Make Sure Attic Is Sturdy Before Adding Laminate Floors

The ideal solution is to make sure the joist cavities below the attic floor sheathing are fully filled with bat fiberglass or blown in cellulose or styrofoam insulation.

Make sure attic is sturdy before adding laminate floors.

If your floors are bouncy and also noticeably sagging they probably are too weak. Strengthening attic joists for live loads by sistering. If the attic joists are not adequate one way to strengthen the floor for live loads is to sister the old joists. Adding a floor to an attic can increase storage space or create a new room.

Sistering is the process of adding a new joist next to each existing joist. Then you ll need to build a grid like structure that can hold up the plywood flooring. Sturdy flooring material can also make an excellent shelf. Boarding the attic floor will add to the structure s stability just as plywood does and give you a surface to store things on and walk on.

The methods we ll cover make floors stiffer but not necessarily stronger. If you have recently used laminate for your floors this material makes a beautiful veneer that can be applied over a piece of solid wood. Before you start make sure that your floor is designed to hold the weight of a floor and stored items. Not only will this minimize heat loss or gain in the attic but it will create a good sound deadening layer to muffle the sound of footsteps to the level below.

When you use the laminate to create a shelf it s also a great way to create a cohesive matching look in your home.