Carpet underlay for concrete floor

fifthofwhisky

What would you suggest as a carpet underlay for carpet on a concrete floor? The concrete floor is at ground level (lounge/dining room) and has no thermal insulation under the concrete due to the age of the property. I've read that PU is comfortable but not durable enough for high traffic areas (this house is open plan so there is through traffic). I prefer natural materials but not sure how that would be on concrete. There is a DPM on the floor so moisture coming up should not be a problem. When we had carpet before the current wooden flooring Dunlopillo(?) rubber underlay was below it. On removing that carpet the underlay had broken down, though it was a quite some years old.

neilmcl

Cloud 9 cumulus would be my choice.

ka7e

I've used wool felt underlay, but only in bedrooms so far. My carpet fitter hadn't used it before and was quite impressed, though it was more difficult to cut than rubber or PU underlay. He said that was probably why it wasn't used more as it took longer to fit. It has very good insulation and doesn't break down - the old stuff it replaced was basically dust!

fifthofwhisky

I'll probably have to use PU when I carpet the stairs later this year. I also used wool felt (Wilsons) for the bedrooms and am pleased with it. A strong and sharp pair of shears will cut it. I'm leaning toward natural fibres with the only concern being cleanup after spills (admittedly PU is better because it does not allow fluids to penetrate). Either option will be warmer and quieter than the current flooring.

BoxerfanUK

I recently had this fitted.... very pleased with it.  Have used Cloud 9 cumulus 11mm in the past https://www.carpet-underlay-shop.co.uk/collections/pu-foam-underlay/products/plushwalk-12mm-carpet-underlay-from-3-05-per-m2

fifthofwhisky

Thanks BoxerfanUK, that was also recommended to me. How long have you had it installed? I'm curious to know how it performs with furniture marks (compression) over time.