Hiya,
First time posting, but would really appreciate any advice.
I've recently ripped up some old laminate and underlay and replaced it.
The new floor looks great, but has developed a noticeable "bubble"/raised area about 1/4 m2
I've read elsewhere that this is usually an issue with an inadequate expansion gap, but I don't think this is the issue as I've left a generous gap around the edges with scotia hiding it.
The area that is slightly raised is in an area where a wall has previously been knocked through and the subfloor was a fraction raised. It was a bit tougher fitting the laminate there, but I didn't think that this would be an issue as the previous laminate was even. Silly me.
I'm guessing that because the new underlay (with dpm) is thinner than the old one, then the slight raise in the subfloor is more noticeable.
I've resigned myself to uplifting the floor, but I want to sort this problem out adequately so I don't have to start again in a few weeks time.
Most sites suggest using a self-levelling compound across the whole floor, but this would be a major issue as we've got a small, open-plan house with no room to safely store furniture while whole floor is being dealt with (We had to constantly move the furniture whilst laying the laminate.) Other sites just recommend evening out the underlay with cardboard/extra underlay.
My wife thinks we should hire a grinder and even the area out.
I'm looking for the easiest option, so padding around the area with extra underlay sounds good... But I don't want to try this if it's going to be insufficient and have to start over again.
So my question is, do you think padding the area will be sufficient?
If not, can I use self levelling compound around a raised area of flooring, to even it out. (rather than to fill a dip) And if so, could I use it in a relatively small area rather than have to do the entire floor?
EDIT: or would a layer of fibreboard ontop of the foamy-dpm underlay do the trick?
Sorry if this is really dense, but I will appreciate any advice.
Cheers,
Craig
First time posting, but would really appreciate any advice.
I've recently ripped up some old laminate and underlay and replaced it.
The new floor looks great, but has developed a noticeable "bubble"/raised area about 1/4 m2
I've read elsewhere that this is usually an issue with an inadequate expansion gap, but I don't think this is the issue as I've left a generous gap around the edges with scotia hiding it.
The area that is slightly raised is in an area where a wall has previously been knocked through and the subfloor was a fraction raised. It was a bit tougher fitting the laminate there, but I didn't think that this would be an issue as the previous laminate was even. Silly me.
I'm guessing that because the new underlay (with dpm) is thinner than the old one, then the slight raise in the subfloor is more noticeable.
I've resigned myself to uplifting the floor, but I want to sort this problem out adequately so I don't have to start again in a few weeks time.
Most sites suggest using a self-levelling compound across the whole floor, but this would be a major issue as we've got a small, open-plan house with no room to safely store furniture while whole floor is being dealt with (We had to constantly move the furniture whilst laying the laminate.) Other sites just recommend evening out the underlay with cardboard/extra underlay.
My wife thinks we should hire a grinder and even the area out.
I'm looking for the easiest option, so padding around the area with extra underlay sounds good... But I don't want to try this if it's going to be insufficient and have to start over again.
So my question is, do you think padding the area will be sufficient?
If not, can I use self levelling compound around a raised area of flooring, to even it out. (rather than to fill a dip) And if so, could I use it in a relatively small area rather than have to do the entire floor?
EDIT: or would a layer of fibreboard ontop of the foamy-dpm underlay do the trick?
Sorry if this is really dense, but I will appreciate any advice.
Cheers,
Craig
