Underlayment for Laminate

Q: We are considering buying laminate flooring in our 11 year old house. Should we go with attached underlayment or not? Will we have to put down underlayment boards before we start?
Thank you
A: Depending on the laminate you are looking at buying and where you play to install this floor can give you a few reasons why to choose one underlayment over another. Laminates which feature an attached underlayment have a few benefits: price and faster installation. Typically laminate with pre-attached underlayment will be a bit more economical than buying laminate and underlayment separately, but usually this underlayment is a thinner foam underlayment which does not suppress sound quite as well as other premium underlayments like Cork and Sound 6.
If you are buying separate underlayment, you will not need any specific board to lay down the underlayment, but you will install it across your floor before installing the laminate. For foam based underlays, this simply means rolling out the underlay, then installing the floor. In the case of cork, cork comes in 2′ x 3′ tiles which you will lay out, then install the floor.
The decision of what underlayment choice to use is based solely on what performance you want from your floor. If you want a floor which sounds more solid and does not have the “clicky” or hollow sound most laminate produces when walked over, use a separate premium underlayment – I personally prefer cork because it walks very nicely. Also, if you want the floor to have a bit less spring or movement when walking over the floor, also look into non-attached premium underlayment.
If you are looking to save a bit of money and this floor is going to be installed in a room where noise is not an issue, then a floor with attached underlayment is a great choice.