Using Subfloor As Finished Floor

An underlayment is a thin layer of material sandwiched between two other materials.

Using subfloor as finished floor.

Just under the visible floor covering is a layer of some kind of material usually only about 1 4 or 1 2 inch thick. Plywood is usually used as subfloor today. Its purpose is to provide a smooth flat surface for the floor covering. Uncovered pine subflooring appeals to recycling enthusiasts as well as fans of distressed wood.

Subflooring is the rough unfinished floor beneath a finished floor sometimes referred to as a blind floor. It s used to help insulate absorb sound and reduce wear on your floor. Not bad for any finished wood floor. The subfloor is the foundation beneath finish flooring materials.

In many older houses the pine subfloor was the only floor and it held up well. As important as economy is even more important to me is the way the product is installed. There are many types sizes and configurations of plywood. Over the subfloor there is an underlayment that smooths out the subfloor and provides a flat level surface for the finished flooring surface.

Unlike the subfloor this is not a structural element and it provides no strength to the floor. On wood frame floors the subflooring provides a continuous structural surface over the floor joists. A humped threshold from the hall to the bathroom for example. In basements and in homes with slab on grade foundations the subfloor may simply be a concrete slab.

During home construction a builder installs subflooring to provide a solid level foundation for finished flooring such as tile wood vinyl or linoleum. Drawbacks include a thinner less insulated floor and a less durable surface than other flooring types. This is the finished visible flooring surface such as hardwood planks carpeting ceramic tile or vinyl. A subfloor is a wooden structural substrate to which durable finished flooring is attached.

Yes you can use pine subfloors as primary flooring. I will not use any flooring that floats simply because you need to make clumsy transitions from it to another type of floor.