said that by using this method the time it takes to install the floor is decreased by on average 50%. Time is money as they say, especially if you are paying someone to lay the floor for you, and this brings me on to price. Quality underlays are not cheap. Having said this if you were going to glue the flooring down you need to keep into account the price of your adhesives, a tub of good adhesive is far from inexpensive. Time saved laying the floor and the fact no adhesives are needed are both factors that should be considered when comparing prices. Not only is an underlay quick, it’s also much more pleasant and easier to use than other methods of laying your solid or engineered wood flooring. There is no need for any messy adhesives due to the fact that the boards are simply slotted together and stuck down onto the underlay. Despite selling underlay for years we get nothing but great feedback on how easy, pleasant and quick it was to use.
So we have established that is easier, quicker and nicer to use but are there actually any technical benefits that a quality underlay has when used to lay your solid or engineered oak flooring? Yes there are, a few in fact. First of all due to the way that some underlays are structured they reacts favourably to movement in the floor. As we all well know any wood flooring can have some movement, even the most stable engineered flooring you can find can move a little. When a wood flooring is stuck down directly onto a screed and this movement occurs there is no ‘give’ between the boards, the adhesive and the screed and this puts a lot of pressure on the underside of the floor boards. When you use an underlay nothing is glued to the screed, and this is known as a floating floor which is something that is recognised and promoted by official flooring federations. When movement in the flooring does occur and the flooring is laid onto the underlay, the underlay compensates for this movement. This is due to the elastic properties of which quality underlays possess and because of this there is not that strain on the underside of the floor boards. The next advantage that we can cover is the acoustic values an underlay can have to offer. By using an underlay you create a slightly spongy layer under the flooring and this layer not only makes the floor feel that bit more pleasant to walk on it also works to prevent the sound being transferred to other areas in your home. This can be particularly helpful if you are laying your flooring on a floor that is not the ground floor as it decreases the noise of people walking over head. The last benefit that is also worth mentioning is that underlays can be laid directly on to screed meaning there is not need for any expensive sub floors which can again save you money.
In conclusion, there are several benefits that you can take advantage of if you use a quality underlay. As we have said an underlay can not only be as cost effective if not cheaper than the other more traditional method of laying your floor, it is also nicer to use and offers many technical advantages. Thank you for taking the time to read this article and if there is anything you do have questions on please do not hesitate to contact us.
