Linoleum removal

[mobujen]

Hello,

I'm starting a floor tiling project in a small 5' x 6' bathroom that currently has linoleum. I pulled up the linoleum and it pulled aparted from the paper backer, which is still glued down to the cement subfloor.

Does anyone have any recommendations or tips for removing the adhesive and paper backer? It's very solid and looks like it might be a long process. If there is no tricks or easy ways to do this then I'll buy some industrial strength adhesive remover and a good floor scraper.

Thanks for the help!

Mike

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[Danny Ferguson]

Hey Mike,

For a project that big, a 4" razor scraper and some elbow grease will have that done in no time. You can try misting some water on the paper backing, and then hit it with the scraper. For the exsisting glue you can rent a cup grinder, and also use it to knock down any high spots.

Danny

[jay f]

Since you are on concrete, misting is one way, but an easier and faster way is to saturate the backing with water for several minutes (15 to 30) and then scraping. Also try hot water with a little dish soap added. This will make the scraping go MUCH easier, just keep it wet. :)

[DonB]

Mike,

Harbor Freight has a extendable handle razor scraper for $20. I saw the same thing at HD for $32. A 5-pack of replacement blades costs close to $4 at HF. One blade will be enough to do your small area no matter how bad the glue is.

I'd stay away from chemical adhesive remover. If you melt the glop into the slab you got big problems. Just water and scraping. I did over 400 ft² last month. Finally getting to do the tile was like going on vacation.

Don

[mobujen]

Thanks everybody for the suggestions. I used warm soapy water and a floor scraper I had to remove the paper backing and some of the adhesive. :yipee:

There still remains quite a bit of adhesive on the cement. I'm letting it soak and I'm planning on buying a razer scraper as described.

I wish I had a harbor freight store near my house, but it looks like the closest one is 30 minutes. I think I'll spend the extra money at HD and save myself the drive.

Should I be attemping to get 100 percent of the adhesive off the cement subfloor before I pour my quick level??

Thanks for all the help!

Mike

[DonB]

Mike,

It may not be necessary but I did. I scraped until no more would scape up and I thought I was finished. Then, I learned that water would continue to emulisfy the trowel tracks of glue that couldn't be scraped or even felt. The junk would ball up when rubbed. I decided I didn't want my thinset to deal with this so I scrubbed it up. Probably overkill but I just didn't want to take any chances since my slab is steel troweled super hard and is extremely dense. Water has a very hard time absorbing into it.

JB says in his most excellent book that a certain amount of crap can remain, even some of the felt, but if the glue emulsifies under water, it really should be removed.

Don

[Tool Guy - Kg]

No, not overkill at all. Spend the time like Don did and get as much up as you can with the scraper. It doesn't have to be perfect, but ideally you should be able to see the floor through the very thin layer of remaining adhesive. :)

[mobujen]

Hi all!

Here's the update and the new problem. I completely removed all the old adhesive with a scraper and a 4 1/2 grinder. I cleaned the floor really good and apllied the level quik exactly as the direction said. Everything went well (I thought!) until I came back to check it about two hours later. My floor took two buckets which I mixed and poured within 20 minutes of each other, but the result is a 6 inch wide dip the length of the bathroom. It appears to be where I attempted to have the two pourings meet each other. I thoght they would flow together and seek a combined level.

So now that I have this dip ( 1/4" deep) should I do another pour of level quik and feather out the edges into the level part of the rest of the room or buy some patch and trowel in the dip level with the other part of the floor???

Any and all help in greatly appreciated!!

Mike

[pitterpat]

Hi all!
My floor took two buckets which I mixed and poured within 20 minutes of each other, but the result is a 6 inch wide dip the length of the bathroom.

The 20 minutes is one of the problems, you can't take that long to do the pours. If you ever do it again use a 30 gal trash can to mix 2 bags of the SLC at one time.

So now that I have this dip ( 1/4" deep) should I do another pour of level quik and feather out the edges into the level part of the rest of the room or buy some patch and trowel in the dip level with the other part of the floor???


I would vote to do another pour because of the depth of the dip.

[Tool Guy - Kg]

Hi Mike,
You said there is a 6" wide, 1/4" deep dip in the floor where the 2 pours came together. Are the 2 surfaces on each side of this dip relatively level to each other? :)

[mobujen]

Yes, using a 6' level to check the two sides crossing the dip, it appears they came out pretty flat.

If I do another pour is there any issue with the new material sticking to the already dried material??

Mike

[Tool Guy - Kg]

Hi Mike,
I think you'll be fine if you use the primer over the area to get more slc. I'm assuming you used primer before the first pour, right?

In the mean time, let me ping someone that knows infinately more than I on slc. :)

[muskymike]

Yes it needs to be primed again for another pour.

[Tool Guy - Kg]

No wasted time on this forum, eh? :tup2:

[mobujen]

Thanks guys for the help. I will be doing a new pour tomorrow and feathering out the edges to the exsisting level area. And yes I did use a primer on the first pour and I will take your advice and use the remaining primer for tomorrows adventure.

Again guys, I really appreciate everybody's input. This forum is very helpful!

:)


Mike