Choosing between felt or foam-backed vinyl flooring ultimately comes down to personal preferences, alongside the specific needs of the space where it will be installed. Felt-backed vinyl offers an enhanced underfoot experience that's warm, comfortable, and forgiving of minor subfloor irregularities.
Rubber - The Most Durable Backing for Vinyl Flooring
The backing is what comes into contact with your subfloor, and it can give your vinyl flooring different properties, like increased cushion or shock absorption.
With this longevity, felt-backed vinyl is incredible flooring for kitchens. Because it is more dimensionally stable, felt-backed vinyl can be easier to install, onto the subfloors compared to other vinyl variations. Since it is a vinyl variation, it is not different from the places that it is best suited.
Felt Back Vinyl Flooring
Ideal for both residential and commercial properties, our felt back vinyl options provide a cushioned feel underfoot, excellent sound absorption, easy installation and much more. Explore a variety of stunning designs and find the perfect match for your décor!
Rubber, both the natural and synthetic, is not safe to use with vinyl floors because it reacts with the chemicals found in vinyl and causes staining. Heat from sunlight or even the friction of foot traffic on rubber-backed rug pads causes this chemical reaction.
Foam-backed vinyl flooring is an excellent option for those who value exceptional cushioning and noise reduction. This backing type provides a soft, resilient foam layer that significantly reduces noise transmission and provides superior underfoot support.
Do you need an underlay for felt-back vinyl? As felt-back vinyl already comes with a soft, cushioned padding, underlay is not required when using this particular type of vinyl. That makes felt-back vinyl highly economical and affordable - an even more appealing option to budget-conscious buyers.
Felt-backing can be placed simply using adhesive; permanent adhesive won't be required if the subfloor is inadequate.
Felt is a popular underlayment choice, offering better sound control than foam and a variety of uses. It provides better insulation and has the option to include an attached vapor barrier, making it ideal for concrete subfloors and roofs.
The two main types of vinyl flooring – luxury vinyl flooring (also known as luxury vinyl tile or LVT, and luxury vinyl plank or LVP) and vinyl roll (also known as vinyl sheet) – are both highly suitable flooring options for your kitchen.
It should be noted that rubber furniture pads are a no-go when it comes to luxury vinyl flooring, because the rubber may stain the vinyl. Opt for pads made of felt or cotton as they are less abrasive and will not cause staining.
Thinner vinyl, such as 2mm, is ideal for low-traffic areas like bathrooms or laundry rooms. On the other hand, thicker options like 8mm provide better insulation, and soundproofing, and are suitable for heavy foot traffic areas like kitchens or living rooms.
Cork underlayments have shown to have a clearly superior performance when compared to the 100% foam-based solution, maintaining their characteristics. After 100,000 charge cycles, cork only lost 5% of its thickness while foam recorded a loss of 55%.
Well, you definitely can put rugs on vinyl plank flooring but you must be careful what kind of backing the rug has as well as the rug material itself. Your best bet is to see what the flooring manufacturer recommends. Absent that, natural material rugs such as cotton or wool are safe for vinyl plank floors.
Foam Back: Our selection of vinyl flooring with a foam back includes a built-in antimicrobial foam backing for a quieter, warmer floor without the need for additional underlayment.
Vinyl Sheet Backing
Some backing layers available are fiberglass, felt, foam, and vinyl. Vinyl flooring with a fiberglass core or backing will lay flat and won't curl up at the edges. That means it can be installed with the loose lay or modified loose lay method.
Acrylic vinyl adhesive is suitable for use with sheet vinyls including cushion flooring, vinyl tiles, PVC backed carpets and some needle felt and fibre bonded carpets where solvent free adhesive has been specified.
Fitting a felt-backed carpet is a fairly simple process, and it can be placed directly onto your floor's surface, as long as it's completely clean and level, without any previous fittings, fixatives, or grippers (or you can just get Tapi to arrange to fit for you).
When you have a bump or dip in your subfloor, the uneven surface can cause vinyl planks click-lock-systems to become uneven. This will cause creaking or “popping” every time you walk over the floor. An underlayment can help fill in subfloor imperfections and leave your flooring a smooth surface to lay on.
Underlayment is not required if the vinyl flooring will be laid over a cushion-backed vinyl floor or a tile floor below grade. In all other applications, however, you should use one, such as covering existing hardwood floors, vinyl flooring without cushion, and concrete floors.
Since refrigerators weigh, on average, between 200 and 400 pounds, there should not be any problems placing a fridge or other heavy furniture on your vinyl plank floors. Vinyl planks are specifically designed with durability in mind.
Mold Growth: Mold can thrive under vinyl plank flooring due to moisture. Health Risks: Exposure to mold can lead to respiratory issues, allergies, and more serious health conditions. Vinyl Plank Flooring: While durable and versatile, can be a breeding ground for mold if not properly maintained.
If your flooring is waterproof, you can use a wet Swiffer safely, and can get a deeper clean than you'll get with a dry mop. Make sure that you use pads that feature a neutral household cleanser, rather than any harsh chemicals that could damage the flooring.