Plywood as insulation on floor?

johneym

Hi Folks,

I am trying to do something with the floor within a tight budget. Its an oldish floor and I am restricted to 1 inch in height, which includes 7mm laminate. I wanted to put down something under the laminate but the aeroboard is min 1 inch thick so too much.
I need something max 18mm but the stuff on the market is too expensive at the moment. Its also very thin.Its 160 square meter house.
So I was just going to put down the membrane , then half inch plywood, then the laminate.
My question is does plywood have any thermal qualities or am I wasting my time and money by doing this?
Also, if for example I did do this, does anyone forsee any problems down the line with the plywood moving under the laminate, or it curling or buckling?

Thanks a lot in advance,
John

Buford T Justice

No thermal qualities whatsoever, its just a piece of laminated timber.

johneym

Thanks Fingers,

but Iv often heard mention that wood/timber is a natural insulator....its even been mentioned here a few times. Any truth to that?

John

Hell Toupee

Hi John you could consider using the following underlay with high insulation as well as noise reduction properties and will keep you well below your 1 inch allowance:
7mm Parquet Felt ( Softboard)


Parquet Felt Softboard, Ideal for levelling old floors/floorboards.
Pack Size: 12yd2-10m2
Excellent insulation and noise reduction of 20db
Enviromentally friendly & suitable for Parquet & Laminate flooring

Is available from many suppliers including:

http://www.floordesign.ie/accessories.php?range=26

johneym

thanks toupee,

would you happen to know the price of it please?

Cheers

Hell Toupee

Its about €45 - €55 for 12 sq yard pack

slimjimmc

+1 on softboard, it comes in small sheets and is dead easy to lay, just stagger the joints and tape the sheets together to avoid them shifting as you go along.

I doubt you'll notice any great difference with 7mm insulation no matter what material you use, however the softboard does feel warm to the touch and I reckon you will get some benefit.
It serves as the underlay for the laminate so you lay the flooring directly on top without a foam underlay. You could double up the layers for extra insulating effect so long as it doesn't make the laminate feel too spongy to walk on.

randombar

Lads in the middle of a build at the moment, is this stuff the way to go ya? Have ply down at the moment on the joists, so the most cost effective noise solution is to put this down and then the laminate? Does it make the upper floor spongey? Would it be better to put it on the ceiling of the ground floor??