For further operation and high-quality installation of the floor covering, a substrate must be laid under the laminate. Many experts recommend coniferous substrate. It is made most often from spruce wood or needles, in rare cases from pine. What it is? What are the features and benefits of the material?
Features
Coniferous substrate has the following quality characteristics:
- effectively dampens floor vibrations;
- eliminates base errors;
- prevents locks from breaking for a long time;
- helps keep the room warm;
- has an excellent level of noise protection.
Based on numerous reviews, the coniferous substrate under the laminate is well cut with a knife and makes it possible, due to its different thicknesses, to raise the laminate in height comparable to tiles. Also, the material perfectly absorbs moisture and protects the floor covering from it. But worth itnote that the material has a different thickness. This will depend on the scope of its application. You can not use an excessively thin or, conversely, thick model.
Dignity
Always fit a coniferous substrate under the laminate and is an auxiliary material. It has the following features:
- Excellent sound insulation performance - if you put a laminate on the floor without a substrate, you will hear noise while walking. This is because the laminate is thin and becomes a sound transmitter when floating.
- Makes the floor surface perfectly even - even if a concrete screed was made before installing the floor covering, there are always small defects that can be eliminated before laying the laminate with the help of a substrate. It will give the surface maximum evenness.
- Excellent water absorption - exposure to moisture adversely affects the quality of the laminate. Negative consequences can be avoided thanks to the coniferous substrate, which absorbs water well and protects the coating from negative effects.
- Provides excellent thermal insulation.
- In the manufacture of coniferous substrate, only natural material is used, which is completely safe for the human body.
- There is no need to use special tools to mount the underlay, laying it is very simple, even an inexperienced master can cope with such a task.
Flaws
According to the reviews, the coniferous substrate under the laminate has not only advantages, but also disadvantages:
- It has a specific smell that only shows up a few days after styling.
- It is not recommended to use a coniferous substrate in rooms with a high level of humidity, as mold can form on its surface, which will have a negative effect on the human body.
- High cost.
- Before laying the underlay, make sure it is completely dry. Otherwise, mold may form on it after a while.
Another drawback is that the softwood substrate is delivered to customers in sheets that are wrapped in film. After opening, sheets often have a curved shape, due to which they cannot fit snugly to the base.
Sizes
When choosing a coniferous substrate, it is necessary to take into account its dimensions, which have a direct impact on its cost. When choosing, it is necessary to build on the degree of irregularities on the subfloor, since a certain thickness can only cope with the indicated irregularities on the surface.
According to reviews, a 3 mm coniferous laminate underlay can only be used in cases where there are minor defects on the floor. A 4 mm thick substrate can cope with irregularities of 1 mm.
What to use for minor defects? If there are irregularities on the floor from 1 to 2 mm, thenin this case, a coniferous substrate for a 5 mm laminate is suitable. How to eliminate irregularities in 3 mm? A coniferous substrate for a 7 mm laminate can help you with this.
But this is not all varieties. In some hardware stores you can find a 5.5 mm coniferous underlay for a laminate. Reviews about it are quite contradictory. After all, it is between 5 and 6 mm, and it is not always possible to properly level the defective area.
To understand which coniferous substrate for laminate flooring is better, in each individual case, it is necessary to take into account the above recommendations. It is worth choosing one that matches the unevenness of the subfloor.
Where is the best place to use it?
Since, according to reviews, the coniferous substrate under the laminate has high quality characteristics, it can be laid not only under the laminate, but also under parquet, linoleum or carpet. At the same time, it can even in some cases perfectly replace the more expensive, cork.
Most often, it is the coniferous substrate that is preferred where there are significant defects in the screed. Currently, only two types of materials are able to cope with height differences on the base of the floor. This is coniferous and cork.
Which substrate is best?
The advantages of a coniferous substrate for a laminate are obvious, but despite this, it is slightly inferior in quality to cork. There are certain points that must be taken into account when choosing:
- The cork backing is different fromconiferous only with qualitative characteristics, but significantly exceeds the cost. Therefore, before making a choice, you need to evaluate your financial capabilities.
- The only indisputable advantage of the cork substrate is that fungi and mold never form on it. But if the waterproofing is properly and efficiently arranged in the room, then you will not have to face such problems when using a spruce substrate.
When choosing, it is imperative to take into account the pros and cons of a coniferous substrate for a laminate along with cork. Only a thorough analysis of all the nuances will help you make the right choice.
Every day more and more manufacturers appear on the construction market, offering different substrates for laminate flooring. But still, only a few companies have been the undisputed leaders for a long time.
Steico Underfloor
According to reviews, Steico Underfloor spruce laminate flooring has excellent soundproofing characteristics. It perfectly dampens the sound while walking on the base of the floor. It also has good thermal insulation properties, copes with moisture at the highest level, but is still afraid of mold. The substrate of this manufacturer is realized in the form of plates and is considered ideal when laying under a laminate on a wooden floor. Due to its characteristics, such a substrate is often used in private households. The company is considered a leader in the production andsoftwood underlay sales.
The cost of one square meter of this material is about 180 rubles.
Leroy Merlin underlay
The coniferous substrate under the laminate from the well-known manufacturer Leroy Merlin deserved a lot of positive feedback. In reviews, buyers say that it has good value for money. Since such a substrate undergoes special processing during manufacture, it effectively acts as a capacitor. It has excellent performance, despite the fact that it is much cheaper than the previous version.
Isoplaat
Another well-known manufacturer of spruce underlay for laminate flooring is Isoplaat. The material is different in that for a long time it can retain its shape and not deform. In addition, it perfectly absorbs noise and can be used as an insulating material that does not allow the laminate to cool down. Ideal for repairing old floors. It also has a relatively low cost.
You can buy such material at a price of 80 rubles per square meter.
Styling features
Everyone can cope with the installation work on laying the spruce substrate, since there is nothing complicated in the process. Its installation does not require certain knowledge and skills, as well as special equipment. The only thing that is necessary is to follow the elementary rules, which ensure high-quality installation.
Be sure to lay on the subfloor. First you need to thoroughly clean it from debris, dirt and dust, as even minor foreign objects can further spoil the quality of work. If the floor has irregularities, then it is best to cover it with plywood sheets or pour a new screed. In addition, the floor must be waterproofed.
To lay the substrate, you need to purchase a tape measure, pencil or marker, as well as household scissors. Immediately before laying, it is required to bring the substrate into the room and let it rest for several days so that the material can adapt to operating conditions.
Laying the substrate must be carried out at right angles to the laminate. For convenience, sheets should be marked. Only after that you can start cutting them. So that the joints between the individual slabs of the substrate do not coincide with the joints of the lamellas, the first elements to be laid must be cut at a certain angle - 45 degrees. An expansion gap must be left between the wall and the material. After laying this material, you can proceed with the installation of the laminate.
Consumer comments
During the existence of a coniferous substrate under the laminate, many opinions have been formed. Some consider it the best and has excellent performance and quality characteristics, while others, on the contrary, argue that it becomes unusable in a short period of time, as it is prone to formationmold.
In each individual case, it will be up to each individual to decide which substrate to purchase, depending on their preferences and financial capabilities. The only thing that remains indisputable is that the coniferous substrate is considered an environmentally friendly material, and if it is correctly laid, then mold will never form on it. Also, the undoubted advantage of such a layer, users consider that some manufacturers make it to order. Everyone has the opportunity to purchase a convenient and non-standard option, depending on the required dimensions, to simplify the installation process.
