Building a house requires a lot of components, this is especially important if you want to build a house that is an oasis of calm in a noisy area. In our previous articles we have gone through ways to soundproof a house through the walls, the ceiling and even the doors! Today let us tackle how to soundproof a house through the floors.
When building a house, it is important to lavish special attention to the floors. Take for example the fact that the floor provides the main insulation to the house against outside elements- and it becomes abundantly clear why it is important to pay special attention to the floors.
Today we will be talking about the Underlayment. The underlayment is a product that is used as a floor covering that primarily acts as an insulator against the moisture that the bare ground gives off. The Underlayment also acts as a shield against the cold during winter months, but the most exciting part of the underlayment is the fact that it acts as soundproofing material for the floor.
The Underlayment works as the base for laying the laminated floors, wood floors or bamboo floors.
Today we will look at the soundproofing aspect of the Underlayment; first off lets see exactly how sound and floor correlate.
Some of us are familiar with the experience of living in apartment buildings, where one could hear everything that the upstairs neighbour is upto. It takes away from the peace and tranquility of your own space.
Some of us also live in houses. The problem is that the ground is an excellent conductor of sound and vibrations, this in turn translates to actual noise.
To get rid of all these problems, you could use the underlayment.
However, you can’t use underlayment just by itself. The underlayment needs to be covered up with tiles or laminate flooring- this is because laminated floors and tiles just by themselves won’t be of much help with reducing sound coming into the house through the floor.
Do I Really Need Underlayment For My House?
The most nagging question that might be plaguing your mind right now is whether or not you really need underlayment for your house.
You could obviously cut some corners and forego the installation of Underlayment for your house, but the fact stands that installing underlayment to your space will do more good in the long run than not installing it.
Let us look at some of the features that might be helpful for you if you invest in installing Underlayment;-
- Underlayments help out in smoothening the floors. This is beneficial if you plan on installing laminate flooring later on.
- Underlayments prevent moisture from seeping into the house.
- Underlayments also help set up a barrier against the cold seeping into the house.
- Most importantly, the underlayment will help reduce noise reverberation inside the house.
Looking at all these benefits, you might be sold on the idea of installing the underlayment. Let us now put you on some of the best underlayments in the market right now.
Best Underlayments for 2021
The list we have provided for you below are some brands of Underlayments with the best reviews given by actual customers.
Vapor Barrier 3 Mm Laminate Flooring Underlayment By Floorlot
First off let us take a look at the Vapor Barrier’s 3 mm laminate flooring Underlayment by Floorlot. At the very first glance one will realise that this product is very durable and will hold up well against harsh grainy floor, and provide the perfect smoothness required to properly lay laminate floorings.
The Floorlot Blue claims to reduce noise from foot traffic by filling out the gap otherwise floating floors would have.
The 3mm Underlayment would also compensate for any eventual sagging on the laminate floors caused by placing heavy furniture or excess use.
Let us now look at some other features of the Vapor Barrier 3 Mm Laminate Flooring Underlayment By Floorlot.
| Features |
|---|
| Each unit of the product will give you 200 square foot of material. The Floorlot underlayment will also help with keeping the moisture and cold from entering the house. Each purchase of the Floorlot underlayment comes with overlap and seam tape for easy installation of the product. |
Now that we have seen some of the features of the Vapor Barrier 3 Mm Laminate Flooring Underlayment By Floorlot, let us now look at some of the pros and cons of this product.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| 1. The product is quite thick and durable. 2. At 200 sq ft per roll of product, it is quite value for money. 3. It is a three in one product- it deters moisture and cold from coming into the house while also making sure that the foam acts as a sound absorbent. | 1. This is a very minor inconvenience and can be rectified with a flat weight of some sort, but the material struggles to lay flat in places. As mentioned before this is a very minor inconvenient and can be rectified by smoothening the bumps over with a flat weight. |
Now that you have compared all the pros and the very small con, it is easy to see why the Vapor Barrier 3 Mm Laminate Flooring Underlayment By Floorlot is a good product to underlay your floor with.
3 In 1 Vapor Barrier Laminate Flooring Underlayment By Bestlaminate
Now, the previous product, the Floorlot Laminate flooring Underlay, is easy to install in a house or apartment with a small floor plan, but if you plan on Underlaying a huge area all at once then it makes more sense to buy up underlayments in bulk. The 3 In 1 Vapor Barrier Laminate Flooring Underlayment By Bestlaminate lets you buy up 10 rolls of product at one go! Each rolls are 100 sq feet, so 10 of them would easily cover a 1000 square feet house or apartment.
| Features |
|---|
| The product is marginally thinner than the previous mentioned product- it is 2 mm thick. The Bestlaminate company claims that the product can be used both on cement and on wood. This is a huge advantage for people who are refurbishing homes that are old. |
Now that we have seen all that this product does and it’s features, let us now look at the pros and cons of this product.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| 1. The product claims to have vapor barrier. 2. The product comes with the tape pre attached to ease the process of installation. 3. Despite it being so thin, the product very efficiently eliminates all sorts of impact noise. | 1. The preinstalled tape might be a little weak in places. It is easily remedied by pushing down on the parts where they are weak, and the product should stay put. |
All in all, if you have a large project, then this is an amazing product to invest your money in.
3 In 1 Heavy Duty Foam Thick Underlayment By AMERIQUE
If your floors are an investment you are willing to splurge on, then the 3 In 1 Heavy Duty Foam Thick Underlayment By AMERIQUE should be your perfect bet.
The product claims to be for commercial as well as domestic use, but the product has a lot of mixed reviews, so we would ask you to practice caution with this product.
| Features |
|---|
| 1. The product comes with pre attached self adhesive that is very helpful in installing the product. The 3 In 1 Heavy Duty Foam Thick Underlayment By AMERIQUE also claims to have moisture and vapor barrier. They say that the product would protect the house from moisture and mold protection. 2. Most importantly however the product claims to have high sound absorption qualities. In fact their 3mm closed foam technology claims to have sound absorption technology. |
Now that we have looked at the features and USP of the 3 In 1 Heavy Duty Foam Thick Underlayment By AMERIQUE, let us now look at some of the pros and cons of the product.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| 1. The heavy duty 3mm closed foam technology aims at reducing sound by absorbing the vibrations. 2. The product comes with adhesive pre attached, this will help you install the product much more easily. | 1. Customer reviews all consistently point out some burnt edges of the product, by cutting the burnt edges off, the product becomes good to be used again. |
Having looked at the pros and cons and the features of the product, the 3 In 1 Heavy Duty Foam Thick Underlayment By AMERIQUE seems like a good choice if you live in a damp climate.
First Step 630-Square Foot Roll Underlayment By Roberts
It is easy to guess from the name but the product covers 630 sq ft of flooring space.
The product is meant to be used on concrete slabs and wood sub floors that are below, on or above grade.
| Features |
|---|
| 1. A unique feature of this product is that it has a pocket of air at all times which allows air to be circulated at all times. This prohibits the growth of mold and bacteria, leaving the underlayment to be fresh at all times. 2. The product also claims to also correct minor floor unevenness along with guaranteeing moisture protection. |
Let us now look at some of the pros and cons of this product!
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| 1. Reduces ambient noise. 2. They use cushioning styrofoam beads to help in air circulation. 3. Also helps correct minor floor imperfections. | 1. The premium pricing makes this product out of reach for a lot of common people. |
QuietWalk Underlayment For Laminated Flooring By MP Global Products
The Quietwalk Underlayment is made from recycled fiber. The product claims to absorb almost all of the noise from one point, this means that there is no transfer of reverberations at all.
| Features |
|---|
| 1. The product provides strong moisture protection, and has superior noise protection. 2. The product can be installed over cement or rock sub floors, and is easily adjustable using a knife or a pair of scissors. 3. The product is not too thin nor too thick, and doesn’t have the typical petrochemical smells. |
Now that you have seen the features of the QuietWalk Underlayment For Laminated Flooring By MP Global Products, this product might seem like a good idea for people who want to cut down on carbon emissions.
As it is, if you plan on putting in laminated flooring, Underlayment is important. The above mentioned Underlayment products come with the advantage of being extremely sound absorbent. This would help greatly in your journey to a soundproofed house!
