You need a vapour barrier then the cushion and then the floor.

Before you do that you will need to have the subfloor flattened. You need to specify the work to be done/paid for when you higher the installer.

Personally I would look at 3mm cork. It is much stiffer than felt. Felt will feel bouncy under foot...especially when it gets to 3mm thickness.

Thank you SJ! Why would I need a vapor barrier for concrete? Is there a less expensive option for the cork? I appreciate your advice!

Concrete always needs a vapour barrier. And with terrazzo as the original floor, this is a strong indicator your home is too old to have a vapour barrier integrated into the slab. That means you MUST have a vapour barrier or your laminate is almost guaranteed to be ruined within a 2-5 years...

As for inexpensive and 'warm'...your looking at the cheapest stuff the Earth can create for warmth: cork.

The Felt you are looking at = noise reducer. The word 'insulation' is split into to different categories. In the flooring industry we have two options: acoustic insulation (noise) and THERMAL insulation (temperature). And 'no', they don't always work both ways.

Cork and rubber (the black round things on your car) do both. Felt does not.

How cold is 'cold' in your area? In Canada we discuss temperatures in the 'minuses' for winter...fall...and spring.

Thank you for the explanations. Home was built in ‘58. I’m in south central US. We’ll see single digit temps for the first time this week. The homes here are not insulated well at all. Previous owners enclosed a storage room off of the carport and turned it into a laundry room. The drain pipes for the kitchen and laundry room are actually outside the brick exterior with a 4” gap between brick and pipes. Of. course it freezes. Just incredible. We don’t have cold as you know it.

This is becoming a much different project thank I envisioned. I expected the cushion between the wood and the concrete would fill in any slight differences in height.

I thought Terrazzo was crushed marble, polished, like floors in churches.

Thank you very much, I understand this a lot better.

Flatten it, vapor barrier, cork then laminate.

Marion

Terrazzo is what you are showing in your last pic. Yours happens to be made from broken marble/tile...but still considered a form of terrazzo. Believe it or not it is considered valuable to many. But to others it is uncomfortable and cold. You might be thinking of travertine which is a natural product that is considered a marble but is made in a different way. There are rivers in Italy that are famous for their travertine = often a warm peach or flesh tone.

Thank you very much. I know some highly value it and with pets it’s easy to care for. I’d like to preserve the terrazzo in the den although cover it. Would a low pile wall to wall be a better choice? There has been carpet there before acc’d to what seems to be glue stains at the edges.

This is the front entry hall. The marble, being porous, has stained over the years. Any suggestions on removing the stains?

Thanks again SJ.

M