It's not that simple.the thickest one you can afford.
It's not that simple.
Where's it going? What do you want to prioritise?
Comfort, carpet longevity, thermal properties, sound.
For instance I use a thicker one in places like bedrooms for ultimate comfort.
A thick but higher density or even dual compound in places like livingrooms.
On stairs 8mm rubber crumb is my favourite.
Not all rubber underlay is bad, agree to avoid sponge rubber, but crumb rubber is fantastic for high traffic areas.there are three fourthings to consider :
1) material (these days the common default is the foam style - avoid rubber, it crumbles over time and can even stick to the floorboards which can be a PITA if you decide you want to expose them in future).
2) backing - paper, felt or weave. We went for paper (trying to avoid anything carpet moths like to nest/nibble)
3) density and resilience (how firm and bouncy it is)
4) thickness (which also contributes to the feeling)
You can have a thick low density underlay and it can feel worse than a thinner denser underlay. Really thick underlays can also cause problems if you're trying to fit a thick carpet into existing skirtings and reuse existing edge track / gripper. If the underlay is too thick you can have to increase the depth of gripper you use to get the carpet to anchor properly. Obviously there is a sweet spot, something too dense won't be squishy enough and at that point you might as well not bother having underlay.
We went for something middle of the range, reasonable density and moderate thickness. It's been great so far. Only done thick carpets with it though, still to lay the thinner carpet but hopefully it will work just as well with that one too.
Not all rubber underlay is bad, agree to avoid sponge rubber, but crumb rubber is fantastic for high traffic areas.
thanks. Interesting, I might get a sample of that and see how it fares as I'd like something for the office that handles heavy furniture and chair rollers etc.Tredaire Treadmore.
Treadaire System 10 is a 10mm version as well.thanks. Interesting, I might get a sample of that and see how it fares as I'd like something for the office that handles heavy furniture and chair rollers etc.
Most of my new house I did with Cumulus Cloud 9 11mm. It was highly recommended here many years ago, there is a large thread about underlay somewhere here. Its probably the best stuff I have ever used. The price of it has rocketed in the last year. Last time I did a room was about 20 months ago, and cost me about £45 for 15m square, its priced up at £90 now, possibly Covid related price hikes.
Best thing to do is get a decent sample and stand on it with some carpet and see what you think.