First time laying laminate

[Turn5]

Going to start laying some laminate flooring this weekend in the living room. The floor at the moment is concrete with 20x20 cm tiles on top. Not sure what material they are made from, sort of plastic like, but they are about 2-3mm thick and well stuck down. The floor seems to be pretty level, apart from a few areas where the tiles are missing (pics below).

So questions are,

1. Will I need to level the few small areas where the tiles are missing if there is only a few mm difference?

2. The flooring I've bought has an attached form backer, am I still best laying some sort of underlay for laminate first? If so what kind is best?

http://db.tt/2jSQ4dim

Thanks

 

[alan333]

Yes, level the floor first. I've done this with a small area where my last underlay insulation board was slightly thinner, and it hasn't shown any movement in 3 years. I used layers of cut cardboard - like from a cornflake box, not the corrugated stuff, it'll flatten out over time.

Not too sure what form backer your laminate has, but the last thing you want it to do is click when you walk on it, or be uneven. That, as far as I can see, is the purpose of the underlay. It also stops the laminate from sticking and allows the whole floor to "float" with expansion etc. If your floor is fairly even I'd say you'll get away with the cheap foam underlay.

 

[Turn5]

Thanks for the info. The laminate has a thin green foam backer. It's this stuff https://www.goldenselect.ca/en/laminate/french-oak. Will I still need some sort of damp proof underlay?

 

[dazlight]

Yes you will I'd guess looking at the picture. Does your floor have a existing dpm under it.