How To Level A Concrete Floor? How To Level The Liquid Flooring In The Apartment, Mix And Putty For Leveling, How To Evenly Fill The Floor Surface With Concrete

Table of contents:

How To Level A Concrete Floor? How To Level The Liquid Flooring In The Apartment, Mix And Putty For Leveling, How To Evenly Fill The Floor Surface With Concrete
How To Level A Concrete Floor? How To Level The Liquid Flooring In The Apartment, Mix And Putty For Leveling, How To Evenly Fill The Floor Surface With Concrete

Video: How To Level A Concrete Floor? How To Level The Liquid Flooring In The Apartment, Mix And Putty For Leveling, How To Evenly Fill The Floor Surface With Concrete

Video: How To Level A Concrete Floor? How To Level The Liquid Flooring In The Apartment, Mix And Putty For Leveling, How To Evenly Fill The Floor Surface With Concrete
Video: How to level a concrete floor cheap 2024, March
Anonim

A flat floor is not only an indicator of a high-quality repair, but ensures a long service life for all types of coatings. The final laying of floors should be carried out exclusively on a flat and smooth surface. In apartments, houses, offices and garages, the base for the flooring is presented in the form of concrete slabs, which are not even in structure, they can have defects and are often located with a slope. Therefore, all construction work begins precisely with leveling the concrete surface. There are many ways and technologies for this.

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Features of the

Owners of newly acquired apartments, as well as those who have housing that require major repairs, first of all need to resolve the issue of leveling the concrete floor. Only after the base for laying the finishing coating becomes even, it will be possible to start its further finishing and decoration. If it is not leveled, then the new floor will not last long, in addition, in the future there will be problems with installing doors, arranging furniture and appliances.

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The concrete floor is not ideal, therefore, often during its operation, small chips, cracks, bumps and roughness can appear. In addition, there are also such significant defects as pits, nodules, bevels to the side or differences in height.

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Depending on the degree of unevenness of the surface and the number of potholes, the appropriate method of leveling the concrete is selected, and construction work is carried out.

If there are large level differences in the apartment, then a dry screed is used, which not only perfectly levels, but also provides good heat and sound insulation. A cement-based liquid solution will also help to effectively eliminate flaws. A self-leveling mixture is also considered a good option, it is evenly distributed over the entire surface, as a result of which any degree of curvature is removed. In order to "hide" small cracks, putty is suitable. Usually the leveling process is as follows: the concrete surface is thoroughly cleaned from grease, paint and dust, putty is applied, then the most suitable method for eliminating irregularities is applied.

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Device

The floor is the most important floor in the house. As a rule, its base is represented by concrete, which is made from cement and various fillers. In order for the concrete to meet all operational requirements, water-repellent components and hardening accelerators are also added to it. Such a base is characterized by increased resistance to chemical and mechanical stress, as well as durability.

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In order for the concrete surface to reliably serve for a long time, all technological processes must be observed during its installation.

There are two types of overlap: a floor laid on concrete slabs and beams, as well as concrete pouring, which is carried out on the ground. In addition, the coating can be made underground or made monolithic.

The latter is the most popular and consists of the following layers:

  • priming;
  • clean sand;
  • rough screed;
  • steam and waterproofing;
  • cement filling;
  • topcoat.
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Before starting work, dismantle the old floor and prepare the base. If the surface is not damaged, you can start leveling immediately. In a private house, when pouring on the ground, you will first need to do drainage work. To do this, a layer of sand with a thickness of at least 5 cm is placed under the base, then a layer of stone or expanded clay is poured, its height should not exceed 10 cm.

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For better compaction of the surface, a special active machine is used. To further protect the surface from damage, it is impregnated with polystyrene concrete.

The draft layer acts as the basis for the installation of waterproofing. It is placed on top of expanded clay or stone and covered with a special film. Often, instead of a rough screed, a conventional cement mortar is used, which cannot be covered.

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When pouring concrete, a mandatory installation of insulation is required. It can be done with bitumen, roofing material or membrane. Waterproofing must be laid tightly, excluding moisture penetration.

In addition, you will need thermal insulation, for which they use:

  • expanded polystyrene;
  • perlite;
  • mineral wool;
  • plywood sheets;
  • Styrofoam.
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After installing all types of insulation, a cement screed is performed and the installation of metal fittings is started. For living rooms, a wire with a diameter of no more than 3 mm is suitable, and on the balcony you can use a mesh with cells of 5 × 5 cm. If the installation of a "warm floor" system is planned in the apartment, then polyurethane is placed between the walls and the screed. This creates a small gap that will prevent the floor from heating up and protect the concrete from cracking.

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When all of the above steps are completed, you can proceed to clean pouring the base.

The mortar layer should be distributed evenly over the entire horizontal surface of the surface. To do all this correctly, it is recommended to put up beacons. The pouring mixture is prepared from crushed stone, sand and cement, while the sand must be used river sand, the admixtures of clay in the solution are not allowed.

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It is recommended to distribute the mixture starting from the corner opposite to the doors. After the surface is completely dry, it remains only to fix the topcoat, this is best done with tile glue.

What is better to level?

Many are concerned about the question of what materials and alignment methods are considered the most effective and best. To select the appropriate option, it is necessary to calculate the surface area and evaluate its defects. So, for example, the cheapest type for leveling concrete floors is cement mortar. It is preferred if you need to lay a thick layer of finishing for large rooms.

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Often masters use tile glue for these works, but it is difficult to apply it, therefore, in order to level the floor with this method, experience is required. A bulk mixture is also considered a good way to eliminate irregularities on the surface; it not only speeds up construction work, but also serves as an excellent waterproofing.

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If we consider the leveling materials in terms of their pouring and drying time, then there is no difference in them. All solutions and mixtures are applied strictly in compliance with construction technologies, therefore it is impossible to speed up this process.

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Methods and stages of work

Today there are many methods for leveling a concrete floor, the most popular and widely used of them is the use of a self-leveling mixture. As a rule, this option is chosen when the base has slight flaws, and the height of the levels does not exceed 3 cm.

The main advantages of this method include:

  • At the end of the work, the floor surface looks perfect and noble.
  • Affordable cost. Leveling does not require additional costs for the purchase of materials for laying.
  • The pouring technology is simple.
  • The mixture dries quickly and serves reliably for many years.
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To level the floor with a self-leveling mortar, it is necessary first of all to prepare the surface and cover it with a primer. Then, a construction tape is glued between the walls and the floor, and all the components of the mixture are mixed.

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It should have a homogeneous and thin consistency, therefore it is recommended to stir not by hand, but using a drill with a special nozzle. The finished solution is evenly distributed over the base and leveled with a needle roller. The work must be done very quickly, as the base quickly hardens.

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A cement screed will also help to level the concrete floor. Usually this option is recommended when the irregularities in the rooms exceed 3 cm. Cement mortar can eliminate all types of irregularities, in addition, it serves as an excellent basis for the topcoat. The only drawback of such alignment is the difficulty of implementation, and the laying process takes a lot of time.

The work is carried out as follows:

  • A primer is applied to the prepared base. This is especially important to do in the kitchen and in the bathroom, since the humidity in these rooms is always high.
  • Beacons are being installed.
  • An amortization tape is glued between the joints of the walls and the floor.
  • The mixture is being prepared.
  • Cover the concrete with mortar and flatten in a circular motion.
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Sometimes there are rooms in which the level of unevenness exceeds 10 cm. In this situation, only a dry screed can handle the leveling. It is easy to use, does not require drying, and also provides the base with additional thermal insulation. Dry screed is suitable for all types of coatings, but is most often chosen for wood floors.

Alignment is carried out as follows:

  • The concrete floor is cleaned, if there are cracks, they need to be putty.
  • A primer is applied.
  • The level is set.
  • Expanded clay or expanded polystyrene is poured.
  • Sheets of chipboard or plywood are laid, the joints between them are sealed with PVA glue.
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Although this method of leveling is characterized by positive aspects, its implementation requires a large consumption of building material. In addition, at the end of the process, the surface of the floor covering will rise significantly, resulting in a smaller room. Therefore, laying on a log surface can be an excellent alternative to a dry screed.

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Surface preparation

The first step in leveling a concrete floor is to prepare its base. In order for the work to be done correctly and efficiently, it is necessary to act in stages. Therefore, first of all, they look at the surface of the old coating, and if it has deformations and defects, it is dismantled. This can be done using a puncher. In addition, you will need to carefully seal all the bumps and cracks in the concrete.

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To better understand the degree of unevenness, it is recommended to measure the levels along the bottom of the room, then prepare the mixture and fill the cracks with it.

The composition of the solution may be different; for this, both a gypsum "gruel" and a cement mixture are well suited. To avoid a curved surface, grout is done after pouring. After this stage, a suitable type of screed is chosen, and the base is covered with it. When the mixture is completely dry, it is covered with plywood, you can also level the finish floor and OSB panels.

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By lighthouses

Uneven floors are a common problem in many homes and apartments. To correct its defects, you can fill the surface of the base with concrete or sand-concrete mixture. If the construction work is done by hand, it is recommended to use a special leveler, it is easy to operate and does not require practical application experience. Whichever method of alignment is chosen, it will not do without installing beacons, they are usually made from gypsum or cement mixtures.

The installation process of beacons is as follows:

  • Determine the minimum layer thickness that will be required for alignment. For this, a laser level is used, and line markings are made.
  • Putty is being prepared. All its constituent components are taken in strict proportions.
  • Installation starts from the wall. Lighthouses are placed at a distance of 15-20 cm, they need to be putty and fixed.
  • After the putty has hardened, the surface is checked and excess material is removed. To get a smooth base, it must be sanded; a sander is suitable for this.
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The most important thing is that during installation there are no empty areas left, if there are any, they must be covered with putty and leveled. After the base is completely dry, you can proceed to direct leveling.

Professional advice

It is difficult to level the concrete floor on your own, therefore, if the homeowners decide to do it with their own hands, then they need to take into account many nuances. Experienced craftsmen recommend that when performing this type of work, always take into account the temperature regime of the room, avoiding the appearance of drafts. The mixture for pouring must be thoroughly mixed, as the formed lumps can ruin the whole process. To make mixing the mortar easier, it is best to use a drill with an attachment or a small concrete mixer.

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In addition, we must not forget to control the quality of the fill using a level.

If you adhere to all of the above recommendations, then the floor will definitely turn out to be even and smooth, and the decorative coating will serve reliably for many years.

The video below shows the easiest way to level the floor.

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