I am going to tear up a floor in a "cabin" I have in southern Europe. It is a crawl space-like solution with a concrete slab.
Today, the slab looks from above,
wood floor
Cast concrete joists at 300mm centers and air between them.
concrete slab
crawl space
I have a problem with the floor smelling bad (probably because of moisture from below).
Therefore, I planned to tear it up, fill the airspaces with lightweight concrete, and then level the floor with floor leveling compound.
Finish with a vinyl floor (the same as we have in the rest of the house).
The work seemed quite simple.
But after one winter, I realize it would be nice to have underfloor heating (connected to a heat pump). Yes, it gets "cold" even in parts of southern Europe😊.
I have a total of about 180mm to use from the concrete slab to the underside of the vinyl floor. I don't know how much the existing slab can withstand in terms of load. I need to chip away the "concrete joists," and the surface underneath is not flat, so I have to fill with something to make it even if I were to use cellular plastic. The vinyl floor means I can't use grooved panels without laying something over them. And I would prefer to avoid wood because I have issues with all wood starting to smell after a while (moist both inside and out).
Any tips and ideas for different solutions?
(One picture taken under the wood floor in the cavity that I plan to fill with lightweight concrete.)
Today, the slab looks from above,
wood floor
Cast concrete joists at 300mm centers and air between them.
concrete slab
crawl space
I have a problem with the floor smelling bad (probably because of moisture from below).
Therefore, I planned to tear it up, fill the airspaces with lightweight concrete, and then level the floor with floor leveling compound.
Finish with a vinyl floor (the same as we have in the rest of the house).
The work seemed quite simple.
But after one winter, I realize it would be nice to have underfloor heating (connected to a heat pump). Yes, it gets "cold" even in parts of southern Europe😊.
I have a total of about 180mm to use from the concrete slab to the underside of the vinyl floor. I don't know how much the existing slab can withstand in terms of load. I need to chip away the "concrete joists," and the surface underneath is not flat, so I have to fill with something to make it even if I were to use cellular plastic. The vinyl floor means I can't use grooved panels without laying something over them. And I would prefer to avoid wood because I have issues with all wood starting to smell after a while (moist both inside and out).
Any tips and ideas for different solutions?
(One picture taken under the wood floor in the cavity that I plan to fill with lightweight concrete.)
