The Best Flooring to Keep Your Home Warm

There are many ways you can improve your home’s energy efficiency, from simple measures like installing draught excluders to expensive loft insulation. It’s also important to note that flooring, though perhaps not on your radar, can make the world of difference when it comes to keeping a home cosy and warm. Something like full chip concrete coating can make your flooring work for itself in terms of keeping heating costs down while allowing the house to retain its warmth!

However, one way of improving your home’s ability to keep the heat in while also benefiting from the various advantages of a new and fresh domestic surface is by opting for new, well-insulated flooring. With all that said, what is the best flooring to keep your home warm?

No #1 Choice: Cushioned Vinyl Flooring

There are several superb flooring types when it comes to keeping the heat in. However, our favourite is cushioned vinyl flooring.

Cushioned vinyl flooring consists of five distinct layers. Along with heavy cushioning, cushioned vinyl flooring can not only keep the heat in well but provide a warm and nice underfoot. 

Price-wise, cushioned vinyl flooring costs around £10 to 40 per m² in supply-only costs. This makes it a relatively low-cost flooring option and one that arguably offers great value for money. Along with the cost of material, the cost of labour (what you pay for the contractor’s time) for a CVF installation would be somewhere in the region of £150 to £200 per day. 

The aforementioned price estimates mean you can expect to pay a total of approximately £300 to £800 for a CVF installation in a small 15m² room, £450 to £1,800 in the case of a mid-sized 30m² room, or £850 to £2,200 if you want this flooring type added to a large 40m² room.

Other advantages worth noting about cushioned vinyl flooring are its durability, ease of maintenance, style and the wide range of options available on the market in terms of design and colours.

Other Top-Notch Flooring Options

While cushioned vinyl flooring tops the lot in our books, there are several other top-notch flooring types that you should give serious consideration to when looking for those that can help keep your home warm.

Carpet

For generations, carpet has been a great choice for households seeking to keep rooms warmer, especially during the winter time. Really, it’s such a strong choice that many would put it first on their list, but it at least makes the top two, in our opinion.

Not only are there many carpeting products available on the market, some of which are better at keeping the heat in than others but, in general, the carpet’s thickness and temperature barrier capabilities help maintain the warmth of the room. 

Carpet generally costs somewhere in the region of £15 to £60 per m² in supply-only costs. Popular types of carpet include Saxony, velvet, Berber, flat weave, level loop, multi-level loop and cut and loop combination.

Cork Flooring

Along with being long-lasting, sustainable and relatively eco-friendly, cork flooring is also known for its energy efficiency contributions to households.

Since cork flooring comprises small air pockets used to capture heat, it can prevent rooms from becoming colder than they would otherwise. The supply-only cost of cork flooring can range from around £20 to £80 per m². 

Hiring a Flooring Specialist

Hiring a flooring specialist will help you have professionally installed floors, will help you save money in the long run and will stop you from creating a DIY disaster.

Depending on your location, the type of flooring, the size of the floor, and other factors will  contribute to the cost of a flooring specialist, so it’s also worth asking upfront about the labour costs and any hidden charges.