Carpets, Lino & Flooring

should I/how to use plywood or hardboard to level floorboard planks for carpetting?

Anonymous user 23/02/2024 - 3.05 PM

the floorboards in my bedroom are slightly uneven and im going to have 20mm plush carpet on 11mm pu dreamwalk underlay. Ive read material and watched some youtube videos saying that you should plane or sand any raised plank edges. Im working to a tight budget and time constrictions,im going to need a carpet fitter to lay the underlay and carpet, but i just want to keep costs down by prepping the floorboards first, so im wondering if: 1. instead of sanding down/planing the edges, can i just nail down sheet material 3-4mm over the boards? Or will the underlay and carpet be resilient enough to not show these slightly raised edges? 2. which material is best-plywood or hardboard? 3. if hardboard, should it be textured side up or smooth side up? 4. does the underlay need to be adhered to the sheeting, and if so, to the textured or smooth side if its hardboard? 5. should carpet grippers be fixed on top of the sheets or should they be left in place and the sheets cut to join up to the edge of the grippers? I feel that with a sheet, and then underlay, and then carpet, then the carpet will not tuck under the edge of the skirting when it comes to fitting. Or does it not have to? Thankyou for any advice on these matters

Effortless Floors

Rating: 5 out of 5

5/5529 reviews

Manchester

Hello, 1. A thick carpet like that with an 11mm underlay will hide any minor floorboard issues in a bedroom easily. 2.hardboard is the easiest to fit DIY but neither are nice materials to work with and it's not a job anyone enjoys. If you feel you need to though, use hardboard and nail away until level with no bumps. 3. Smooth side up. 4. Underlay just goes onto the hardboard as if it were the floor boards. Nothing changes at all, smooth side up for the hardboards. 5. Hardboard up to the skirting board if you chose that route. The grippers can go on top without any issues. The thickness of hardboard is almost nonexistent. The carpet will still tuck in between the grippers and skirting just like it should do. The carpet doesn't need to go under the skirting, if there's a gap, it'll still be able to be used but isn't necessary. Holmes Carpets

Answered19 October 2016

Like

11

---

Anonymous user

to be honest if the floor is slightly uneven and your tight budget the cheapest and quickest way by far is to just plane and sand off the edges even if you paid the fitter a little bit extra to do it for you it would still be cheaper than hardboard

Answered7 October 2016

Like

3

---