Help!: Bad floor!!!!!

[madmark hatter]

After taking advice from the forum i removed the linolium from my floor with blow torch and scraper. Unfortunately the floor has cracks in, the edges have broken away and it seems to be floating (very hollow sound when tapped.) the pieces that broke away are about 15mm in thickness. the area is 9m2. It is a dining room floor that joins a new screeded kitchen floor and i'm tiling the whole area. Question is, can it be repaired or does it have to come up? Please help, i'm getting desperate. It's my 1st tiling EVER!!! and i'm running out of money on this extension.

cheers all, Mark

[bigandy]

What is the floor construction? I am guessing asphalt the more info you can give the better reply you will get

[madmark hatter]

cheers Andy,

Not having any knowledge of materials it just looks like concrete. It's stone like but i can break a piece of it with my fingers with a lot of effort. it is greyish in colour and has little white bits, like salt deposits. hope this helps.

[madmark hatter]

ps. may it help to know that the house was built in the 30's and it seems to be the original floor

[madmark hatter]

i think it might be asphalt as there is bitchumen on it. it's the condition i'm worried about. i cannot have it screeded because i have to have it done by xmas and not enough drying time. if i take it up would i be able to use SLF. Are there any tilers in the caterham, surrey area that can look at it and say it can be tiled on or not. Of course i'll pay. i'm pulling my hair out (too late though, i'm bald!)

[whitebeam]

You could re-screed and use bal green screed adhesive meaning tiles could be laid a week after the floor has been laid

[doug boardley]

if it's hollow Mark afraid it'll have to come up, don't mean to be a harbinger of doom but if you tiled onto it I'm certain it would fail. If it's any consolation I've got 2 floors up at home and not a hope in hell of tiling 'em before xmas

[Dave]

if it's hollow Mark afraid it'll have to come up, don't mean to be a harbinger of doom but if you tiled onto it I'm certain it would fail. If it's any consolation I've got 2 floors up at home and not a hope in hell of tiling 'em before xmas

which xmas you on about.......if its owt like me...maybe 2011 ish....

[doug boardley]

which xmas you on about.......if its owt like me...maybe 2011 ish....

but if I dry lay 'em might spin it out 'til after olympics

[AllurePTS]

Would be helpful to post some pics madmark ....it will give people a better idea if they can see it mate

[madmark hatter]

some pictures of my bad floor.

[madmark hatter]

ok, I'll get the floor screeded and use bal green screed addy(says can be tiled on after 24 hrs) but my question is will the sreed be dry enough for me to be kneeling in it while i'm tiling without damaging the screed?

[madmark hatter]

thank you for the advice all.(and the jokes) I'm the comedian. the floor came up like a dream. MUST have been kn*****ed!! I contacted BAL and will be using green screed addy. only 24 hrs set before tiling. Just need a screeder now. Cheers and thank you once again. Mark

[AllurePTS]

could ba a light granite screed or maybe slc with a bulking agent - whatever it is, it has never bonded to the original sub floor - I suspect another PVA failure !

[sWe]

ok, I'll get the floor screeded and use bal green screed addy(says can be tiled on after 24 hrs) but my question is will the sreed be dry enough for me to be kneeling in it while i'm tiling without damaging the screed?

thank you for the advice all.(and the jokes) I'm the comedian. the floor came up like a dream. MUST have been kn*****ed!! I contacted BAL and will be using green screed addy. only 24 hrs set before tiling. Just need a screeder now. Cheers and thank you once again. Mark

Use a rapid setting screed, such as MAPEI Topocem Pronto, or Ardex A35 Mix or EB2 Mix, and you can tile after 24h guaranteed.

[doug boardley]

it's a hot layed bitumen floor covering,same as the one I took up at home with an axe!!

[whitebeam]

With standard screed give it a couple of days to cure or kneeling on it could break up the surface

[madmark hatter]

[QUOTE]
Use a rapid setting screed, such as MAPEI Topocem Pronto, or Ardex A35 Mix or EB2 Mix, and you can tile after 24h guaranteed



Can i use spf addy instead of the green screed addy if i use one of the suggested rapid setting screeds? I dont want use a rapid setting addy as it's my 1st proper tiling experience. Also, do i prime screed that is already down (for 6 weeks) that joins the new screed?

[sWe]

[quote=madmark hatter;144355]

Can i use spf addy instead of the green screed addy if i use one of the suggested rapid setting screeds? I dont want use a rapid setting addy as it's my 1st proper tiling experience. Also, do i prime screed that is already down (for 6 weeks) that joins the new screed?

SPF should do just fine. I'd suggest something along the lines of Mapei Keraflex, Mapei P9, or Ardex X77.

Do you mean where the two screeds will connect? Yes, I'd prime.

Keep in mind that though most modern adhesives do not always require priming, it generally doesn't hurt, and priming before tiling increases the open time of the adhesive, which is nice.