ᐅ Which type of flooring is best for a basement music room with underfloor heating?
Created on: 15 Jan 2025 13:02
D
dergert
Hello dear forum,
We are planning to create a 30sqm (323sqft) hobby room in the basement of our new build. The floor slab is insulated with 14cm (5.5 inches) thick XPS insulation, and the walls also have external insulation. We have planned underfloor heating, but now the question arises about the suitable floor covering. The architect suggested tiles for efficiency reasons, but since the room will be used as a music room and home theater, tiles are not really an option for me.
I am trying to find out which type of flooring offers a good compromise between acceptable thermal conductivity and good acoustic properties.
My preference would definitely be parquet flooring, optimized somewhat for efficiency—meaning as thin as possible, glued down, with no impact sound insulation. Or would PVC, laminate, or something similar be more suitable?
My problem is that I have no idea and cannot calculate how much of a difference in heating costs there will be at the end of the year, for example, between tiles and parquet. Could someone possibly help me with this or explain how to approach such a calculation?
Thank you very much in advance for your support!
We are planning to create a 30sqm (323sqft) hobby room in the basement of our new build. The floor slab is insulated with 14cm (5.5 inches) thick XPS insulation, and the walls also have external insulation. We have planned underfloor heating, but now the question arises about the suitable floor covering. The architect suggested tiles for efficiency reasons, but since the room will be used as a music room and home theater, tiles are not really an option for me.
I am trying to find out which type of flooring offers a good compromise between acceptable thermal conductivity and good acoustic properties.
My preference would definitely be parquet flooring, optimized somewhat for efficiency—meaning as thin as possible, glued down, with no impact sound insulation. Or would PVC, laminate, or something similar be more suitable?
My problem is that I have no idea and cannot calculate how much of a difference in heating costs there will be at the end of the year, for example, between tiles and parquet. Could someone possibly help me with this or explain how to approach such a calculation?
Thank you very much in advance for your support!
dergert schrieb:
The foundation slab is insulated with 14cm (5.5 inches) thick XPS insulation, and the walls also have exterior insulation.At that point, the flooring only affects the decimal places.N
nordanney15 Jan 2025 13:25dergert schrieb:
However, the architect mentioned more of a cost difference of a few hundred euros.Haha. I currently heat my 120sqm (1300 sq ft) with underfloor heating powered by wood for about €375. If I switched to tiles, all heating costs would disappear.What the architects are saying is complete nonsense.
Nida35a schrieb:
By that point, the flooring only affects the decimal placesThat sounds good. 🙂 So I guess I'll actually go with wood.
So it doesn't make much difference whether I choose a particularly thin parquet floor or skip the impact sound insulation? The latter should be dispensable in a basement room anyway, right?
N
nordanney15 Jan 2025 13:29dergert schrieb:
So it doesn't make much difference whether I choose a particularly thin parquet or skip the impact sound insulation? The latter should be dispensable in a basement room anyway, right?No, it doesn't. You can go for cheaper two-layer parquet. But please make sure to glue it down.nordanney schrieb:
Haha. I heat my 120sqm (1,292 sq ft) floor with underfloor heating for currently 375€. If I switched to tiles, all heating costs would disappear.
What the architects are saying is complete nonsense.Okay, thanks for your feedback. I just wonder how she came to advise me so strongly against a wooden floor. "You'll be heating yourself into bankruptcy," her exact words.
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wiltshire15 Jan 2025 13:54dergert schrieb:
The architect suggested tiles for efficiency reasons, but since the room will be used as a music room and home theater, tiles are actually not an option for me.Choose the acoustically best flooring and install the underfloor heating pipes in the wall instead of the floor. Surface heating systems don’t necessarily have to be installed in the floor. Also, hardwood flooring tends to be acoustically hard. Cork and carpet greatly improve acoustics, but they reduce the heating performance.Similar topics