As the weather starts growing colder, it’s normal for morning air to get a bit of a chill. That being said, no one likes their feet hitting an ice-cold floor when they climb out of bed in the morning. In this case, it’s normal to wonder, “why is my floor so cold?”

While some coldness in your floors isn’t anything to worry about, unusually or consistently cold floors in your home are a clear indication of a problem.

Why is My Floor so Cold?

Material Type

Certain types of flooring are more naturally cold than others, like tile floors. Even luxury vinyl flooring and hardwood floors are colder to the touch than laminate flooring or carpet. While it’s perfectly normal for tile, luxury vinyl, and hardwood floors to be a bit chilly, pay attention if you notice they are unusually cold. Additionally, if your carpeted floor feels cold, you may have one of the following problems:

Poor Insulation

Bad or insufficient insulation is one of the main things that causes cold floors. Typically, the floors on the first story of your home are the coldest if you have problems with your insulation. The reason for this is that the bottom-level floors are right above the crawl space, basement, or ground. That means they have very little or poor insulation.

Air Leaks and Drafts

If your home has air leaks or drafts coming from your doors, windows, or any holes in your insulation, you could end up with cold floors (and a cold home!). Hot air rises naturally, so as it rises from the lower floors of your home it can pull cold air in from outside. This cold air easily enters through tiny leaks or holes in your home’s exterior, commonly found in the foundation, sill plates, windows, or doors. 

The Solution to Cold Floors

There are a few different things you can try to warm up your floors and improve home performance. The success of each action depends on why your floors are cold in the first place: insulation issues, air leaks, or flooring material type.

Add Insulation

Basement insulation is a great way to warm up your cold floors if insulation is your issue. Insulating the foundation walls helps keep cold air out, allowing the floors in your home to remain warm and comfortable. A warmer basement or crawl space immediately helps keep your home and floor temperature more consistent.

Air Sealing

If air leaks are your problem, you can resolve the issue by getting an energy audit and sealing holes. Start by sealing your basement floor and the foundation, but don’t forget to seal any leaks on the upper floor of your home too. Check doors, windows, window sills, and anywhere else there may be leaking airflow.

In-Floor Heating

If your floors are always cold but that’s not due to insulation issues or air leaks, it could simply be the material type. An in-floor heating system could easily resolve this issue. You have a choice of an electric system, hydronic system, or even an INFRAFLOOR™ system that can be installed under your floors to warm them up.

Get Your Floors Warm with CroppMetcalfe

If you’re tired of freezing your feet off in your own home but don’t want to keep cranking the thermostat up, it’s time to address the issue head-on. CroppMetcalfe can help make your home comfortable again through all seasons, but especially winter. Contact us online or call to get all of your home performance questions answered.