Rugs, Carpets and Carpeting - insulate family room slab

hi, i am replacing the rug in my family room that is on a slab. it is freezing in that room and i heard of placing a foam insulation board prior to putting the padding then rug...has anyone done that and or has it worked? anyone with a better suggestion?

thank you

joe

only two things right off hand wrong with that, one is most foam board is relativly soft and might not take traffic well, the other is the difference in height the floor will end up making a trip hazard entering and exiting the room. other than those two i like the idea.

life begins when the kids leave home and the dog dies

There are under carpet radiant heating pads available. There are many carpet cushion options available. Some have high R value. Rubberized jute provides good insulation. Prime urethane foam insulative cushion provides even greater. Carpet Pads, Cushions & Insulating Underlayments (http://www.askthebuilder.com/151_Carpet_Pads_Cushions_amp_Insulating_Underlayments.shtml)

Hi Joe, I will assume you are in cold country:). Was the FR always a FR or was it a garage that was converted? It will determine if there is possible any insulation under the slab. There are a few ways the slab could have been constructed, and knowing will help determine what you should do.

If you have any details let us know.

If you can adjust for the height change as Speedwrench mentioned, they do make a high density foam board that may hold up better, but check with the supplier for your application. It may require a layer of plywood over it as well.

I'll let the rug and carpet people take it from here.

HH
Bud

Here's a product you might think about. It's actually been around for decades but making a comeback in part due to it's "green" nature. I'm planning to build a house and at this point I'm pretty commited to using it as the exterior sheating.

Homasote Frequently Asked Questions (http://www.homasote.com/faq.aspx)

Pad are never a good idea in a basement.

Here's another product that might work for you:

BARACADE 35 Pk. 2 Ft x 2 Ft OSB Insulated Sub Flooring Tile - H2424OVRX at The Home Depot (http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?jspStoreDir=hdus&catalogId=10053&productId=100388255&navFlow=3&keyword=subflooring&langId=-1&searchRedirect=subflooring&storeId=10051&endecaDataBean=com.homedepot.sa.el.wc.catalog.beans.EndecaDataBean%404c2e40f&ddkey=Search)