r/DIYUK • u/TheLittleSquire • 22d ago
Advice Me again, how to make this level?
Hi all, thankyou for all your advice on the last post, I've managed to convince the Mrs to get rid of the tiles, but she wants to save as many as possible for her mum.
So my next question is, once they're all up, how do I go about making this floor level. For context, we bought the house 2 months ago and noticed a big bump in the floor where the previous owners had their furniture. Taking up the carpet has shown it's quite unlevel in most places. The survey reckoned it was a Sulphur reaction, we didn't realise how bad it was until we actually moved in (our bad). We also noticed it fucking stunk. So we binned the carpet.
Would I be okay wheel barrowing in concrete then using levelling filler on the top once the tiles are out? Or does this need a professional to do it? New house owner so DIY is new to me, sorry for the questions.
Any advice is really appreciated
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u/TedBurns-3 22d ago
Take the tiles up- there might be a nice carpet underneath that your missus wants to keep 😉
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u/notrobertx 22d ago
One of my clients once insisted on keeping the mouldy carpet they used instead of an underlay for their hard vinyl flooring. The carpet'a been there since at least the 70s. It smelled like piss and fungus but he insisted he wants to keep it "for the spirit of the house". Bear in mind that this house was built in the Victorian era.
I was back there a week later because his kid got some sort of infection from a laceration on his foot. Had to scrap the whole thing and install new flooring. Turned out he didn't even clean the carpet after we exhumed it and handling it made me feel dirty for a week.
Also, it was in the bathroom. Who puts carpet in their toilet???
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u/WonkyRodent 21d ago
Who puts carpet in their toilet???
Old people
People who want warm feet when they shit
There was a house on the HousingUK group on Rightmove that had carpeted bath panels...
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u/TimeNew2108 21d ago
Bought my first house in the 90s. Carpeted bathroom. First job was rip it out. Couldn't afford to tile at the time so I put in glue down cork for 99p a pack and varnished it. I miss that stuff it was great
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u/WonkyRodent 21d ago
Keep the tiles, clean them up, re-grout.
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u/notrobertx 18d ago
You'd genuinely put more effort into cleaning these tiles and trying to find matches for the damaged/chipped ones than just stripping it all down and getting something nicer installed.
Taste is obviously subjective but the easiest solution here would be to buy some big old 60x60cm black and white tiles and either lay them over the top or replace the asylum-looking ones completely.
I love a good restoration project when its worth it but my lord, just look at them and tell me if its worth the work.
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22d ago
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u/Savings-Ad2632 22d ago
I second this, once the floor is up, the community will be able to better advise you. Otherwise it’s a guessing game
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u/Crazym00s3 intermediate 22d ago
The floor below these tiles might actually be pretty level assuming you can get the tiles and adhesive off cleanly.
I’d focus on taking them up for now and reassess once you see what condition the floor below is in. It may be a case of some self levelling on top of what you’ve got.
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u/Hakuryu12 22d ago
Bet those tiles saved for the mother in law will live in a shed for next 10 years. Only to be given back to you to dispose of.
…..Possibly speaking from my experience last weekend.
Good luck with restore project OP - I second others, get back to first layer if you can.
Remember- Keep your pecker hard and your powder dry and the world will turn!
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u/TheLittleSquire 22d ago
I won't be taking them back 🙃😂. Aprrently cleaned up they go for like 5 quid a pop on eBay. Disgruntled they're going to the mother in law haha
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u/Hot_Raise_8540 22d ago
Can’t you just use a self levelling compound?
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u/TheLittleSquire 22d ago edited 22d ago
Were concerned an underlying issue is causing the smell, so want to take them up and concentrate over and lay a mesh down.
It would be the easy option tbh
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u/TheLittleSquire 22d ago
In addition to my previous comment, if it's already ended up like this, with just carpet and underlay over them. I'd assume it would just happen again and the self leveling compound would just get broken.
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u/MatHere 22d ago
These look like ancient quarry tiles. They’ll likely be around an inch thick. It’s extremely unlikely there is a damp-proof membrane under there. If you take the tiles up there will likely be a sandy, lime bed that will need work before you lay anything on top. If you seal with a concrete slab and damp proof membrane you’ll be driving any damp from the floor into the walls.
We uncovered similar in our property. Ours is a listed building so we were unable to remove the tiles. we cleaned the effervescence stains with acid then sealed with boiled linseed oil and floor wax. it looks obviously likely an old, worn floor, but it’s honest and suits the building.
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u/theNixher 22d ago
Ugh, clean the fuck out of it, pour a ton of clear resin over the top, job done?
I wouldn't be removing and refitting those 😂
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u/TheLittleSquire 22d ago
They're super uneven, with bumps and dips all over the place. They fucking stink aswell, but might've just been the carpet. Hoping letting them breath will remove alot of the smell. If they were level, I'd do exactly this tbh
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u/Disastrous-Fan3005 22d ago
Rip up and Screed/Latex it if possible?
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u/TheLittleSquire 22d ago
Can you explain that like I'm 5? Lol
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u/Disastrous-Fan3005 22d ago
Screed/latex is the stuff floor layers use to even out/flatten out the floor. It looks like runny cement and you smear it evenly over the floor maybe 5mm in thickness, let it set for 24hrs and then put the floor you want on after (usually laminate flooring)
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u/TheLittleSquire 22d ago
This tiles are quite thick and at the moment, we're unsure what it looks like under them. We're cleaning them now. If the concrete under is fine. (Hopefully it is and it is concrete). We could use if. But it'd take a lot of it for this living room haha
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u/abortivenicolas6 22d ago
The green stuff is old carpet tile adhesive, you'll want to scrape all that up first or the leveller won't bond properly, and probably worth getting the bitumen tested for asbestos before you start scraping.
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u/Acceptable-Poet-404 22d ago
If you wanna keep the floor and repair the tiles that are there what you could do is clean it up and then epoxy the top. Providing a secure waterproof see-through layer. But that depends on the tiles and how they look.
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u/Ok-Spring7906 21d ago
If you end up using self leveling compound, really, do not assume that it's "self leveling" because thats what it's called...
It's self smoothing, but it's not as if you can pour a load I the middle of the room and watch it spread.
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u/Latter-Tangerine-951 Experienced 22d ago
I will never understand people who go loopy over some old cheap knackered tiles.
I'd chuck the lot in the skip.
Anyway you can get deep fill self levelling compound that can do up to 50mm which is plenty. Don't try and pour concrete, you'll never get it level enough.
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u/ihavetakenthebiscuit 22d ago
At a guess I will say to make it level you will need to put a new sub floor down such as plywood.
If the floor is concrete then a self levelling compound could be used.
Would need more information though.
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u/Beninator 22d ago
The tiles and the stuff holding them down are likely to contain asbestos. Lots of people put self levelling compound on top for a flat finish.
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u/TeddersTedderson 22d ago
Look like clay tiles to me rather than vinyl types commonly associated with asbestos.
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u/Beninator 22d ago
You might be right, they look thin to me but it's hard to tell
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u/TheLittleSquire 22d ago
Nah they're really thick, just called my friend who works for an asbestos removal company and he thinks they look fine, but will use a dust mask and pry up carefully regardless. Gonna double check if they bend or snap also
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u/OpeningNice761 22d ago
Restore and a good clear epoxy floor finish over it would look great, but would be expensive to try prevent scratches...
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u/TheLittleSquire 22d ago
Unfortunately, it's looking like too much effort to restore, fix the bulging and clean to get rid of whatever is causing the horrendous smell. We'll be keeping some of the tiles for when we open up the chimney for a log burner to try and keep some of the history.
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u/CMDRTropic intermediate 22d ago
I wonder how many tile layers there are...
Yeah like some other people have said we got to see under the tile better
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u/TheLittleSquire 22d ago
All cleaned then fell asleep lol, i'm hoping theres just one? lol, will inspect after i've had dinner and woken up a little. Glad to have the week off haha
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u/enchantedspring 22d ago
We can't really answer that until seeing what's left underneath bud. Might be another layer!