Underwear for carpets?Published 21/10/2015Or rather should we say the need for sub-floor preparation, In other words is your existing surface ok for the flooring you are choosing?
When it comes to getting the best finish for your new floor it really is a case of the old saying “don't spoil the ship for a ha'p'orth of tar”. However, certain types of flooring are more fussy than others but carpet is a little more forgiving than hardfloorings (we will cover this in Octobers blog).
Carpets
Its quite simple for carpet, it can cope with a little undulation or small ridges from boards or screeding wobbles in your floor. However, if you have marked lines showing from either chipboard joins or floorboards they will create a wear point and your carpet will not last as well if these are not attended to or a good underlay used to protect and support it:
Get a carpenter to deal with loose, uneven boards
Be prepared to over ply/board to cover uneven boards if they have pronounced edges
Ask for paperfelt liner if you have had dust leaving dirty marks through gaps in boards (as per British Standards)
Use a good quality underlay – the support given helps your carpet last longer and look better
A good underlay can make a less expensive carpet look and feel great
A poor underlay can make even the most expensive carpet feel less luxurious
Never – put new underlay on top of old or worse use the old carpet as the underlay – the slippage between the layers will cause excess wear to the carpet on top as it slides around
Use firm underlays for stairs to take the concentrated treading
Use softer and springy underlays for comfort ie. Bedrooms, lounges
The vary the quality for better the noise reduction or insulating properties (TOG rating)
If underlay is quite old be prepared to change it. If it wears out in terms of performance before your carpet then you will have the cost of uplifting everything and putting new down before the carpet need replacing itself!
Think of the sub-floor materials like support underwear! It may not be seen but it smooths, holds everything in place and sets your flooring off to a tee!!
For lots of advice on the different types of underlays and sub-floor issues just ask a member of our team.
