Much ado about underlay

Roaming

Hi All,

I would like to ask what is the best kind of underlay to get for;

• Bedroom
• Stairs and upstairs landing

We're getting Berber style carpets for both areas. We already have the Tredaire Royale/Dreamwalk (depending on where you buy the branding is different and colour as well, its either blue or purple) in two other bedrooms.

I have just realized though that we are paying a ridiculous price for it through the carpet company we bought the carpet through and can get it 70% cheaper from other places online. So I'm doing just that.

However, since I am going to be ordering separately, I might as well see if there are better options out there.

Underlay Wants;

Sound insulation (old house, now real sound insulation at all)
Good cushioning
Good Tog Rating


Thanks!

boots_babe

We've always used Cloud9 - depends on what your carpet shop is quoting, but remember to compare with the price you can buy it online youreslf. May be cheaper.

Roaming

Hi boots_babe,

Is it the Cloud 9 Cumulus you are talking about?

Any suggestions about where to buy online?

We bought underlay for other two rooms from CarpetRight@ 8.99/sq. m which is ridiculous! If I had only known before hand!

jayship

Google is my friend It will come up with loads of suppliers. I am also thinking of ordering online and have looked @ Cloud 9 Cumulus 11mm thickness. However various carpet shops recommended contract 8/10mm. Am confused now.

Often on the forum tradepriced.co.uk have been mentioned but there are many others and probably one near you.

UncleD

Hi,

You really need different underlays for the different rooms.

First, there are three types of underlay. Traditional sponge rubber, the newer PU foam or crumb rubber. Sponge rubber also comes in two types, textured flat or waffle. Avoid sponge rubber waffle as it doesn't last very long. Sponge rubber textured flat is extremely comfortable; PU foam is about as comfortable as sponge rubber textured flat, but is more durable; crumb rubber is made from reconstituted vehicle tyres, and is almost indestructible but not as comfortable as the other two. Clound 9 and Dreamwalk are both PU foam underlays.

For bedrooms you are normally interested in comfort, and durability is less of an issue. On the stairs, though, durability is incredibly important. The carpet on stairs get more punishment than anywhere else in the house, especially on the edge of the step.

So, if you want the very best underlay for stairs, use a crumb rubber underlay such as Duralay Treadmore (8mm thick) or Duralay System 10 (9.2mm thick).

Because PU foam is pretty durable too, you are already using one of the best ones for comfort which also does exceptionally well on the stairs - Tredaire Dreamwalk. It also meets your other needs, as it has one of the highest togs on the market (3.13 tog) and is extremely good for impact noise reduction (44dB). It is 11mm thick. Contract foam underlays would be even better for durability, though they cost more and don't have as good a tog rating.

Regarding noise, there are actually two types of sound insulation to worry about - impact noise (footfall as people walk on the carpet) and airborne noise (sound from TVs, talking, music etc). If the only thing you are worried about is impact noise then again Dreamwalk is one of the best. On the other hand, it's not as good at airborne noise, where the noise reduction is better the denser and thicker the materials used. For the best combination of airborne noise and impact noise, I'd use a dense sponge rubber textured flat underlay such as Tredaire Colours Red (11.4mm thick), or would put an additional specialist acoustic barrier mat underneath the Dreamwalk.

So, to summarise:
-best underlay for stairs is a crumb rubber such as Duralay Treadmore or System 10
-best underlay for comfort, airborne noise reduction and impact noise reduction is Tredaire Colours Red
- best underlay which combines comfort, durability, impact noise reduction, high tog and high impact noise reduction (but not as good for airborne noise) is Tredaire Dreamwalk, which will also match the underlay you've already put down.

There are several online companies that can sell you underlay direct. Tradepriced has been mentioned. I've used AllAboutUnderlay.co.uk, and they sell Dreamwalk at £2.86 per square metre incVAT.

Hintza

I bought ours from

http://www.carpet-underlays.co.uk/

After discussion with them we bought the Heavenly 10mm for stairs and all bedrooms. It was delivered next day I think (maybe 48 hours)