Best laminate underlay for exercise?

[aranbh]

Hi all,

I'm about to buy laminate flooring for the ground floor of my house and one of the rooms is where my wife and I exercise - no heavy weights but martial arts and aerobics type exercise.

It is a suspended wooden floor which is pretty level but I was planning to lay some ply on top to allow for the most stable end product. The laminate I am looking at is 10mm thick and i was thinking of 6,9 or 12mm ply.

What underlay would be best at coping with the jumping around that the floor will be subjected to?

Also I know that normally you wouldn't lay 2 underlays but is it possible to lay some of the thin white foam underlay between the suspended wooden floor and the ply for extra sound proofing and a little extra insulation or would that compromise the stability of the finished floor?

Sorry for the multiple questions but any help will be appreciated.

Cheers

Aran

 

[edphill]

Hello Aran,

What kills laminate flooring (apart from moisture!) is the flexing of joints and rubbing of the material on the floor.

I think 5mm Fibreboard will be a perfect option for you - but I would also choose a decent quality laminate with an AC3 or AC5 (commercial) rating if you can stretch to the extra price as it is thicker and more solidly built.

If you are going to be wearing shoes, then I would recommend a laminate with a V Groove so there is reduced chance of chipping the edges of the laminate - especially if the surface becomes damp and swells.

The only other thing as it's a ground floor is to look at an underlay with a moisture barrier if the floor is new, or there is any chance it is damp.

Otherwise any cushion underlay you find on UK Flooring Direct will be fine for the job - as long as it is 3mm thick or so it will support the joints.

Hope this helps.

 

[aranbh]

Hi edphill,

Thanks for the reply that was very helpful but do you have an opinion on how suitable having a second thin layer of underlay between the existing floor and the plywood would be?
The floor isn't new and I don't think there is any problem with damp but I could use one with a DPM for this layer?

Cheers

 

[big-all]

laminate will be horrendous for who ever is underneath
its the noisiest possible material
you would be so much better with with a thick mat even then the noise will be terrible

 

[aranbh]

It's the ground floor of a house so fortunately there are no neighbours underneath. Also there will be a mat across most of the floor and we always exercise barefoot so hopefully noise won't be too much of an issue.

 

[edphill]

Hi, sorry I forgot you have a suspended wooden floor, so I wouldn't worry about a DPM at all.

I would suggest some kind of underlay (the cheap foam one will do) between the existing floor and the Ply so that you don't hear squeaking of the two surfaces rubbing together, but an underlay here wouldn't serve any other purpose. 6mm ply here should be fine as it's only to give you a level surface.

Hope this helps.