Most people give very little consideration to choosing underlay at the time of installing new carpet, however this unseen element plays a huge role in determining how long your carpet will stay looking and feeling great for years to come.

What is carpet underlay?

Carpet underlay is sandwiched between your floor and the carpet, giving carpet both its softness and form. Apart from providing extra comfort underfoot, underlay also creates a layer of insulation against cold bare floors, adds extra noise absorption and can assist in minimising floor damage from furniture indents or scratches. Lastly and more importantly, underlay can save you money, by reducing significant heat loss, therefore keeping your energy bills to a minimum and keeping the home warmer in winter.

Why use Carpet Underlay?

Carpet underlay improves your underfoot comfort, as the crushing forces of walking on the pile are absorbed and bounce back, keeping the carpet’s overall form and look. A good quality underlay can help mask minor flooring imperfections such as uneven or rough surfaces, both protecting unnecessary additional wear on your carpet and making it much smoother to walk on.

Types of carpet underlay

Foam, rubber and felt are the most common traditional underlay options, and these come in various qualities, from low cost to premium offerings. In addition to different levels of thickness and density, there are other lifestyle considerations to take into account, such as environmentally friendly, asthma and allergy-friendly underlay options on offer, helping you increase the health of your home environment.

How to choose the right underlay

You wouldn’t buy just any carpet for your home, and the same should go for choosing the carpet underlay. When looking for new carpet for your home, underlay can considerably enhance your chosen carpet, by giving it additional texture, depth and comfort.

When choosing your underlay, it’s important to consider how the room will be used, to ensure your underlay will adequately stand the test of time. If the room will have a lot of foot traffic, heavy furniture or a lot of wear and tear, you should really consider investing in a higher quality carpet underlay.

Low density underlay tends to be less expensive, however it is also a lower quality choice. This may save money in the short term but over time it could mean needing to replace floor coverings more frequently as they don’t hold up as well.

In order to get the best out of your carpet and underlay, make sure you vacuum regularly and factor in regular professional cleaning to remove unhealthy irritants, bacteria and allergens.

It might seem a bit far-fetched, but installing the right carpet can really make a big improvement in your daily quality of life, especially in these times when so many of us are working and schooling at home.

One reason for this is that carpets are great at absorbing and softening harsh sounds, creating a quieter, more harmonious indoor environment for everyone in the home. Installing good quality carpet with the right kind of underlay is the only way to eliminate excessive noise generated by floor impacts, such as footsteps, chairs scraping, and objects being dropped. This is particularly noticeable in homes where children running, jumping and playing can greatly contribute to ambient noise levels.

Carpet and underlay also absorb sound reverberation; which is the technical term for how long sounds last within a room. Uncarpeted homes are generally much noisier, with background sound echoing around and impairing communication, particularly when you are trying to talk on the phone or via video conference. Soft furnishings such as curtains, rugs and furniture in a room can greatly help with sound absorption, however by far the most effective solution is wall-to-wall carpet with a good quality underlay.

According to a fact sheet by the Carpet Institute of Australia, acoustic consultants, Graeme E Harding and Associates (GEHA) said: “The installation of carpet or similar types of floor covering is the only method available for eliminating excessive noise generated by floor impacts. Carpeted floors can result in a reduction in noise of over 20 decibels2.”

The type of underlay used is also important: “The pile structure of carpet also helps to control reverberation. A material’s potential for reverberation control is quantified by its Noise Reduction Coefficient (NRC) and/or by its Weighted Sound Reduction Coefficient, αw (pronounced ‘alpha w’). A typical broadloom carpet has an NRC of 0.35 and will absorb approximately 35% of sound that strikes it. The NRC rating of carpet is directly proportional to the thickness of the floor covering. If the carpet is installed with an underlay its NRC rating will almost double.”

In addition to the obvious noise reduction, carpet also gives a feeling of comfort and warmth that makes working from home so much more enjoyable. Sitting at a desk all day in an uncarpeted room can be quite cold, and can leave you feeling quite stiff and irritable. Carpet automatically makes a room more insulated and therefore cosier, meaning you won’t get cold feet and might even be able to leave your shoes off, for a more relaxed and comfortable working environment.