Basement Floor Leveling

Many people who try and finish the basements, ultimately become impaired as they find it hard to manage things due to the unevenness of the concrete floor. Prior to installing wood flooring or regular tile, you have got to level your basement floor’s concrete surface. This is for creating a fairly stable subfloor.

And those planning to keep their basement floor exposed might consider leveling the concrete for creating an even and usable surface. Actually, the simplest avenue for leveling your basement floor is using a suitable self-leveling compound that is easy to apply and creates great results - even though the installer is inexperienced. Here’re some guidelines on how to get the job done…

To begin with, move all sorts of furniture along with other things out of your basement floor. This will give you some space to carry out your work. Consider using a suitable pry bar (a hammer could do as well) to get rid of any kind of baseboards or floor boards around your basement room’s perimeter.

Take away the nails off the boards and set aside so you can reuse later. Consider cleaning the concrete. Then sweep its surface with a regular stiff broom. Done? Just take away and clear out all debris now. Your next job will be to fill all sorts of small holes, gaps or cracks on the floor.

There are many kinds of concrete caulks in home improvement (or hardware) stores. Use any of them. A good quality chalk should be applied with a caulk gun. Squeeze out the chalk in the holes, and use a soft cloth for wiping away any surplus material.

Now, use some expansion tape for building a barrier around the whole perimeter of your basement room. This dam has to be put at the wall’s base, exactly at the joint the place where the basement wall meets its floor. This’ll help manage the course of that self-leveling compound you have used.

This can also help by playing the role of an expansion joint when you’re done with the work. Then you need to blend this self-leveling compound into a wheelbarrow (a bucket is also good) according to instructions provided with the package.

And add some water occasionally, so you do not end up making this mixture overly wet. Rather, your focus here should be to mix it carefully using a stirring stick. Do this before you proceed.

Next, you have to pour that self-leveling compound on your basement floor. Actually, you have to pour in 1-foot-wide strips across the room’s length. Consider using a regular concrete rake for spreading the mixture a bit. Then apply a trowel for pushing it in the corners and/or all tight spaces.

Due to gravity, the mixture will settle evenly all over room, and you will get a fully leveled floor! But you got to make sure that 3 days are allowed as a minimum for your basement floor to dry properly, before you install finished floors on top. Now, reinstall those base boards. Some people do a little bit of trimming after the flooring installation is done.

When you’re planning to install any heavier finished flooring material (e.g. ceramic tile), you may use a commercial grade epoxy leveling compound in place of those that are meant for residential premises. Epoxies are usually more capable of withstanding the weight of tiles with minimal risk of cracking.

Actually, sealing a concrete basement floor can keep moisture from leaking through and eventually causing breaks to the flooring, pipes and/or goods. Picking the right sealer and applying it properly keeps the basement floor and its walls dry. A good way to beautify the basement is to use a colored sealer.