Under carpet, the next layer is usually a sheet of what's known as 'underlay'. The underlay can be made of foam, rubber or felt padding, and will act as additional cushioning and sound buffering. Floating floors may also sit on a bed of underlay.
The subfloor is the layer underneath the carpet and carpet padding. It's usually made of plywood, but can be wood, OSB board, or particle board as well. It's laid on top of the joists in the floor and attached with nails or screws.
1. Your floors are uneven or sunken in parts. If you notice a soft spot under carpet or wood flooring, it could mean that the panels below have weakened. While replacing the entire subfloor may not be necessary, you will have to replace the damaged pieces to prevent the rot from spreading.
Underlayment
The underlayment material is installed below the floor covering and placed on top of a subfloor. Under the visible covering, there is a layer made of soft or foam-like materials with a thickness of between 1/4 – 1/2-inch.
Carpet padding is also called carpet underlay as it serves as the foundation where the carpets are installed. The main purpose of carpet padding is to protect your carpeting. The pad keeps the underside of your carpet from wearing against the bare floor. It also helps the impact of heavy furniture and foot traffic.
Look for water marks, stains and faded areas on the floorboards. Laminate doesn't stain the way natural wood does, so if you see water rings, random splotches or discolorations on the floor, it is probably hardwood.
You will probably see padding beneath the carpet, so lift that up, too. Then, use a flashlight to illuminate the flooring. Some rooms may have hardwood, while others may not, so be sure to check different parts of the house. Believe it or not, there could be hardwood lurking beneath your linoleum as well.
Look at the Sides
The simplest way to tell the difference between the two types of wood is to pick up a loose plank. Look at the side of the plank. If it is one solid piece of wood with a continuous grain, it's solid hardwood. If you see different layers of wood, it's engineered hardwood.
Without a carpet pad, drafts and other cold air can seep through the carpeting, making the room feel colder. A carpet pad helps block these drafts and adds an extra layer of needed insulation.
Is Carpet Padding Necessary? Carpet padding is necessary if you want to have a long-lasting, durable floor. Carpet needs padding to protect the hard flooring surfaces underneath it, and most carpeting warranties are void without the proper padding underneath the flooring.
Average Cost of Carpet Padding and Installation
The average is $3.75 per square foot with labor and all materials included. The padding material sells for an average of $1.50 per square foot. The cheapest is bonded foam that starts at $0.50 per square foot.
Laminate flooring will have a repeating pattern. It may not be obvious right away, but that's only because you're not looking for it. If you stare long enough, you will likely find boards with the same wood grain. Hardwood flooring is made from solid wood, so every board will be different.
The choice between real wood or laminate can be easy as long as you know the facts about both. The main difference between hardwood flooring and laminate flooring is that hardwood flooring is made from real wood, and laminate flooring has a picture of wood on the surface. They are two very different floor coverings.
Strip flooring is basically, a type of wood milled from the lesser parts of trees, that usually includes the top part of the trunk and the large limbs. Strip flooring is not as durable because this wood contains less heartwood. They are always cut into shorter and narrower pieces.
Pine has fewer distinct grain patterns than oak. With broad areas streaked with swaths of brown, pine lacks the consistency of oak. Depending on grade, pine typically has knots, while oak has few knots if any; color variations are fewer and less distinct than pine.
You can usually determine a wood piece as oak by running your hand across the piece. If it's completely smooth, chances are it's not Oak.
The cost of carpet is generally much cheaper than the cost of laminate flooring, but laminate flooring has the advantage of being longer-lasting, easier to clean, and less likely to suffer weather damage.
Laminate flooring can run about half the price of wood flooring but, as with wood, you'll find a range of varying quality. Some look more realistic than others, and some are less substantial in the thickness of the different layers, making them more likely to wear out sooner than a higher-quality product.
Laminate furniture consists of synthetic materials used to form a thin layer that looks like wood. Since it's not actually made from wood, laminate pieces often look manufactured. The laminate gets its wood grain appearance through a printed process.
Vinyl stands up the best against excess moisture and spills, and it can be less expensive than laminate. However, laminate gives a more realistic wood look to enhance the design aesthetic in your home.
Do (carefully) mop your laminate floor every two months.
To keep your laminate floors fresh, mop them every two months. Damp mops (a.k.a. microfiber mops) are gentle enough to use on laminate floors. If you're going to use a regular mop, just wring it out until it's almost completely dry.
Laminate flooring is a hard surface that usually looks like hardwood (occasionally looks like tile) and is made with recycled hardwood. It has a picture of hardwood floors (it isn't real), but some of the more upscale versions do look very real.