The right type of flooring can improve the general appearance of your house. For example, installing laminate flooring to the subfloor of your home makes the space better, brighter, and adds warmth.
Although there are questions about the kind of flooring, you might also wonder if you can use roofing felt under laminate flooring.
Of course, you can use roofing felt under laminate flooring. It is the most suitable underlayment for installing laminate flooring. It acts as a barrier between the subfloor and the laminate flooring and adequately cushions the two surfaces. Hence, it prevents the laminate flooring from breaking and the subfloor from damaging the flooring.
Ready for a Roofing Quiz?
Can You Use Roofing Paper Under Laminate Flooring?
You can use roofing paper under laminate flooring because of the following reasons.
#1. Soundproof
The most desirable feature of roofing paper is that it’s soundproof. For houses with more than one floor, installing laminate flooring is best.
The process ensures that sounds cannot penetrate the flooring downstairs and seals it completely.
Although there are different felt papers of various thicknesses, you must only purchase the one that you find suitable. The ideal felt paper placed under should be at least 2mm thick.
It’s advisable to take note of the type of subfloor you have while installing the paper felt under the laminate flooring.
#2. Water-Resistant
For places that experience excessive rainfall, paper felt must undoubtedly come before the laminate flooring. The eco-friendly material that paper felt composed of increases its water-resistant properties.
Prolonged moisture on the flooring reduces the effectiveness of the laminate flooring.
Therefore, when you place roofing felt on the hard subfloor surface, it prevents moisture from seeping through. In turn, your laminate flooring lasts longer and serves you better.
#3. Cost-Effective
The cost of building a house places a dent in your pocket. However, installing laminate flooring is not as financially draining. Paper felt is cheap and affordable.
Affordability is one of the reasons why they are preferable. So, you can install roofing paper to cut the cost that other forms of underlayment incur.
#4. Helps The Laminate Flooring Generate Heat
The felt paper under the laminate flooring also acts as an insulator. This heat from the insulation is spread throughout the room during cold weather.
So, you can save the units the heater consumes and reduce the electric bill cost.
Additionally, you should purchase a paper felt with higher thermal ratings. The higher the thermal ratings, the higher the ability to produce more heat.
#5. Easy To Install
The process of installing the roofing felt is easy and does not require any special techniques. However, it is advisable to have the necessary tools.
You can install the paper felt by first cleaning the subfloor and then placing the felt paper roll on the floor.
Next, roll the felt paper towards the other end of the room and readjust until you reach the wall. However, the paper felt does not overlap themselves during this process against themselves.
Instead, place each roll carefully so that one end lies right beside the next. The paper felt has a tape that allows tapping each felt roll together during placement.
What Is The Best Thing To Put Under Laminate Flooring?
They’re quite a few types of underlayment you can use. These types include; foam, paper felt, cork, etcetera. Nonetheless, you may adopt each of the various available alternatives according to your needs.
For example, if you want the children’s room upstairs, you may need extra soundproof felt. The reason is that kids tend to move around a lot, jumping, stomping, and rolling.
Therefore, the flooring without paper felt will amplify the sounds on direct impact if you’re downstairs.
Pros And Cons Of Installing Roofing Felt Under Laminate Flooring
There are some pros and cons of installing the roofing felt under laminate flooring.
#1. Pros
- Sufficient padding
- Cancels out sound completely
- Easy to install
- It makes laminate flooring last longer
#2. Cons
- Time-consuming
How Do You Use Roofing Felt To Level a Subfloor For Laminate?
One crucial reason why roofing felt is a suitable underlay is; that it helps to level the existing hard floor. More so, it’s not uncommon for the subfloor to be uneven due to some reasons:
- Removing the previous flooring too hastily.
- Presence of debris and dirt.
- In some rare cases, uneven subfloor during construction.
These factors will contribute to an uneven existing hard floor you can correct by placing roofing felt. Additionally, there are certain advantages that laminate flooring has over the ideal wood flooring.
Even though laminate flooring has an impression of being plywood, they’re not the same. However, plywood can be an existing hard floor; you can install the laminate flooring.
Furthermore, one might wonder why it is best to install laminate flooring.
Here are some reasons.
#1. Easy To Clean
The smooth surface of the laminate flooring makes it easy to clean. In addition, a floating floor, also known as laminate flooring, does not have any pockets to store dirt.
So even though there are gaps left during installation, it’s for expansion in warmer weather.
Of course, there is no need to scrub aggressively with a hard brush during cleaning. The smooth surface doesn’t absorb moisture. Consequently, whatever spills on the flooring remain for a long time.
Nonetheless, ensure to clean up liquid on the flooring as it spills. This action is necessary because if it stays for a long time, it might cause damage to the flooring.
#2. Easy To Install
Installing laminate flooring might appear daunting, but it is easier in reality. It would be best if you had the right tools for this process like:
- Hammer
- Measuring tape
- Glue(optional)
- Knee and elbow pads
- Working gloves
Aside from having the right tools, you will need to have some cleaning equipment like;
- Broomstick
- Utility knife (for removing old flooring)
- Mop stick
- Vacuum cleaner
- Trash can
Before installing the roofing paper, remove the existing laminate flooring. Next, you should clean the subfloor thoroughly to remove debris that causes uneven surfaces.
Lastly, after you finish installing the laminate flooring, the next thing is to sweep and mop your new flooring. However, when you mop, ensure to properly squeeze out any moisture from the mop.
An excessive amount of water on the flooring weakens the board and reduces its longevity.
Step By Step Process Of Installing Roofing Paper
- First, you must clear out the room which flooring you intend to replace. This process includes; moving all the furniture to another part of the house.
- Next, if there is old flooring, you must remove it and carefully pull it out with a trowel. Place the utility knife or scalpel in the laminate flooring gap for expansion when it’s warmer. Pull upward until it removes. You can easily purchase any 9mm utility knife of your choice.
- Afterward, remove each laminate flooring one after the other until you see a paper-felt floor.
- Consequently, clean the felt surface to see if there was any previous installment.
- Then, begin applying the laminate flooring horizontally or vertically towards the light entrance in the room.
The laminate flooring doesn’t need glue to stay in place because each edge fits snugly into the next. So, continue with the process and observe how it’s quite an easy task, and you’ll be done in a short time.
Summary
Finally, it’s safe to say that you can use roofing felt under laminate flooring. The water resistance, soundproof, and easy-to-install properties make it a suitable underlayment.
As long as the paper felt is between the laminate flooring and the existing hard floor.
