When installing hardwood or engineered wood flooring, the best underlay options are cork and foam. However, foam does have more give than cork so, while it is the more popular option, we recommend cork. Cork has less give, making it less likely to flex underneath your planks.
Underlayment for Hardwood Flooring
Underlayment isn't always necessary for hardwood, but it will increase the longevity and durability of your wood. An underlayment made of cork or fibrous material works well for sound dampening, while a rubber or felt underlayment provides a moisture barrier.
Moisture Resistance:
If your subfloor is prone to moisture issues, it's crucial to choose an underlay with moisture-resistant properties. This will help prevent any water damage to your engineered wood flooring over time.
Particle board is made from wood chips, sawdust and resin and is one of the older materials used for subfloors. It's best for engineered hardwood floors, carpet, or luxury vinyl as it doesn't hold nails or staples.
Most engineered wood floors will have some sort of a plywood base, although a few may have a 'solid core' which is made from one single piece of wood. The plywood is the key component of stability for an engineered floor.
Some experts recommend using a microfibre mop on engineered wood floors to stay ultra-gentle, but using a regular mop is also fine, as long as it remains damp and not soaking wet.
If you are using an underfloor heating system and want to float your engineered wood floor on top of this, you will need to use an underfloor heating underlay. They have been specifically designed with a low tog rating. This allows the transfer of heat from your underfloor heating system through to your wooden floor.
Subfloor conditions
HORIZONTAL / FLAT – Maximum tolerance of 5mm over 3 meter, or 3mm over 2 meter. Sand high areas or joints. If the floor is glued, fill the low areas with a latex additive cement surfacing product with a minimum resistance to compression of 20 000 kPa.
Because wood tends to contract and expand as temperature and moisture change, flooring without an expansion gap will become less stable and durable. This is why it is very important to leave an expansion gap when installing engineered wood flooring.
If you've decided to install engineered hardwoods, there are four possible installation methods depending on the subfloor: glue, nail, staple and float. Whichever method you choose, you'll need to prep the subfloor by cleaning, leveling, and checking and adjusting door clearance.
Underlays usually come in thicknesses between 1.8mm and 6mm, but they can be even thicker. Generally, the thicker the underlay you put down, the more noise reduction you'll get; that said, it's not always the case and it's best to judge them by the decibel rating they've been given.
Moisture can destroy hardwood floors. It causes cupping, warping, and even mildew if not treated. You must install a moisture barrier to protect your flooring from water wicking up from below.
Simply put, underlayment is a layer of material between your subfloor and your floor. While some flooring comes with the underlayment attached, others will require you to install a separate underlayment. Most of the time, underlayment consists of rubber, cork, foam, or felt.
When installing hardwood or engineered wood flooring, the best underlay options are cork and foam. However, foam does have more give than cork so, while it is the more popular option, we recommend cork.
For optimal efficiency, we recommend engineered wood flooring between 14mm and 16mm in overall thickness, with a real wood layer measuring between 3mm and 4mm. For installation, we advise the glue-down method when fitting over underfloor heating.
The durability, beauty and longevity of engineered wood flooring make it a perfect match for underfloor heating systems. As long as the flooring is installed properly, this is a completely safe flooring combination, and one that will offer benefits for many years to come.
It depends on your situation, but 1/4- to 1/2-inch thick AC grade plywood tends to be the best flooring underlayment for many dry applications (under the hardwood, laminate, and engineered wood).
Flatness required as follows- 3/16" in 10' or 1/8" in 6'. Floating floors requirements are more stringent, see section 4.4 for more details. Sand high areas and joints.
The choice between floating and glue-down installation for an engineered wood floor depends on various factors such as subfloor type, room dimensions, and personal preference. Floating installation offers easier DIY and allows for expansion, while glue-down provides a firmer feel and minimizes movement.
Yes, Bona Hardwood Floor Cleaner is recommended for use on engineered hardwood floors, as well as all unwaxed, unoiled, polyurethane finished wood floors.
The floating floor method is the most common for engineered wood floors. The process involves inserting the tongue of one plank into the groove of another and locking them together. Floating floors require nothing more than the planks, and depending on your floor, some tongue and groove glue.
You can use Swiffer® wet pads on engineered hardwood. They can clean most flooring surfaces.