Hardboard over concrete floor - how to fix it
Discussion
Finally got rid of the builders and now intent on getting back in our living room after a year of water under the floor problems, but as a result of their lack of skill and common sense, we have a room with an uneven concrete floor, complete with raised section where they filled the trench, and new floorboards which no longer exactly match the height of the concrete. Not to mention, a hearth which sticks up at one end and not the other, above the floorboards.
Levelling the very worst parts will help and then 1/2 inch hardboard seems like the obvious solution but how to fix it to the part of the floor which is concrete is my question. I will rent a staple gun for the wooden part obviously.
Thanks chaps.
Levelling the very worst parts will help and then 1/2 inch hardboard seems like the obvious solution but how to fix it to the part of the floor which is concrete is my question. I will rent a staple gun for the wooden part obviously.
Thanks chaps.
Half inch, do you mean plywood rather than hardboard? If so you can drill, plug and screw it to the concrete base, I would go at maybe 600mm centres. Red plugs will do, 5.5mm drill straight through the ply and then hammer the red plug through to the concrete. You will need a decent, SDS drill and battery driver.
I have jsut gone through a similar exercise after knocking a kitchen/dining room into one. The floors had been laid separately & the dining room concrete floor was about 15 mm lower. I needed to level beforer laying laminate.
I used 12mm 'WBP?' plywood, about £25 for 8x4 sheet, cut into 4 FOC, to fit into the car, from B&Qs!. I needed 3 of these. My concrete floor was level & sound, I purchesed a 12 pack of instant grab adhesive from Wickes (anbout £2 a tube in bulk) & stuck it down with that. Cant see it going anywhere... 15mm seemed too deep to self level & not deep enough for screed etc.
I used 12mm 'WBP?' plywood, about £25 for 8x4 sheet, cut into 4 FOC, to fit into the car, from B&Qs!. I needed 3 of these. My concrete floor was level & sound, I purchesed a 12 pack of instant grab adhesive from Wickes (anbout £2 a tube in bulk) & stuck it down with that. Cant see it going anywhere... 15mm seemed too deep to self level & not deep enough for screed etc.
cjs said:
Half inch, do you mean plywood rather than hardboard? If so you can drill, plug and screw it to the concrete base, I would go at maybe 600mm centres. Red plugs will do, 5.5mm drill straight through the ply and then hammer the red plug through to the concrete. You will need a decent, SDS drill and battery driver.
I probably meant 1/4 inch hardboard and I really don't want to get into screwing it down - the concrete area is about 18' x 12' and thats an awful lot of screwing.....................Simpo Two said:
Couldn't you just use some of that self-levelling stuff and pour it in the right height?
That would mean laying it over an area of 18' x 12' plus 12' x 12' plus 6' x ' 6'. Thats an awful lot of self levelling stuff to reach a level height and probably impossible to do.Jimboka said:
I have jsut gone through a similar exercise after knocking a kitchen/dining room into one. The floors had been laid separately & the dining room concrete floor was about 15 mm lower. I needed to level beforer laying laminate.
I used 12mm 'WBP?' plywood, about £25 for 8x4 sheet, cut into 4 FOC, to fit into the car, from B&Qs!. I needed 3 of these. My concrete floor was level & sound, I purchesed a 12 pack of instant grab adhesive from Wickes (anbout £2 a tube in bulk) & stuck it down with that. Cant see it going anywhere... 15mm seemed too deep to self level & not deep enough for screed etc.
Bingo - instant grab adhesive. Thank you.I used 12mm 'WBP?' plywood, about £25 for 8x4 sheet, cut into 4 FOC, to fit into the car, from B&Qs!. I needed 3 of these. My concrete floor was level & sound, I purchesed a 12 pack of instant grab adhesive from Wickes (anbout £2 a tube in bulk) & stuck it down with that. Cant see it going anywhere... 15mm seemed too deep to self level & not deep enough for screed etc.
I will level out the worst joins a bit first then whack the hardboard on top of the whole lot - might even use the adhesive on the boards too.
astroarcadia said:
A reputable domestic or commercial flooring contractor would never use this method.
So, OK, how would a reputable contractor do it then...............? Seriously, I am interested.And no-one is going to see it again for years hopefully, especially not me as the concrete floor, wood floor and underlay and carpet has been up too many times in the past three years for my liking.
The aim is to provide a level base for underlay and carpet. It would be almost impossible to use a levelling solutionas the room is so big with so many sections and irregularities. As long as I deal with the major issues properly, the hardboard could almost be construed as being an extravagance.
Edited by rlw on Wednesday 9th March 19:50
Grandad Gaz said:
You keep mentioning hardboard!
If you have to, at least use a good quality plywood. 12mm min.
I have used thick hardboard - 1/4" - in many rooms and it seems to provide a good, inert base for an quality underlay and carpet. I have one room with plywood under Amtico tiles and you can feel every irregularity in the original flooring so I am not impressed - thicker would probably be OK mind but I have found hardbaord to be quite OK.If you have to, at least use a good quality plywood. 12mm min.
rlw said:
astroarcadia said:
A reputable domestic or commercial flooring contractor would never use this method.
So, OK, how would a reputable contractor do it then...............? Seriously, I am interested.And no-one is going to see it again for years hopefully, especially not me as the concrete floor, wood floor and underlay and carpet has been up too many times in the past three years for my liking.
The aim is to provide a level base for underlay and carpet. It would be almost impossible to use a levelling solutionas the room is so big with so many sections and irregularities. As long as I deal with the major issues properly, the hardboard could almost be construed as being an extravagance.
Edited by rlw on Wednesday 9th March 19:50
andy43 said:
Self levelling screed is the only right way IMHO - it'll provide the best and most solid base for whatever floor covering you're going to use. No Nails and hardboard may well creak or work loose.
The size of the area is irrelevant to which method you would use. I have worked on many sites where this has been a problem and a levelling compound is alway used to level an uneven concrete base. On a recent job at a school the entire basement had walls knocked down to create a large open space for a new children's centre. The floor was out by 25mm in places where walls were removed. The flooring guys did it all with bags of compound they mixed. Don't get me wrong, they used a pallet of the stuff but it looked like a new floor after. There are many products available for varying thicknesses and although it seems daunting to pour it over such a large area it is still the best solution from the info you have given. It can be done it layers, the first to bring it up somewhere near and then another application to smooth it off. The smoother your floor the easier it will be to lay a floor covering. Like all things it all in the preparation. Not trying to be awkward but thats just how I see it.
Give these guys a call and just ask for some advice. Our flooring contractors buy a lot from them and they also helped me with a liquid DPM product for my house that I did not even know existed.
http://www.blflooring.co.uk/
Edited by astroarcadia on Thursday 10th March 10:57
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