Subfloor component and method of manufacturing same

Abstract

A method of manufacturing a subfloor component comprises providing a mold configured to form an insulating foam panel, the mold including pedestal-forming structures for forming the panel to have, in cross-section, a plurality of pedestals with walls that extend into the panel from a first face of the panel toward a second opposing face of the panel; placing heat-expandable beads into the mold; applying heat to the mold to expand the heat-expandable beads to form the panel with the pedestals; placing a moisture-resistant film adjacent to the pedestals; applying heat to fuse the film to at least the pedestals; and attaching a hardboard layer to the second face of the panel.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method of manufacturing a subfloor component, comprising:
 providing a mold configured to form an insulating foam panel, the mold including pedestal-forming structures for forming the panel to have, in cross-section, a plurality of pedestals with walls that extend into the panel from a first face of the panel toward a second opposing face of the panel;   placing a moisture-resistant film into the mold adjacent to the pedestal-forming structures;   placing heat-expandable beads into the mold against the moisture-resistant film opposite the pedestal-forming structures;   applying heat to the mold to expand the heat-expandable beads to form the panel, wherein the expansion of the heat-expandable beads causes both the film and the expanding beads to enter into and conform to the pedestal-forming structures thereby to form the pedestals of the panel with the moisture-resistant film fused thereto;   removing the panel with the fused moisture-resistant film from the mold; and   attaching a hardboard layer to the second face of the panel.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein heat-expandable beads are expandable polystyrene (EPS) beads. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the moisture-resistant film comprises a material selected from the group consisting of: high-impact polystyrene, polyethylene, and ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene). 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein attaching the hardboard layer comprises applying adhesive to one or both of the hardboard layer and the second face of the panel. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the hardboard layer comprises material selected from the group consisting of: OSB (oriented strand board), plywood, fiber cement board, cement board, metal sheeting, and magnesium oxide board. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 shaping the hardboard layer with a tongue/groove configuration for connecting to another hardboard layer of another subfloor component.   
     
     
         7 . A method of manufacturing a subfloor component, comprising:
 providing a mold configured to form an insulating foam panel, the mold including pedestal-forming structures for forming the panel to have, in cross-section, a plurality of pedestals with walls that extend into the panel from a first face of the panel toward a second opposing face of the panel;   placing heat-expandable beads into the mold;   applying heat to the mold to expand the heat-expandable beads to form the panel with the pedestals;   placing a moisture-resistant film adjacent to the pedestals;   applying heat to fuse the film to at least the pedestals; and   attaching a hardboard layer to the second face of the panel.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein the placing a moisture-resistant film adjacent to the pedestals comprises placing the moisture-resistant film within the mold adjacent to the pedestals, and the applying heat to fuse the film to at least the pedestals comprises applying heat to the mold to fuse the film to at least the pedestals. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein heat-expandable beads are expandable polystyrene (EPS) beads. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the moisture-resistant film comprises a material selected from the group consisting of: high-impact polystyrene, polyethylene, and ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene). 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein attaching the hardboard layer comprises applying adhesive to one or both of the hardboard layer and the second face of the panel. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein the hardboard layer comprises material selected from the group consisting of: OSB (oriented strand board), plywood, fiber cement board, cement board, metal sheeting, and magnesium oxide board. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising:
 shaping the hardboard layer with a tongue/groove configuration for connecting to another hardboard layer of another subfloor component.   
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising:
 shaping the hardboard layer with at least one groove.