The short Answer: The primary use and benefit of cushion for your Luxury Vinyl Planks and flooring is to mitigate sound, and potentially adjust how the flooring feels on your feet.
Attached Cushions To Luxury Vinyl Planks
More and more, LVP products are being offered with an attached cushion backing. This is to ensure that the product does not clap under feet as much as possible. Most often they’re composed of a closed-cell high-density pad, but cork backings are not uncommon. Cork is generally understood to be the best sound mitigation product on the market. Not all products come with this layer, and aftermarket unattached underlayments are easily available if desired. I wouldn’t recommend using the cushioning of an LVP as the sole factor in your decision making, but it can be a nice feature. Remember, sound is subjective and the job of these cushions is to make the floor as “quiet” as it can be…
The takeaway on cushions:
- Are there to mitigate sound.
- Can be purchased separately if the product you like doesn’t have one attached.
The Oversaturation Problem
As you shop, you’ll find that there are more products than you can keep track of. Most companies offer their own version of flooring products and panels, and you might start to feel like you’re seeing the same (or very similar) products over & over, because… you literally are. My advice to break this overwhelming myriad of styles down to something manageable is this:
Identify which color lanes you are leaning towards; Golds, Reds, Grays or “Coffee” (I would say Brown here, but there are a lot of reddish & golden browns. Coffee refers to the shades of brown without red & yellow undertones). If this is still difficult, think in terms of warm and cold. Warm tones are your autumn tones, the oranges & reds of changing leaves, vs colder tones of modern & contemporary urban type settings: grays, washed out dock woods, grays and darker tones. Once you have identified which direction you’re leaning, it becomes easier to eliminate what isn’t a good fit for you. You’ll be able to more quickly scan the vast landscape of options for only the few that seem to fit the profile you have identified for yourself.
There truly is something for everyone. There is something for every space. I can’t thank you enough for checking us out & giving this a read. Please reach out to let us know if you have any questions regarding these or any other flooring products!
The Bottom Line: When looking at Luxury Vinyl Planks cushioning and color shouldn’t be your determining factor in a purchase, but can offer some customization for your personal preferences and needs.
