Flooring question

[forgeblast]

Hi folks, Looking at an engineered snap and click floating floor for our modified A-frame. This would be in the second floor.
We found a color that works for the room along with the fact that it needs to come out into the hallway were we have a knotty pine great room.
Its at LL (Lumber Liquidators). I was reading reviews on their underlayment and was not impressed by what other pros have said about it.
We would like to get a high quality underlayment as we are only going to do this once. Noise reducing if possible.
I have see products like Silent Stride but really do not know too much about it. Are there any that people can recommend. It will be going over a plywood base then the flooring once we rip out the carpet (last carpet in the house!!!).
This is the flooring we are looking at. BELLAWOOD Engineered 1/2" x 3-1/2" Acacia Quick Click Engineered Hardwood Flooring | Lumber Liquidators Flooring Co.

Thank you for any help, Appreciate it.

 

[EddieWalker]

No direct experience with Bellawood or Lumber Liquidators. I've just heard too many complaints about them to give them a try. I've always felt that if you stick with the bigger name brands, you have a better chance of getting a quality product.

 

[dalola]

Can't comment specifically to the product you're looking at, but we put down Bellawood (solid wood American Cherry) from Lumber Liquidators about 8 years ago in our great room, product is fantastic with 100 yr warranty on the finish, and LL had a great price & good to work with.

For what it's worth...

 

[LS Tractor Owner]

I have purchased probably 2500-3000 sq ft of flooring from Lumber Liquidators. All of it has held up remarkably well. The higher priced underlayment from LL is good. I have used the cheaper stuff and it worked for what it was designed to do. My neighbor paid twice the price for underlayment from a flooring company and it was identical stuff.

The Bellawood floors are very good. Very durable. Just make sure you get enough to complete the project when you order. Sometimes it could be 6 months before your style goes back into production / stock.

 

[herm0016]

quality underlayment is good, but the real issue with a loud floor is a very very flat subfloor.

 

[KennyG]

In general I like engineered flooring. I've used bamboo and found it performs very well. As far as noise control the underlayment is key. I own a condominium and the rules require cork underlayment, other types are not acceptable.

 

[forgeblast]

Thanks everyone, We have a few smaller flooring retailers around us, home depot lowes and LL.
Does anyone have any experience with silent stride or an underlayment that they like for under engineered flooring?
Thanks

 

[nyone]

If you have a flat quiet sub floor your floor will be quiet. Engineered flooring just feels fake and crappy to me. Foam underlayment just adds to this.

I put the cheapest engineered flooring I could find in our back porch and didn't even use underlayment. It's quiet and not squeaky. 2x10x10' floor joists 16OC with 3/4 sub floor.

 

[rgr33]

I put down a foam underpayment in my wife’s sewing room and it really cut the noise down. I have been in homes where they skipped that step foe economical reasons, and later regretted it.

 

[GeneV]

I laid down bamboo in my basement. I think I paid something like $2.50 / sq ft at the time at Home Depot. Going on 4 years now, still looks brand new, this wonderful flooring.



There are different types of bamboo flooring, this stuff we got is strand woven, the claim is that it's way harder than oak flooring.

I found underlayment prices to be way too high at home improvement stores, I had better luck on Amazon. I got a 3-in-1, 3mm thick. Like I said, it went in the basement, on concrete. Being upstairs, you'll just need a 2-in-1.

 

[dlctcg]

I do not have any experience silent stride as our supplier doesn't carry it & we usually only use those types of underlayments when a moisture barrier is required (mostly in basements here).

Being you are above grade / not on concrete I would at least look in to Cork underlayment (as others have mentioned). Cork underlayment has good sound deadening qualities, it is natural (not recycled materials"), renewable , naturally water resistant (not a vapor barrier), & it is anti-bacterial as well as anti-fungal. ( think allergies). I'd at least look at it...

 

[kenmac]

I have never bought from LL
Lumber Liquidators Flooring Class Action Settlement | Top Class Actions

Lumber Liquidators Flooring Lawsuits

Perhaps they have changed their practices

 

[PILOON]

On flooring:
Had a rental whereby the pump went wild and flooded the house for 6 days.
All the nice antique birch flooring in the living area was totally scrapped (kept it for firewood) but he kitchen area (HD laminated) survived untouched.
Insurance claim was in the $30k range, but that kitchen area with HD flooring survived unscathed.
LOL, I'll add the kitchen flooring was a 'deal' purchase to boot! (like an inventory balance).
All to say that there is major differences in that engineered flooring.
Go for the highest quality! It is not all about the top surface but also about what is underneath to support the surface finish.

 

[4570Man]

A cork backed vinyl floor would be my preference. I have real hickory hardwood in my house and if I built another house it’s probably what I would use. I’ve used it on a few jobs and it’s fast to install, isn’t affected by moisture, doesn’t get scratched by pets or furniture, cleans easily, and doesn’t feel cheap like most of the fake hardwoods.

 

[Dftodd]

We just replaced our floors about 6 months ago. Can't remember the brand. We are on a slab, so we needed a vapor barrier as well.

The original floor was done on the cheap before we bought the house. We weren't very impressed with it. On removal we realized why we weren't happy with it. They just put down some thin plastic half a##ed and some thin packing foam. Triple the recommended gap around the edges as well.

The underlayment we used was a thick fiber blend with plastic on one side for the vapor barrier. Purchaed it from home depot for around $0.60 a square foot. The fiber looked similar to denim or the moving blankets you see for sale at uhaul.

That stuff made the floor. We went with a cheap flooring about $0.80 per square foot since we were planning on selling the house. But with the high quality underlayment, you can't tell.

The old stuff echoed so bad, and traveled. When I installed the new flooring, I removed the baseboards. Then ran the flooring to the edge of the drywall. This gave me the spacing I needed around the edges. Then installed the baseboards tight to the floor.

This way no corner round needed to be used except for at the exterior doors. And it gave it a really clean look Plus, the floor stays put and doesn't travel.

 

[forgeblast]

Thanks folks, I think Ill take our sample pieces and see if we can find someplace other then LL to buy from.
We liked the engineered hardwood because it wasn't as slippery as the vinyl and we need to run it to the head of our stairs.
I have used other snap, click but as this is the master bed room we want to make sure its done right and done nice.
The flooring will run away from the baseboards vs parallel to them as the flooring needs to go into a hall and a closet.