Laying the substrate under the laminate itself
In the matter of repairing trifles does not happen. It is certainly important to pay the necessary attention to all phases of work, no matter how insignificant they may seem. So, for example, laying the substrate under the laminate with your own hands is a very significant part of the process of installing the floor covering, which would simply be wrong to ignore.
general description
In order to fully understand the essence of the issue, it is necessary to say a few words about what a laminate is, as this will facilitate the choice of substrate material and will largely determine the nuances of the work on its installation. Laminate is a modern building material used as a floor covering. Laminate has good performance, however, it has quite serious limitations regarding the base on which it is planned to be laid. The point is that the floor should be as smooth as possible. Distortions of more than 2 mm per square meter of surface are not allowed. If the elevation differences are less than the specified values, then this surface deficiency can be leveled by using special substrates. If the bias is significant, then you should think about the implementation of leveling screed under the laminate.
Note! The substrate under the laminate can perform other functions, such as noise and waterproofing. This is also quite important, since a laminate, protected only from the outside, can be very susceptible to moisture from below.
Types of substrates
The modern construction market does not experience a deficit in anything, and there are quite a lot of materials suitable for use as a substrate for laminate.
Cork backing
Among the options mentioned can be distinguished material made of cork. Such a substrate will have the following performance characteristics:
- good sound insulation performance
- easy installation
- good thermal insulation properties,
- resistance to the environment (does not rot, is not subject to the appearance of insects, fungi),
- mechanical stability (not crushed).
However, as in everything, there is a downside, namely the fact that the cork substrate can hardly be called cheap. This factor must be taken into account, especially if it is decided to do the work with your own hands.
Bituminous substrate
To be more precise, we are talking about bitumen-cork substrate, which is also well suited for laminate, like the previous one. In principle, this option has similar performance characteristics and is also expensive. In this regard, a separate review of the material is not required.
Note! Bitumen will release some, but small amounts of harmful substances.
Extruded Styrofoam Plates
Extruded polystyrene is a good variant of the substrate under the laminate. It has its advantages and disadvantages. The number of positive properties include:
- sound insulation properties
- warming properties
- mechanical stability due to high density
- material availability
- easy installation
Note! The number of disadvantages include the release of harmful substances, although, as in the previous case, their content will be insignificant.
PE foam
A very widespread type of material for the substrate, with good properties - availability, ease of operation, moisture resistance, and more.
Note! The disadvantages include only a small mechanical strength of the material, which can lead to deflection of the coating.
Piling
If everything is decided with the type of substrate material, you can proceed to its installation. Like any type of work, it must be carried out in stages.
- First, the floor surface must be cleaned of possible contamination. For these purposes, you can use a vacuum cleaner or a brush.
- Next fit the vapor barrier layer. As such, you can use any suitable roll material. The insulation overlaps at least 15 cm, and the joints are taped.
- Поверх пароизоляции укладывается сама подложка. Piling производится встык и места соприкосновений листов материала проклеиваются скотчем. На этом работы по укладке подложки можно считать завершёнными.
In conclusion, you can add that, in principle, laying the substrate under the laminate is not difficult. Having a basic set of skills can be done independently. In order to better understand the process, you can view a video on the topic.