Does Underlayment for Laminate Floors Help to Insulate?

Temperature Insulation

• An underlayment is helpful for maintaining indoor air temperatures. Thermal insulation is an important quality of an underlayment because it keeps heat in the room by preventing it from escaping through the floor, thus saving on energy costs, which is an especially valuable feature during the winter season. In addition, thermal insulation simply keeps you warmer more easily and thus makes you more comfortable.

Noise Insulation

• Another insulation-related benefit of an underlayment for laminate floors is that it guards against noise. For example, an underlayment made of natural cork comes in sheet or roll versions to be used as acoustic insulation when installing laminate flooring. Cork actually is the most effective underlayment option for reducing noise. This type of insulation keeps the floor from sounding so loud when a person walks on it as the laminate floor is not attached to the subfloor and thus otherwise generates a noticeable sound.

  Standard foam insulation also is effective in decreasing the amount of sound that travels below a laminate floor, but denser modified or upgraded underlayments are especially useful for this purpose. Still, these types of underlayments do not necessarily decrease the amount of noise produced if you walk across a ground floor with sharp high-heel shoes, for example.

Other Advantages

• Although an underlayment is helpful for providing insulation for laminate floors, it serves other very important purposes as well. A crucial purpose of the underlayment is to help compensate for minor imperfections in the subfloor. In addition, an underlayment makes the floor feel more cushiony and comfortable when an individual walks on it.

Moisture Barrier

• Providing a moisture barrier is yet another valuable reason to use an underlayment for laminate flooring. A standard foam underlayment or combination foam/film underlayment used to insulate laminate flooring also serves the function of a moisture barrier, which is significant because, if moisture gets up into the laminate flooring, it quickly will ruin it. Using a moisture barrier underlayment especially is critical when installing laminate flooring on a ground floor with a concrete slab beneath it or on a plywood subfloor with a crawlspace underneath.