Hardwood floorquestions

[pkmicro]

Hi,

I would like an opinion from some expert on installing 3/4" Solid Oak Hardwood floor. I want to replace my 15 yr. old carpet with it. Is if it's a good idea to leave the padding and put the felt paper on top of the padding and then install the hardwood on top of the felt paper? using the padding as underlayment or cushion to reduce the noise. It seems to me that the padding should help reduce the noise when walking on it. But I am not sure. TIA

[roger61611]

I am not your expert but I would bet whatever's in my wallet that the carpet padding is taken up and the new floor is nailed directly to the existing floor, whatever it may be. I have seen in old houses a layer of what looked like builder's felt or tar paper or something between the subfloor and finish floor layers. Padding I think would introduce variability which over time would cause the nails to loosen and squeak.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Not a good idea. It will introduce some flex in the flooring, padding will deteriorate over time and turn to a powder. If it was such a good idea, it would have been done by now.

[pkmicro]

Ok, Thanks. I will remove the padding then.

[Abe]

------- Yes. A clean dry solid surface is necessary.

[Goedjn]

You mean like this?

(Unless you're building a dance floor or a dojo, don't do this. If you ARE building a dance floor or a dojo, throw away the old padding, and use a product designed for the use.)