Do You Need Underlay For Vinyl Flooring

However you ll want to use one in every other application including covering existing hardwood floors vinyl flooring that isn t cushioned and concrete floors.

Do you need underlay for vinyl flooring.

If your subfloor had dips or damage it could show through the vinyl over time. That doesn t mean you don t need underlayment for sheet vinyl however. As a result vinyl floors do not wobble or buckle under your feet. If you ve chosen to go the vinyl path you re probably wondering about the best underlayment for vinyl plank flooring.

This baselayer makes the vinyl flooring incredibly durable and comfortable to walk on. The only time a vinyl floor may need underlay is when the surface beneath is uneven or has issues with damp. They mimic hardwood yet offer the ease of maintenance of luxury vinyl. It may also be a requirement in certain hoa or apartment complexes to have a sound barrier with your flooring.

In the case of a kitchen or bar area you need to know the cabinet layout so you can make the floor break at the edge. Vinyl floors are designed with a base layer making the addition of underlay pointless. Vinyl flooring is highly affordable. One of the most popular products on the market are easy to install click and lock vinyl plank tiles.

Vinyl flooring by its very design is very stable. One common underlayment for vinyl floors is 1 2 inch particle board. Most vinyl floors don t need an underlay. On the downside particle board underlayment has very little structural strength.

A vinyl flooring underlayment will not be as thick as a laminate or hardwood underlayment. Most vinyl flooring or luxury vinyl tiles do not require underlay. Vinyl floors that are glue down or loose lay will not need a vinyl underlayment as these floors will be installed directly over the subfloor. There are several types of underlayment for this type of flooring and we ve seen brands with a thin layer of foam pre attached as well.

Given these reasons an underlay is rarely necessary. If you re laying the lvp over an existing cushion backed vinyl floor or a below grade tile floor then you won t need to use an underlayment. For vinyl flooring installations over wood subfloors you will not need to worry about a moisture barrier but you may want an underlayment for added cushion or sound reduction. A vinyl floor usually features a base layer which serves the purpose of an underlay thereby removing the need for an additional underlay.

Vinyl underlayment is an optional add on to click lock vinyls that are 4mm or thicker. Installing new flooring is a costly enterprise so you want to get it right the first time around. Actually you may not even need underlayment depending on the product and where you plan to install it. Our luxury vinyl click flooring is laid using the same as technique as laminate options in that it s loose laid creating a floating floor.