Hi All first post here and I'm looking for some advice on flooring.
When we had our kitchen done last year the fitter laid 18mm ply onto our floorboards with new laminte on top of that, to try and reduce the bounce in our floor without having to replace all of the floorboards which I was told would be a much more expensive option.
We are now working on our dining room which connects to the kitchen and have about a 1 inch step up into the kitchen. We are looking to replace the flooring in a similar manner (laminate) but it is a much larger room and I am wondering if this is the way to go. I have taken up the carpet in several areas and the existing boards, I think, date back to when the house was built (1939). I found out when I was removing some old pipe work which had been left in but was disconnected that they are fairly brittle and have come up in places.
Could anybody advise me of the best way to proceed? I think there are a few options:
1) Replace floorboards with reclaimed or new boards, I think this may be beyond our budgeet though.
2) Replace floorboards with some form of sheet material?
3) Patch up current floor (secure boards where they have come loose) and cover with sheet material.
Anybody have any suggestions on the best way to go? Or the pros and cons of each method, what type and thickness of board to use over or in place of floorboards? Or even another method that I haven't heard of?
Any help would be great,
Thanks!