Did you decide to put a parquet board in the rooms of your apartment or house and even chose material for this? Have you ever thought about what should be the basis for parquet? Suppose that the floor you have aligned perfectly, as you think. However, small irregularities will still remain on it. So they can greatly reduce the lifetime of the parquet board, since there will be voids between the base of the floor and the lamellae of the parquet and the coating will "play" on them. In addition, the floor will begin to squeak, which neither you nor your neighbors will like from the bottom (if any). To avoid this, use a substrate for the parquet board. Let's find out whether the substrate for the parquet board is really needed, and which one is better.
Types of substrate for a parquet board
Today, the market for floor coverings offers us many types of substrates. Consider the most popular of them.
- Very often for laying under the parquet board use foam polyethylene substrate. It is resistant to various chemical compounds, is not afraid of mold and fungi. This coating has good moisture resistance. However, a substrate made of expanded polyethylene foam has a very big minus: it is toxic and fire-hazardous. In addition, this material can decompose under the influence of oxygen. And this means that in ten years, instead of a substrate under the parquet will remain powder.
- The foil substrate has good heat and sound insulation properties. Typically, the foil layer is made on a foamed polyethylene substrate. Such a coating experts recommend to lay on rigidly fixed wooden lags. In addition, a foil substrate for a parquet board can be used when the coating is mounted on a warm floor .
- The natural material is the cork substrate for the parquet board. For its production, a crushed bark of cork oak is used, which is then pressed. It does not mold and does not rot, it keeps heat well and is an excellent noise isolator. However, it should be remembered that the cork substrate can not be laid on the newly made screed. Before it is necessary to lay a layer of waterproofing, for example, a thick polyethylene film.
- The bitumen-cork substrate or, as it is also called, parcolag, is a layer of kraft paper that is treated with bitumen and sprinkled with crumb of cork. This substrate is distinguished by a good moisture protection, excellent sound insulation and durability. This material is laid on the base of the floor with a cork side. However, such material will not be environmentally friendly, because bitumen mastic secretes formaldehyde, which is harmful to the human body.
- The composite substrate consists of three layers. Bottom is a porous film that can pass moisture into the middle layer stuffed with balls. The top layer is a polyethylene film. The choice of such a substrate is the best option if the floor screed is not sufficiently dried or condensation forms on the floor.
- High quality and ecological compatibility is provided by a coniferous substrate for a parquet board . The porous structure of coniferous wood gives the substrate excellent noise insulation, as well as air ventilation. However, such material has a fairly high price.
As you can see, there are several variants of the substrate for the parquet board, which can be used in living quarters. Choose the most suitable, and the parquet floor with the substrate will serve you for a long time without requiring replacement.