Quote:
Originally Posted by michelle82
I am in the process of remodeling my basement bath. A few years back I had the basement foundation "waterproofed" which included them digging a trench all along the outside walls, filling with a drainage system, and cementing over it.
The end result is a dry basement, but a basement floor that slopes up around all the outside walls.
It is about 1.5 inches higher on the walls than in the middle.
We were thinking of putting in a sub-floor and leveling it by using 2x4's but this seems like a lot of work to cut them all perfectly to fit.
The other option is leveling it with cement. The problem here is that oome parts of the floor would need 1.5" to be level and other parts just a very thin layer.
Here's my question....what kind of cement product would we use? The self-leveling and cement finishing products seem to only be good for up to 5/8" and something like a mortar would just crumble, right?
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If you are going to poor 1.5", then you should probably just use regular concrete mix. You can paint the existing concrete with adhesive to insure you get a good bond. You can also make the mix a bit wet so it will level better, but that is a harder job than it sounds if you have never done it before. You have to keep working the concrete as it dries to get a smooth finish, like you would with plaster. If you were going to grind a terrazzo finish, then it matters less, but that is an even bigger job and needs special equipment. I think rough terrazzo is a nice finish for a basement but it sort of depends on the part of the country where you live. Mortar is pretty hard and I have used it in a few places to patch small holes, but the composite in it is pretty big and it is hard to get a smooth finishe with it. For small jobs, you are better off with a 1/2.5 mix of Portland cement and fine masonry sand.
2x4 and plywood would give you more options and I don't think that scribing the ends would be as hard as you think. At least I don't think it's harder then good masonry. With a wood subfloor you would need to check if you want a vapor barrier over the concrete or not. A heated sub floor can help allot with moisture issues. That would be moisture resistant strapping on the floor (at least 1.5"), moisture resistant plywood, an in- floor heating mat, and then something like tile over the top. That could cost you 3" in height, but would be a nice solution. This is also not such a simple job. You could also re-poor the floor and still do a heat mat and tile.
I would check what it would cost to have it pored by someone who has done it many times. Then at least you would be able to evaluate the cost/headache index.
LMHmedchem
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