Kitchen Reno

[cx]

Greg, you'll need to ask the manufacturer of the SLC you intend to use whether they will approve installing it over whatever that is we see on your floor. You're convinced that's thinset mortar? If so, the SLC people may go for it, with the appropriate primer, of course. Or maybe not.

You are keeping in mind that your LVT, like ceramic tile, cares not at all whether your floor is level? Those tiles care only about flat, not level.

My opinion; worth price charged.

[gcc]

It’s definitely thinset mortar. We used to have sheet vinyl. I pulled that up and paid to have tile installed back when I was afraid to try things myself. That was about 14 years ago. I was younger and defiantly not wiser.

I was planning on using Mapei version of self leveling cement/underlayment. It would mainly fill in the divers and those larger sections where they are were able to grind out the thinset. Not looking to build it up at all, just be flat.

The other option is to have the rest of that grinded out and just get the floor flat. And not worry about level. I’d be ok with that. Not sure which is the best way to go. Right now I have a level-ish floor of thinset with massive divets. I could have that ground out and have a wildly unlevel floor but flatter. It would still need SLC, probably more, but is that better? The vinyl planks will definitely need flat.

I will reach out to mapei. If there is a brand you know of that would work, let me know.





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[smifwal]

Originally Posted by gcc

t would still need SLC, probably more,but is that better?

the only better would be that it all of it would be 100% adhered to the concrete and no chance of it breaking or popping up with continued traffic with the lvp installed(provide it is installed correctly) So if you are confident that what you have already on the floor now is down good and ain't coming up, then I say go for it

[gcc]

Originally Posted by smifwal

the only better would be that it all of it would be 100% adhered to the concrete and no chance of it breaking or popping up with continued traffic with the lvp installed(provide it is installed correctly) So if you are confident that what you have already on the floor now is down good and ain't coming up, then I say go for it

I don’t know how confident I am on that. I mean, it feels solid, but…it is still just a thick bed of thinset. It could be solid today and crack over time with traffic or moving furniture I suppose. I dunno.

If I have them come back out and keep grinding, I will still (I think) need to put down SLC to get it flat.

Based on the pics - is SLC the right way to go? I don’t want to raise the whole slab, I just want it flat and smooth. Would it be better to patch most of it and just use SLC on the areas where the thinset was grinder down all the way?


So maybe use SLC in places like this…


And use a trowel to patch in places like this?


Or SLC over the whole thing? Lots of areas look like this…it would take a while to patch.


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[smifwal]

Unfortunately you won't know how much until you have them grind. Some of those thick areas could be the result of a little dip that was compounded by them trying to get tiles lined up because the put down too much at the little dip.

How thick is your lvp what is the floor tolerance for it?

[gcc]

Spoke to Mapei - recommendation is to get it back to bare slab and build up as needed. It could work by adding the slc over the thinset, but it isn’t recommended. I’d rather follow manufacturer’s recommendation.

Once they grind it out I will have to pour the slc all over the house. If I understand CX correctly, I may not be looking for for a perfectly level slab everywhere, I just need it perfectly flat. I have never used slc before, let alone 800 sq ft of it…so I am hoping for the best.


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[gcc]

Actually, after more inspecting and measuring, I may just leave that thinset there and use slc to fill the divets on top and some of the big areas that need to match up. It is adhered pretty strong and is super hard.


I’ve never used slc but I will have to use it in varying thicknesses around 800 se ft - but most of that is to just fill in the divorts on top. Is SLC the right product to get that floor flat? It will bring up the areas in that we’re all chipped out (like in the left), but I don’t want to raise the floor as a whole.

I can’t have it much higher at the sliding door threshold at all or the planking will be higher. Right now it is at a good height for the planking - could maybe go up 1/8” - but - there is varying differences from the sliding door to the other side of the room. The highest point in that floor is about 1/2” to 5//8” higher than the threshold. Its a good 10 feet away from that threshold. I don’t want to bring the room level to that high point, I just want to fill in the divots and create a flat surface. Will using SLC accomplish what I am after?




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[cx]

Greg, the problem with using SLC in a situation such as yours is that SLC products generally don't. Don't self-level, that is. But they do try to self-level if poured in sufficient thicknesses and if your existing substrate is not level, the material will be much thicker in some places than in others. If you have lots of vertical room to work with, and lots of dinero in your wallet to work with, none of that is a problem.

But when your purpose is just to fill in low spots and flatten an existing, not perfectly level, substrate without increasing the height significantly, using a self-leveler is not necessarily a good idea. Except, possibly, in the case of some SLC products (I believe MAPEI makes one) where you can alter the water content and use it more like a patching and flattening product.

In any case, if your intent is just to flatten your floor sufficiently to accommodate your chosen floor covering, I'd suggest a product that is not gonna try to self-level at all, but will allow you to flatten the floor to your requirements. In the case of the floor I see in your photos, if you intend to do that flattening yourself, I suggest you bring a lunch.

My opinion; worth price charged.

[gcc]

Thanks cx -

Appreciate the advice, as always!

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[Tiger Mountain Tile Inc]

I think a self leveling product would work fine to skim over what you have there. If you're just filling in the gaps then the product isn't going to try to be leveling on you.

[gcc]

I think I am going to patch what I can and use SLC over all of it, but unfortunately, I am going to have to grind down some of that thinset if I want to run SLC over it to level it out. I just don’t know the best way to handle it. I suppose I will grind down the highest areas so that they are low enough to be able to pour slc over all of it and not have it be too high for the threshold. I’ll rent a grinder from HD and work on that tomorrow. I need to take some areas down anywhere from 1/8”-3/8” in order to be in the ballpark of being able to use SLC over all of it. I hate to do it since that stuff is so darn expensive, but not sure how else to prepare this so it will be a good foundation for LVP. But at about 800 sq ft, it’s not going to feel good to spend that kind of money. Maybe just patching will work but there is an awful lot of area to be covered and I am worried about how smooth that surface will be. I’m going to patch a few larger areas and see how that turns out before deciding.

If I use SLC to raise the low areas, how do I know I raised them enough without going too high? I’m trying to use as little as possible but some areas will need 1/4-3/8” of filling and others are at the exact height. I understand I should go at least 1/8” over the highest point, but how do I know I hit that?


I should add - the area is multiple rooms, including living room, kitchen (so I am worried about leveling cabinets later), laundry room, and connecting hallways.

Thanks,
Greg


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[Davy]

Looking at your pics, if the thinset came up off the slab that clean without too much work, I'd remove the rest of it.

I have a chipping hammer that has a 4 inch wide blade that removes thinset much faster than grinding. If it's bonded real well and thinset remains on the slab, we will grind it after the chipping hammer takes up the majority.

I don't like the idea of sticking my tiles to someone else's thinset. I like being down to the clean slab.

Once you get it clean and mopped, check for slab cracks.

[gcc]

Actually - that just what I am in the middle of doing.
Decided to take it out. Will deal with the company that was supposed to do this later.

I’m taking off as much as I can but redgaurd is making it very difficult. Do I have to get that off? When I try it pretty much gouges out the concrete. I have a lot more patching to do to cover that before leveling.


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[Davy]

That's the exact blade I have. I hope it's working well for you. You might get by with leaving the Redgard, can't say for sure. It might be best if you post a pic of what it looks like. On most jobs, we grind the slab using a grinder and cupwheel. It has a shop Vac attachment to pick up the dust. This gets it down to raw concrete.

I know you're spending a lot of time on the prep. Just remember, the prep is just as important as the installation so don't get in a hurry.

[gcc]

Problem is - I have a 4 1/2”‘Grinder and about 757 sq ft. Lol



I am putting down self leveler (I think I have to now) after I patch all this, then LVP, so no thinset. Just need a flat surface.


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