Simulating wooden floor for a person with very sensitive feet and body

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Indy

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Hello everyone,

A friend of mine has very sensitive feet and body due to various injuries and illnesses. She is looking for a new place to move into because the concrete floor under the carpet at her apartment is too hard for her. She has installed padded wooden platforms in her apartment which are a couple of feet wide and less than a foot high but she says that they don’t solve her problem because of the concrete underneath. In fact she believes that whatever she puts on the floor is not going to solve her problem as long as there is concrete underneath. She has been spending about a thousand dollars a week to see a chiropractor and an osteopath but won’t be able to continue doing this because her insurance company is no longer willing to pay them. She believes that the only type of floor that works for her is a wooden floor with a crawlspace underneath.

However, moving is expensive and it’s difficult to find an affordable place with wooden floor in the area where she wants to live. She is also highly allergic to molds and dog waste so she wants to live in a place that has never had a dog.

She also says that she has tried all kinds of shoes but they don’t make that much difference.

I still believe that it is possible to solve the problem by installing a different type of platform. However, since she seems to be the only one who can feel the difference it may be difficult for others to solve the problem for her. Perhaps if we have a measuring instrument sensitive enough to measure the distance the platform moves away from the ceiling in her apartment as she walks around this will make it easier to solve the problem. I got my electrical engineering degree from the University of California San Diego and live about 2 miles away so I could contact their structural engineering department but it may be difficult to set up an earthquake measuring instrument in her apartment.

What do you think would be the best way to construct platforms in her apartment that simulates plywood floor with a crawlspace underneath ? We can use a combination of wood and different types of padding, springs, airbags, etc. Even though she says that she has already tried everything I think we may be able to do better if we have good measuring instruments.

She says that walking on wet sand feels good for her so one solution may be to install sandboxes in her apartment. We can cover the sand with tarps so she doesn’t track it all over the place. If the sand has to be wet we may be able to use sealed plastic sand bags.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions you may have.

Indy J

 
has she ever tried standing on a dance studio dance floor.  There is usually some spring and space between the concrete and the dance surface

 
an i mean a true dance floor, not something at a park district.  There is usually some float to it.

 
sports floors like a basketball court are wooden floors that have some bounce/spring to them.  If one constructs and elevated wooden floor on "sleepers" or vertically oriented 2x4's on the concrete floor spaced and aligned the same as typical joint framing and then installs a wood floor on the sleepers, the only difference  between that configuration and a "wooden floor with a crawlspace" is that the sleepers are continuously supported where typical floor joists span from one side of the room to the other.  Cheaply framed houses have some spring in the joists where the whole floor moves.  I don't see how that really softens anything from foot falls.  A less stiff floor is usually a nuisance because foot falls will now cause everything on the floor (tables, TVs. computer monitors, etc.) to vibrate with each step.

To simulate that then put a single board around the perimeter of the room and then frame and install a floor elevated above the concrete.  No offense to your friend but this seem really silly.  Maybe she should try some of these:

https://www.amazon.com/Big-Time-Toys-Shoes-Styles/dp/B000N5OIE6

moon-shoes.jpg

 
In reality, if a free floating wood/laminate floor with padding underneath isn't adequate, then her issue is psychological, not physiological.  Those configurations have considerably more spring and a better dampening effect than the standard floor joist/OSB over crawlspace combo, even in a room with longer joist runs.  

 
i agree with the dance floor / basketball court overframing idea. Also, I am currently nursing a foot injury and I have to just wear supportive / cushy shoes to counteract my concrete floors until I'm fully healed. Has this person not tried having special "house shoes"? I feel like this would be a much more cost effective solution? 

 
I would also like to note that if it's not a ground level apartment/slab on grade, installing sand boxes over the floor system would significantly increase the dead load and could have a negative impact on the structural integrity of the building as a whole, both vertically and laterally. 

 
or a combination of extremely cushioned sneakers and those rubber mats that are used for people on their feet all day at restaurants or retail registers. 

 
let us know when the sand is installed and we'll all come over for a beach party!

 
Thanks everyone :)

I also like the moon shoes but I think my friend's disability would make them too dangerous for her :-(

I've told her about this site so she can sign up and post follow-ups here if she wants to.

Indy :)

 
So wait, is the beach party a go or no-go?? :dunno:
Beach party sounds great.  I used to host a tropical themed party every year around this time.   Turn up the heat, wear tropical shorts and shirts (shirts optional of course), leis and drink pina coladas.

If funds were not an issue, I'd try rolling out that spongy material that is used on running tracks. 

 
I installed hardwood floors over advantech sub flooring and the salesman at lumber liquidators convinced me to try the extra padded underlayment. I am glad I did! walking on the hardwood floors is so comfortable. You could strip her existing floor  down to the concrete and put this underlayment over the concrete, plastic barrier first for moisture if needed. Then use a laminated hardwood floor that does not need to be nailed down, it just snaps together, or go with carpet.

 

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