Different Types Of Subfloor

Every homeowner is guaranteed to have a subfloor in their home, whether they know it or not. This is because the subfloor is literally the floor beneath your current flooring and in the basis of future flooring. It can be made of any number of materials, depending on the way that your home was designed rather than how many types of flooring or work that has been done on it ever since. This is extremely important when it comes to installing solid wood flooring because it determines the method of installation.

The installation of solid wood flooring is only made possible by the type of subfloor that is underneath it. For example, it you want to install solid wood flooring in your concrete basement then you would have to float it or glue it rather than nailing it because the latter would be impossible. You cannot get nails for solid wood flooring through concrete.

There are four common types of subfloor:

• Concrete/cement
• Plywood –

This is literally a panel of three or more thin layers of wood, each of which has alternating grain directions. This is then bonded with glue for a strong material.

• Particleboard –

This is wood that is made of wood particles such as sawdust, shavings and chips. It has a high density and is cheaper than solid wood subfloors. However, it is also less durable.

• Tongue & Groove Floorboards –

These are traditional floorboards.

If you are installing solid wood flooring then you will need to remove any tiles or carpets that are already in place because they do not make good subfloors underneath the installed material. You must have the old subfloor exposed before installing your new flooring.