Can l use an old cork floor as underlayment for laminate floor?
I am getting ready to install SwiftLock laminate floor in my living room. The floor now is concrete with cork tiles over it. I was wondering if I could just use the cork floor as an underlayment. Does anyone have any insight on this?
yes but it will be rubbish. underlay does the following:
sound absorbtion. makes the floor quieter to walk on
moisture barrier. prevents moisture from the floor getting onto the laminate
leveller. spreads the load on uneven floors
cushioning. removes shock from knees, glasses etc. less breakage.
Quite technical stuff. cork is not brilliant at any of these.
Read the instructions and follow them, they are there for a reason. You can lay laminate straight onto concrete but it won’t like it as much as a nice soft fibreboard underlay same as you would prefer to sleep in your own bed rather than on a tarmac drive.
Where can I find information about wood flooring and hardwood flooring? Possibility Cork flooring.?
yes but it will be rubbish. underlay does the following:
sound absorbtion. makes the floor quieter to walk on
moisture barrier. prevents moisture from the floor getting onto the laminate
leveller. spreads the load on uneven floors
cushioning. removes shock from knees, glasses etc. less breakage.
Quite technical stuff. cork is not brilliant at any of these.
Read the instructions and follow them, they are there for a reason. You can lay laminate straight onto concrete but it won’t like it as much as a nice soft fibreboard underlay same as you would prefer to sleep in your own bed rather than on a tarmac drive.
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Yeah you could use the old cork floor. Have you seen the thin little pad they sell for the laminate? Its cheap, that cork floor will work just as good. I just put down the same stuff in my house and unfortunately I bought the cheap padding.
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Yes, but the job will be better as Darren said above. My advise, spend a little more it will last longer.
Vapor barrier and cushion.
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My friend who has installed over 100 laminate floors during his career as a master craftsman says you can install it over a cork floor. He has installed two SwiftLock floors in the past week and said that it is a good floor and that you should have no problems.
He said the cork floor will act as the moisture barrier, so there is no need to use an underlayment unless the directions on the package say that you have to. You can also call the manufacturer to make sure that the way you plan to install it will not void the warranty.
Good luck.
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