Basement Floors - Comments
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thank you
sunny at August 31, 2007 11:51 PM
Posted by: sunny at August 31, 2007 11:51 PMwhat should be used to seal a concrete floor, and is it too late to seal it after more than a yr after installation
john at March 11, 2008 03:19 PM
Posted by: john at March 11, 2008 03:19 PMI have an article about sealing basement floors and there is some discussion about sealing stained concrete floors that might have useful information for you. The bottom line is you want to use a sealant that's specifically formulated for concrete.
I don't know if it's too late for your concrete at this point. It depends on how stained it is, and if you can readily clean it from the stains. The sealant will have directions to help you decide.
The Flooring Lady at March 11, 2008 03:43 PM
Posted by: The Flooring Lady at March 11, 2008 03:43 PMYou provide great info, thanks. One option that works great for basements is a decorative concrete overlay with area rugs. The concrete has a lot of benefits primarily that they look great but also prohibit mold growth. Area rugs can be rolled up and sent to the cleaner. The problem with wall to wall is that once its down it's a major project to remove. Carpet glue is a disaster. Carpet does provide warmth but also is very unhealthy. Mold will grow in carpets and will make you sick or worse. It's gradual. I think you'll notice that basements with wall to wall carpet get used less frequently as time goes on. Thats because you don't like the way you feel down there. I guarantee that everyone who has a great basement with wall to wall carpet after a while just don't use the basement. I know I have my home office in the basement and I can tell the air quality is terrible and I have a dry basement. Though my dehumidifier tells me otherwise.
Ed Winslow at March 14, 2008 04:20 AM
Posted by: Ed Winslow at March 14, 2008 04:20 AMI have a basement that had water in it after my sump pump failed. I need to replace the flooring. Once the berber carpet was removed I found that half of the basement floor is covered with glue resedue and the other half in old tiles that had been glued down. I have tried removing these tiles with a scraper but they won't budge. Any suggestions? The flooring I am wanting to put down is the peel and stick tiles. Can I just go over the old tiles? The floor is uneven with half of tiles removed, do I need to remove the rest? If so, how?
Tammy at May 7, 2008 06:04 AM
Posted by: Tammy at May 7, 2008 06:04 AMTammy, I hate it when sump pumps fail! And of course they do it an the most inopportune times.
What kind of tiles are you trying to remove? If they aren't in bad shape, and haven't absorbed water so won't mold, you could leave them down. As long as the existing tiles have a clean, smooth surface, you should be able to successfully apply the new tiles.
Because you have an uneven surface, maybe you can do something to build up the un-tiled section so the floor is even before applying your new tiles.
If you don't know what the old tiles are made of you want to be careful that you aren't removing asbestos tiles. If you know they aren't made of asbestos, and you want to remove them, you may be stuck with chipping away. Any glue solvent you try to apply might damage your indoor air quality, and possibly your health.
The Flooring Lady at May 8, 2008 02:05 PM
Posted by: The Flooring Lady at May 8, 2008 02:05 PMI am in the process of finishing my basement. My contractor said that I didn't need to waterproof the cement walls and floors and the blueboard and plastering of the new walls has all been done now. I just noticed that the floor in one of the corners in the basement is a little wet. I never noticed water in the basement before because I had "stuff" against all the walls and piled up for the past 15 years. Someone will be coming out to look at the cement integrity outside and try and fix the problem, but I have a feeling that I'm always going to have dampness. I really want to put a rug down and the contractor said I could put these 2x2 waterproof tiles down before I put the rug down. So my questions are how should I prepare the floors at this point? Will those tiles even work since they won't be going all the way to the cement wall? Should I not put a rug down at all? Thank you.
Laura at May 10, 2008 07:14 AM
Posted by: Laura at May 10, 2008 07:14 AMHi Laura, Why would your contractor say that you don't need to waterproof the cement walls and floors? Since you are now seeing water, then obviously something needs to be done. You shouldn't have a problem with dampness so long as the cement is sealed. You should then be able to install virtually any type of flooring you'd like (be sure to read about the different types of flooring for cement at the site). I don't usually recommend carpeting, mainly because of problems that can arise with mold, mildew and just because allergens are more difficult to remove from carpeting, but as always, the choice is yours.
Do you know what type of waterproof tiles your contractor recommended putting on the concrete? I would still think that the cement itself should have to be sealed to prevent any dampness from coming through.
The Flooring Lady at May 11, 2008 01:14 PM
Posted by: The Flooring Lady at May 11, 2008 01:14 PMhave a basement section - as part of new addition. concrete floor ... walls have been treated
there is a large "stress crack" in the middle of floor - so says my contractor - and "not to worry"
so when I seal the floor (with what) - can i just fill the crack with sealant?
al at May 14, 2008 06:52 AM
Posted by: al at May 14, 2008 06:52 AM
Hi Al, How 'new' are we talking about? Did the contractor provide any kind of warranty against defects? I'm sure he'd tell you 'not to worry' - he doesn't want to be out time and money to fix it, now does he? If it's 'new' and it's broke then it should be fixed. You run the risk of moisture problems if he didn't put a moisture proof barrier down before the concrete was poured.
Options for fixing it are covered elsewhere on the site. Good luck and feel free to report back on post additional info.
The Flooring Lady at May 14, 2008 08:21 PM
Posted by: The Flooring Lady at May 14, 2008 08:21 PMComment Page: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7
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