Material under laminate flooring

[byggherreNR1]

We will have oiled 15 mm oak laminate flooring on a concrete slab without underfloor heating.

Should we use floor paper or foam?
How thick should it be?

Anyone have any thoughts?

By the way, we actually thought about buying the floor from Byggmax (I know it's a bit like swearing in church when you mention oiled oak and Byggmax in the same sentence ;D)
Does anyone have any experiences with their wood floors for 218 SEK/sqm?
The floor seems okay to me, but I'm considering buying glue and foam elsewhere.

 

[KarlXII]

Foam, 3mm. Buy it at byggmax too, we did and it was just as good as Pergo's for 250/kr a roll....
You shouldn't use paper under laminate....

 

[KarlXII]

Wait, now I see that it's not laminate you should have at all. Their 15 mm is a wooden floor..
Then it's paper that's needed.

 

[byggherreNR1]

KarlXII: Really quick response ;D

So in other words, is paper better when installing wooden floors?
Is this because moisture in the slab can pass through better, or what is the reason for this?

 

[BoD]

Oh dear, no you must have a vapor barrier on top of the concrete slab, otherwise the wood is at risk.

 

[frasse]

I agree with BoD, if you lay wooden floors directly on concrete it won't last long....

Check out the Platon system for example.

 

[KarlXII]

No exactly, always plastic film against concrete slab. On the upper floor, however, you don't need it, or if you have a crawl space foundation or other wooden joist.

 

[byggherreNR1]

Am I thinking correctly now?
A layer of diffusion-tight plastic, then paper

Or should I replace the paper with foam?

 

[cattis]

Warning about the byggmax floor... Some bundles have boards that look like bananas but those that are straight are completely fine. It turned out nice too, but it was quite difficult to put together. I can add that they are not reluctant to exchange warped bundles but it might take a couple of trips there

 

[Flex]

Am I thinking correctly now?
A layer of diffusion-proof plastic followed by paper

Or should I replace the paper with foam?

I'm not sure if I'm correctly informed, but I've heard that paper is used under wooden floors when you have underfloor heating, not foam. This is because the heat conduction is significantly better with the paper. However, I don't know what's applicable when you don't have underfloor heating.

 

[Jessika]

How do you do it then, when you have heating coils in the slab?
Is a moisture barrier needed even then?
Both under wood and laminate flooring or only under wood flooring, or should wood flooring be avoided completely ???

 

[General_Failure]

How do you do it, when you have heating coils in the slab?
Is a moisture barrier needed even then?
Both under wood and laminate flooring or only under wood flooring, or should wood flooring be avoided completely ???

Regardless of heating coils or not, you cannot have any organic material in contact with the concrete slab. Wood and laminate flooring should therefore have a moisture barrier against the concrete slab.

 

[Jessika]

aha and the moisture barrier is then some form of plastic film (I have read about the platon mat, but it apparently should not be placed on heating coils?)?

 

[General_Failure]

aha och fuktspärren är då ngn form av plastfilm (har läst om platonmattan, men den skall tydligen inte ligga på värmeslingor?)?

It depends on the type of floor. If it's solid wood flooring, you lay plastic and paper on the concrete. For engineered and parquet flooring, I believe it should be floor foam (type of foam plastic).