Adding an underlayment under your hardwood can serve many purposes.
When choosing hardwood flooring, many homeowners only focus on the wood itself. While that is certainly an extremely important part, that’s not the only factor to be considered. An underlayment is a thin layer that goes in between the planks of hardwood and the subflooring, whether it’s concrete or plywood. It is installed before the new flooring is laid down. Underlayment can be used with either engineered or solid hardwood. Adding an underlayment under your hardwood can serve many purposes.
Foundation
Whether your home’s subflooring is plywood or concrete, it isn’t always an ideal foundation for your gorgeous new floors. This is where the underlayment comes in. Putting down an underlayment creates a nice smooth, flat foundation so that when the hardwood is installed it can have a great place to stay for years to come.
Cushion
The underlayment also acts as a bit of a cushion. It adds a nice little spring to the wood. This is a major bonus when you’re throwing a huge holiday dinner party and you’re on your feet for hours on end!
Noise Reduction
One of the biggest arguments people have against hardwood flooring is that it can be noisy. While it won’t entirely eliminate this issue, an underlayment can significantly reduce the amount of creaking from your floors. It’s great for those creaky stairs!
Insulation
In the cooler months of fall and winter, your underlayment will keep your hardwood from getting super cold. This is especially helpful if the hardwood is just on top of a concrete slab. That concrete will get good and cold, and without a barrier in between that cold will go right through to the wood. The underlayment acts as an insulator, keeping your hardwood from getting too cold.
Hardwood Flooring Installation and Maintenance from Jason Brown Wood Floors
At Jason Brown Wood Floors, our commitment to quality installation is clear in all that we do, which is why our customers consistently rate us as one of the top contractors in the region. We have been awarded Baltimore Magazine’s Best of Baltimore Award 4 times and have been proudly serving the Baltimore Area for over 16 years. If you’re ready to speak with someone about your hardwood flooring project, we want to hear from you! Contact us at 410-668-9131 or send us a message here.
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