For your install, plywood will work fine. Use T&G and screw through the foam and the into original floor to keep the large sheets flat. Every 8″ on the edges and 12″ in the center. This will also help eliminate the hollow sound and feel the floor will have over the foam.
Can you walk on Styrofoam?
You can walk on a foam roof 1-2 minutes after it’s sprayed.
What goes under laminate flooring on plywood?
foam underlayment
Standard foam underlayment: This consists of a thin layer of foam material that acts as a cushion between the subfloor and the laminate flooring. This is the most common form of laminate underlayment, and it is often used in cases when installing laminate flooring over a plywood or OSB subfloor.
What is best for sub flooring?
Plywood has been a standard subfloor material since the 1950s and remains the preferred subflooring for many builders. Standard plywood can be used for subfloors, but a better material is 3/4-inch tongue-and-groove plywood subflooring.
How many layers of plywood do you need for a subfloor?
If you are using plywood for your subfloor, you should use a minimum of one layer that is between ¾” and ⅝” thick. This thickness will suffice for most floors; however, codes will vary and a second layer is a good idea if your floor covering is going to be a heavy material like ceramic tiles or natural stone.
How do you lay flooring on plywood?
You can easily install new laminate flooring on plywood floors in the form of planks by cutting them up to fit the floor and then laying them side by side. After that, you should jam them down in their joints until they make a ‘click’ sound that allows you to align them on your previous plywood floor perfectly.
What is the best thing to put under laminate flooring?
While there are a number of good options in the market, cork and foam are the usual favorites for a laminate floor underlay. Depending on your lifestyle, you may appreciate cork for its thickness and sound absorption; foam, on the other hand, is an excellent, cost-efficient material that works as a moisture barrier.
Is it better to use OSB or plywood for subfloor?
The National Tile Contractors Association and the Resilient Floor Covering Institute both recommend plywood for subflooring and underlayment, because it doesn’t have the risk of swollen edges that OSB does. Plywood also has a slight advantage in stiffness, which means that subflooring panels need not be quite as thick.
How thick should plywood subfloor be?
The minimum thickness of plywood for subflooring is about 5/8 inch. Since it does not hold fasteners as well as plywood, OSB must be a little thicker, or at least 23/32 inch. There are several factors that determine what subfloor thickness is optimal for added benefits like insulation.
What thickness of plywood is needed for flooring?
The National Wood Flooring Association recommends a minimum plywood panel thickness of 7/8-inch for joist spans of 19.2 to 24 inches, and a minimum plywood panel thickness of 5/8-inch for joist spans of 16 inches or less.
What kind of plywood is best for flooring?
Interior plywood is ideal for rooms not exposed to moisture, such as bedrooms, and makes a good subfloor for carpeting, tiles, vinyl, engineered wood laminate flooring and hardwood flooring. Exterior plywood is a better choice for bathrooms, kitchens and any other rooms exposed to water and moisture.
Which plywood is best for flooring?
When choosing a grade for your plywood flooring I’d stick with CDX if it’s a subfloor. Higher grade plywood is typically used for cabinet and furniture making. If your joists are spaced at 16 inch on center go with at least a 5/8 inch plywood. Use two layers of plywood when building a fiberglass floor.
Can sheathing plywood be used for subfloor?
Like Sturd-I-Floor, Rated Sheathing may be plywood or OSB. When used as a subfloor, Rated Sheathing typically requires installation of an additional layer of underlayment on top of it before finish flooring can be applied. The underlayment requirements vary depending on the finish flooring.
What is the difference between plywood sheathing and plywood subfloor?
Wood scientists agree that the structural performance of plywood and OSB are equivalent. Sub-floors are actually constructed of either OSB or plywood sheathing, and rest on floor joists. Sub-floors serve as structural platforms for your plywood underlayment and finished flooring.
What’s the difference between plywood sheathing and plywood?
Use hardwood plywood for furniture and anything that requires a strong load-bearing frame. Plywood sheathing or structural plywood is designed for permanent structures. It is strong and inexpensive, but unfinished, and therefore not suitable for places where it will show.
What’s the difference between underlayment and plywood?
Underlayment Is Not Subflooring
Underlayment is a thinner material that lies over the subfloor. While underlayment may add a modest amount of stiffness to a floor assembly, it does not strengthen a floor or enhance it structurally. Plywood is only one type of underlayment.
Can you use plywood as flooring?
As a finished flooring
(And yes, you can have plywood flooring over a plywood subfloor.) You can cut plywood into planks or special shapes and lay them in whatever pattern you prefer. Some plywood flooring designs even mimic traditional wood parquet floors or mosaics.
How do you attach plywood to a subfloor?
- Step 1: Remove Old Flooring. It may seem obvious, but the first step to adding a second layer to your subfloor is to remove the old flooring. …
- Step 2: Remove Underlayment. …
- Step 3: Decide on Plywood. …
- Step 4: Acclimate Plywood. …
- Step 5: Install Plywood. …
- Step 6: Keep in Mind.
