Basement Finish Flooring Questions

Users who are viewing this thread

ManCave

New Member
Messages
22
Reaction score
0
Points
1
Location
Columbus, OH
I am finally getting to finish flooring on my basement project and I had a few quick questions.

First some background. I have 1" XPS insulation against the concrete floor with 5/8" OSB on top of that. Half of the space will be laminate or cork flooring and the other half will be carpet.

I was just wondering what type of underlayment I should put down under the cork/laminate? I assume something WITHOUT a vapor barrior? Am I right? I was thinking I would use this foam underlayment.

http://www.lumberliquidators.com/ll/c/Dream-Home-Foam-Underlayment-Dream-Home-HF/10012844

I am also assuming I don't want any type of carpet pad that has a vapor barrier. Is this also correct? I was just planning on getting basic carpet pad.

Any info or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
 

Dana

In the trades
Messages
7,889
Reaction score
509
Points
113
Location
01609
Yes, you want to avoid putting anything with a vapor permeance less than 1-per above the OSB subflooring, since the 1" XPS runs about 0.8-1.2 perms, and does allow ground moisture to (very slowly) migrate upward. As long as you don't block or severely impede the drying path to the interior, the OSB will be fine.

The R-value of the carpet is also sometimes an issue, since you need the OSB to stay above the interior air's dew point in summer (which is higher in summer than in winter.) With 1" of XPS you'll be fine in Columbus OH with thinner rugs, but a deep shag could be insulating enough to create mold conditions underneath. Be careful about deep cushy carpet underlayments too the R-values of the layers add up.
 
Top
Hey, wait a minute.

This is awkward, but...

It looks like you're using an ad blocker. We get it, but (1) terrylove.com can't live without ads, and (2) ad blockers can cause issues with videos and comments. If you'd like to support the site, please allow ads.

If any particular ad is your REASON for blocking ads, please let us know. We might be able to do something about it. Thanks.
I've Disabled AdBlock    No Thanks