The performance of a hardwood floor often depends on what lies underneath. An inadequate subfloor that harbors structural defects or too much moisture can contribute to a number of problems in the hardwood floor once it’s installed.
A flooring underlayment—which is a layer of material installed in between the subfloor and the hardwood floor—can protect hardwood floors from moisture-related damage. It can also reduce the amount of noise transmitted through the floor.
This thin layer of material can be the difference between a successful hardwood flooring installation and one that falls flat of expectations.
You can use flooring underlayments to protect your hardwood floor from excessive moisture.
An underlayment that provides moisture protection, like FloorMuffler brand flooring underlayment, can significantly prolong the life of your floor by protecting against common moisture-related problems like cupping and gapping in hardwood floors.
(Take note that nothing takes the place of measuring the moisture content of the subfloor before installing the hardwood floor. Even if you plan to install a superior vapor- or moisture-retarding flooring underlayment, you must ensure that the subfloor’s moisture level is within in acceptable range. If installing over a concrete subfloor, a Relative Humidity test (RH) should be performed.)
Guarding against excessive moisture is especially crucial when installing exotic hardwood floor species. Certain species of wood have less dimensional stability than domestic species, and will react to high levels of moisture in the subfloor by expanding or contracting to an extent that will end up damaging the hardwood floor.
Preventing excessive moisture transfer from subfloors to hardwood floors is also a crucial step to take in areas that aren’t climate-controlled, such as when installing a hardwood floor over a garage or crawl space.
The FloorMuffler flooring underlayment affords superior moisture protection that exceeds industry standards by 700 percent. The underlayment is resistant to mold and mildew, and it’s non-allergenic.
We paired a FloorMuffler underlayment with a Boen Express Click floor to provide the exotic species being installed—in this case, Iroko—with an extra layer of moisture protection in an environment that was not climate-controlled.
Flooring underlayments can be used as sound barriers.
In addition to acting as an outstanding moisture barrier, the FloorMuffler underlayment serves as an effective acoustic barrier, providing through-the-floor and footfall noise reduction.
Certain condominiums and apartments require underlayments to be installed underneath hardwood floors in order to reduce the amount of noise transmitted from neighbor to neighbor.
FloorMuffler underlayment rolls are made of premium-grade, cross-linked polypropylene foam that is perfect for this kind of situation because of its superior sound reduction qualities.
FloorMuffler is great for use with tongue-and-groove flooring.
The FloorMuffler flooring underlayment can be used with both solid and engineered hardwood flooring, and can be installed over concrete and wood subfloors.
FloorMuffler flooring underlayments can be used with both double glue down and floating hardwood floor installations, and the product’s warranty covers laminate and floating floor installations.
This underlayment makes a particularly great pair with tongue-and groove floors because FloorMuffler Proprietary Advanced Cell Technology offers robust compression to ensure the performance of the floor’s planks.
For more information on hardwood flooring underlayments or to order Floormuffler underlayment rolls, contact us at (610) 940-5757 or click here.
