Look Beneath The Surface

As most people know, Altro invented PVC safety flooring and manufactures the largest range of this product type in the world. Since its invention over 50 years ago, safety flooring has come a long way. It’s now available in a vast array of colours, textures and finishes meaning that practically any design effect can be achieved. In fact, Altro has just launched its first wood effect safety flooring, Altro Timbersafe, which was previewed at the recent Harrogate trade show.

But that is only part of the story. What is perhaps less well known is that there are a number of materials available which, although generally hidden from view, are well worth consideration if you are looking to solve a particular problem on site.

Underlays are an important factor in the success of the completed flooring installation as they offer benefits to both the installer and end user. There are a number of products on the market which offer different performance benefits. Altro markets a range of underlays, all in sheet form - two PVC and one rubber. All can be used under PVC and rubber floor coverings. Confused? Me too. Here’s the explanation.

Altro Everlay A and B are both made from PVC and are fibreglass reinforced for added stability. These products are designed to be loose laid over problem substrates including those where damp, grease or existing vinyl can create difficulties.

Altro Everlay A is 1.2 mm thick and is available in sheets two metres wide by whatever length you need (within reason). All of our floor coverings (with the exception of resins or rubber tiles) can be laid on it with a choice of adhesives depending on the situation on site.  The product also carries a stand alone warranty, which means that in can be used underneath products not of our manufacture without the warranty for the Altro Everlay being compromised.

At 4mm thick, Altro Everlay B has the added advantage of sound absorbency and gives good decibel reduction from both impact and airborne noise (echo). It is also cushioned and therefore useful in areas where injury from impact with the floor (or wall for that matter) is a concern, for example in a nursery or infant school.

The material has also been used for many years to line the walls and floors in the isolation units of prisons, mental health environments and other areas where individuals may seek to harm themselves deliberately. In this situation, a typical specification would be to fix the underlay to the floor and walls before covering with a rubber sports flooring such as Altro Ramflex.

Although these types of PVC underlay are predominantly loose laid, there are occasions where the obvious course of action is to stick it to the substrate before adhering the floor covering to prevent vandalism or to stop the effects of gravity for wall installations.

Finally, Altro 1101 is an example of an acoustic underlay made from recycled rubber. It is around one metre wide and is sold in rolls from 10 metres upwards. The product is designed to be fixed to the subfloor in all cases prior to the flooring being installed on top. This one can be used under Altro’s Mondopave rubber tiles or the wide range of highly decorative PVC wood effect planking that we also market.

This type of underlay has excellent sound absorbing properties and is ideal for areas where “quietening” is required, for example in blocks of flats, student housing, hospitals, nursing homes, classrooms or any other areas where noise levels give cause for concern or a softer feel to the flooring is called for.

So until next time, if ever you feel like banging your head against a brick wall to solve a site problem, make sure you’ve used one of Altro’s underlays first.

This article first appeared in the November 2006 edition of the CFJ.