Impact sound insulation vinyl - Which vinyl floor underlayment to take?

A lot of people treat the topic of impact sound insulation vinyl too carelessly! Following the slogan: Afterwards you see nothing of the vinyl insulation anyway. The right vinyl floor underlayment plays an essential role. Again and again, vinyl floor buyers ask themselves whether a vinyl floor underlayment is necessary at all. And if so, which impact sound insulation should be taken for the selected vinyl floor. That's because the differences in vinyl impact sound insulation are not obvious. Finding the right vinyl flooring underlayment is not difficult. Therefore, here you will get the most important info about vinyl impact sound insulation.

What vinyl floor underlayments are there?

For an easier overview, here we list the most important vinyl underlayments on the market. Special impact sound insulation vinyl recommendations of some manufacturers remain unmentioned here. Therefore, please always read in the installation instructions whether you need to use a specific insulation. The warranty for the vinyl floor also depends on its correct use.

Not every impact sound insulation for vinyl is equally suitable. Therefore, read here:

The main types of vinyl floor underlayments in brief

PU heavy foam:
In addition to polyurethane, it also contains mineral fillers. That is why insulation rolls made of this material are heavy. This also benefits the particularly low thermal resistance for underfloor heating (see table below). At the same time, they achieve the best sound value improvements with their high inherent weight. The high compressive strength gives the resilient vinyl flooring the necessary firm base.
There are impact sound insulation for vinyl made of PU heavy foam in 3 variants:

• Decoupling impact sound insulation vinyl: excellent for perfect expansion and shrinkage of click vinyl, ideal for all click vinyl flooring where no special insulation is prescribed.
• Adhesive impact sound insulation vinyl: anti-slip effect of this insulation especially for floating installation under coverings such as wineo Purline organic floor for click or wineo design floor for click, adhesive top of the insulation fixes vinyl covering, some manufacturers apart from wineo recommend an anti-slip effect also for your vinyl floor
• Self-adhesive impact sound insulation for vinyl: special dry adhesive insulation for adhesive vinyl and design flooring planks allows floating installation of adhesive vinyl even on old flooring, replaces classic bonding

We can send you corresponding samples for the variants on request. We have a free sample service for this purpose. Simply select the appropriate sample here:

• planeo silence - Decoupling impact sound insulation
• wineo silent comfort - Adhesive impact sound insulation
• planeo silent stick - Self-adhesive impact sound insulation

Polystyrene boards:
Also known as Styrofoam, the lightweight among the insulations, moderate sound reduction, partly also advertised for vinyl flooring, rather heat insulating, therefore not ideal for underfloor heating

Latex insulation underlayment:
approximates properties of PU heavy foam, poor heat conduction, therefore not ideal with underfloor heating

Cork:
some cork manufacturers recommend roll cork also as insulation under vinyl, as a natural product available in very different qualities, in case of doubt get suitability for your vinyl floor in writing, cork has a heat insulating effect, therefore not ideal for underfloor heating

PE Foil:
PE foil is used as vinyl underlayment mainly to decouple and separate the vinyl floor from the subfloor, comes into question if the installation regulations do not require insulation

Thermal resistance in m2K/W (the lower, the better)

Is it possible to use the old impact sound insulation as vinyl floor underlayment?

Reusing old impact sound insulation is a good idea. Because it saves valuable resources such as money, material and labor. So why not leave the old insulation in place when switching to vinyl flooring? If you want to put vinyl flooring on top of old insulation, be sure it's suitable.

For example, many renovators are switching from laminate to vinyl. Some of the insulation under laminate is very different, such as fiberboard, XPS foam or PE foam underlayment. To make sure you can reuse your old insulation, follow these tips:

• Find out what insulation is under the old decking.
• Then check to see if the old insulation is approved in the installation instructions for the new vinyl flooring.
• Under no circumstances install another insulation double layer on top of the old impact sound insulation.
• Are you unsure whether you can use the old insulation for your new covering? If in doubt, ask a specialist. You are also welcome to write to us: info@planeo.de or call: +495222 960480.
• Do not use old insulation that is not approved for your new covering. A full vinyl, for example, always needs a very pressure-resistant underlayment, because the floor itself and also the click connection is elastic.

Is a vinyl floor underlayment even necessary?

Many people wonder whether impact sound insulation is necessary for vinyl flooring. This is because not every vinyl flooring manufacturer always clearly expresses whether they consider a underlayment necessary for their vinyl flooring.

Thus, some would like to install click vinyl without impact sound insulation, although from a technical point of view a vinyl impact sound insulation is necessary.

So, when is a vinyl underlayment necessary?

• Always use a vinyl an impact sound insulation when the manufacturer requires it. Because then he considers a vinyl underlayment also necessary. Usually, the manufacturer also recommends the right vinyl floor insulation. The installation instructions will then tell you how to use it. That is why you then also get a guarantee for the entire floor construction.
• Some vinyl flooring manufacturers do not say anything about whether vinyl flooring impact sound insulation is required. It may then be, they recommend at least a PE foil for decoupling. In this case, it is up to you to make the decision in favor of proper impact sound insulation for vinyl. Get the advice of an experienced vinyl flooring salesperson. However, you can also expect help from the vinyl flooring manufacturer's application engineering department.
• Whether vinyl underlayment is necessary, however, also depends on the type of vinyl flooring. For example, a vinyl floor with integrated impact sound insulation does not require a second insulation. One does not achieve a double impact sound effect with it. A Planeo solid vinyl for clicking, on the other hand, works ideally in combination with Planeo silence.

If the question remains open for you whether a vinyl floor underlayment is necessary, it is often due to the different local conditions. Because then other questions arise such as:

On which subfloor do you install the vinyl impact sound insulation?

Is there a difference whether the vinyl underlayment comes on screed, wooden subfloor or old floor coverings? In any case, all the different substrates have one thing in common: they must meet the requirements of the standard DIN 18365. Therefore, all of them have to do the following: They must be level, solid, dry and load-bearing.
Beyond these requirements the following also applies:

• On screed:
  Whether on cement screed, anhydrite screed or even asphalt screed. You can always lay a vinyl underlayment on it. If there is no recommendation to do so, at least a PE foil is mandatory as an alternative separating layer.
• On wooden subfloor:
  This can be old floorboards or rough sheet pile as well as OSB boards or even chipboard. The acoustic impact sound improvement of vinyl to the hollow-sounding wooden subfloor with a underlayment makes sense if you want to install a vinyl floor without integrated insulation. At the same time, decoupling helps you avoid problems caused by different expansion and contraction behavior.
• On dry screed:
  Here, gypsum fiberboards such as Fermacell dry screed or even lightweight concrete fulfill the load-bearing function of the floor. A good vinyl flooring underlayment behaves here as with screed and is preferable to a PE foil.
• On old floor coverings:
  The most common choice here is old tiles as vinyl flooring underlayment. Read more about vinyl on tiles here. Existing old floor coverings such as PVC, linoleum or parquet also often serve as a new substrate for vinyl flooring for clicking. In any case, these should be decoupled with impact sound insulation.

Is impact sound for vinyl even necessary if there are no rooms underneath?

Since impact sound mainly affects rooms below the room in question, as well as adjoining rooms, this question is justified. After all, the whole point of reducing impact sound is to minimize the noise for the adjacent rooms. So if these rooms do not exist, you can do without it, at least from this point of view.

However, reducing impact sound is not the only function of a vinyl floor underlayment. Therefore, the question arises:

What other functions does a vinyl underlayment perform besides reducing impact sound?

This is what a good impact sound insulation for vinyl can additionally do:

• Just as important as impact sound improvement is reducing walking noise for better room acoustics. It occurs directly in the room itself. So, the quieter a floor sounds when you walk on it, the more pleasant you will find it, making it an important feel-good factor.
• Decoupling, i.e. separating the vinyl floor from the subfloor by means of impact sound insulation, prevents interactions with other floor coverings, such as plasticizer migration. Then it also allows the vinyl to expand and shrink unimpeded, which is specific to the product.
• A subfloor may be level enough within the required standards. Still, you may see the slightest unevenness in the resilient vinyl flooring. This is called the "telegraph effect." In this case, impact sound insulation can conceal, smooth and even out in comparison with a pure foil.
• At the same time, it protects against joint fracture with the enormous compressive strength of 40t/sq m. Thus, the impact sound insulation for vinyl protects against breaking click joints and thus against joint formation.
• Vinyl flooring with impact sound insulation is easier on the joints and back. Because insulation under vinyl elastically cushions the step.

What do I have to consider if the vinyl floor is equipped with integrated impact sound insulation?

Since here the function of impact sound is already part of the flooring, there is no need for a second insulation underlayment. As a result, you do not achieve a double impact sound effect. However, a vinyl floor with integrated insulation often has a moisture sensitive HDF substrate. Therefore, you must additionally lay out a vapor barrier in the form of a PE foil for mineral subfloors. This will then protect the vinyl flooring from rising damp.

Does the type of vinyl flooring play a role in whether impact sound insulation vinyl is necessary?

A vinyl floor comes in different types. Accordingly, the requirements for impact sound insulation are different.

For example, a click vinyl can be solid vinyl. Other variants are vinyl with HDF carrier, vinyl with ISOCORE® as carrier or other so-called hardboards. In addition, there are also exotics such as vinyl with cork.

Here, too, the following applies: observe the specifications of the respective manufacturer. If impact sound insulation is already integrated, there is no need for additional insulation.

Unsure? Please feel free to use our individual consultation: info@planeo.de

Impact sound insulation for vinyl on underfloor heating - is that possible?

Some people attribute heat-insulating properties to vinyl flooring. This is only true to the extent that vinyl flooring feels warmer than some hard floor coverings such as laminate.

So additional impact sound insulation for vinyl seems questionable. After all, it resists the principle of heat conduction. It offers resistance, which is why we speak of thermal resistance.

Does a vinyl underlayment transmit the heat of the underfloor heating to the floor covering unhindered?

How well an impact sound insulation for vinyl conducts the heat of the underfloor heating can be seen above all in one value: It is the so-called thermal resistance according to DIN 12667 with the unit sq mK/W. The lower the value, the better the underfloor heating. The lower the value, the better the heat conduction. You have to add up all the layers laid on top of the screed. This is because a total of no more than 0.15 sq mK/W thermal resistance is permitted on a heating screed.

And this is how you calculate the thermal resistance for your vinyl on underfloor heating:

Value floor covering + value insulation = value floor structure (max. 0.15 sq mK/W).

So the heavy foam underlayments (see table above) have the best values on the market at 0.01 sq mK/W. In fact, there is hardly any measurable transmission resistance. The only thing that is minimally better is gluing vinyl into the wet bed.

In contrast, cork or polystyrene insulation mats are actually more heat-insulating. They have a high thermal resistance of 0.04-0.05 sq mK/W despite their low thickness. Therefore, vinyl underlayments made of cork or polystyrene can be recommended only conditionally in case of underfloor heating.

Impact sound insulation for vinyl: The most important facts in summary

Is impact sound insulation necessary for vinyl?

Choosing the right vinyl flooring underlayment is an important issue and should not be neglected. Manufacturer recommendations in product descriptions will tell you if impact sound insulation is necessary under vinyl. The type of vinyl flooring will also determine if a vinyl underlayment is necessary. For example, a vinyl floor with integrated impact sound insulation does not require a second insulation. This is because it does not create a double impact sound effect. The installation instructions will give you specific instructions on how to install the impact sound insulation for vinyl. Please note: The warranty for the vinyl floor also depends on the correct use of the insulation mat.

Which impact sound insulation is suitable for vinyl?

There is no blanket answer to this question. This is because there are different types of vinyl floor underlayment. These include PU impact sound insulation planeo silent stick as a self-adhesive insulation, silence comfort from wineo as an adhesive insulation mat and the decoupling underlayment planeo silence. Less suitable impact sound insulation for vinyl are polystyrene boards (styrofoam), latex insulation underlays, roll cork and PE foils.

What impact sound insulation under click vinyl?

To answer this question, you need to consider what type of click vinyl it is. This is because click vinyl flooring comes in different types: solid vinyl, vinyl with HDF backing, vinyl with ISOCORE® backing or vinyl with cork. That's why it's crucial to follow the manufacturer's specifications regarding the appropriate impact sound insulation for the respective vinyl floor. A click solid vinyl from planeo, for example, works ideally in combination with the pressure-resistant impact sound insulation planeo silence. This effectively reduces walking and impact sound and is suitable for underfloor heating. Click vinyl floors with integrated impact sound insulation, on the other hand, do not require additional insulation.

Impact sound insulation for vinyl on screed: What is there to consider?

Regardless of whether it is cement screed, anhydrite screed or asphalt screed, the most important thing is that the substrate is level, solid, dry and load-bearing. Follow the manufacturer's recommendation for the appropriate vinyl underlayment. If there are no specifications, use at least a PE foil as a separating layer.

What are the advantages of impact sound insulation for vinyl?

• It is easy on the joints and back. An insulation mat under the vinyl floors elastically cushions every step.
• Impact sound improvement and walking sound reduction for pleasant room acoustics.
• Impact sound insulation has a decoupling effect, i.e. it separates the vinyl floor from the subfloor. This prevents interactions with other floor coverings, such as plasticizer migration. In addition, the insulation allows vinyl to change its natural expansion and contraction behavior unhindered.
• Impact sound insulation can conceal, smooth and level out unevenness in the subfloor.
• Thanks to its compression-resistant properties, a vinyl underlayment protects the flooring from joint breakage and joint formation.