We have watched floating floors grow in popularity for about a decade. At first they were pretty crummy. A drop or two of water and most floating floors would expand exponentially leaving buckles and twists in their wake.
The reason: The first floating floors were cheap laminated surfaces affixed to an even cheaper particleboard backing. The particleboard was so inferior that when dropped into a bucket of water the material would increase in size by 20 percent within minutes.
Additionally, floating floors have become known as “noisy” floors because of their movement when walked upon.
Although most floating floors are still laminated on particleboard, the quality of the backing has substantially improved.
One company is offering its floating floor material with yet a third layer. Layer one is still the flooring surface, layer two is improved particleboard, and the new layer, layer three, is a foam coating that softens the feel of the finished floor.
And there’s a bonus, as well. The new foam backing quiets traffic noise.
Morris & James Carey
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