Floor in existing house. Pour concrete or self-leveling compound?

[Dr Benz]

Planning to pour a foundation in an old house.

What is the drying time for say 10cm concrete versus 4-5cm self-leveling compound?

Is the compound good enough to walk on?

We don't have much time to waste on curing time.

 

[nino]

Going to cast a foundation in an old house.

How long is the drying time for, say, 10cm concrete versus 4-5cm self-leveling compound?

Is the compound good enough to walk on?

We don't have much time to waste on curing time.

By drying time, do you mean before it's ready for flooring? Count on at least 3 months if you cast, and it needs to be warm with good ventilation.

For self-leveling compound, you can expect it to be ready for flooring from 24 hours to 1 week, but you have to apply the compound on something.

There are ROTbruk products that are ready from a few hours up to a week; you can cast on insulation board and also embed waterborne underfloor heating.

You should probably specify a bit more what you're planning to do for a better answer.

 

[Kaschsten]

What you gain in time with leveling compound you lose in money.

40-50mm leveling compound amounts to ~68-85kg/m2 of leveling compound. Depending on the surface, the cost can quickly escalate.

 

[Dr Benz]

By drying time, do you mean before it's ready to be covered? Count on at least 3 months if you're casting, and it should be warm with good ventilation.

With self-leveling compound, you should count on anywhere from 24 hours to 1 week before it's ready to be covered, but you have to apply the compound on something.

There are ROTbruk that can be ready in anything from a few hours to a week, you can cast on cell plastic and also embed water-based floor heating.

You should probably specify a bit more what you're planning to do for a better answer

Yep, I understood that you have to count on about 3 months even if you have fast-drying concrete because you also have to consider that it shrinks while it sets.

When it comes to self-leveling compound, there shouldn't be any problem applying it on the insulation. And the price wasn't that bad compared to concrete since I need to get hold of two people to help me get it even.

But considering the time right now, there really aren't any alternatives.

 

[Dr Benz]

What you gain in time with self-leveling compound, you lose in money.

40-50mm self-leveling compound is ~68-85kg/m2 of self-leveling compound. Depending on the area, the cost quickly escalates.

We're talking about approximately 45 sqm, so not very large. It might become even smaller. But I have received a price, and sure, it's a bit more expensive, but time also costs money with double housing. For me, it's an estimated 10000-20000, so the time offsets that in 2 months.

 

[nino]

Make sure you have a complete understanding of how everything should be done if you're going to self-level, enough so that you don't get leveling compound under the insulation because then it will start to float.

 

[Dr Benz]

Make sure you have a full understanding of how everything should be done if you're going to use self-leveling compound, enough so that you don't get compound under the insulation because then it will start to float

Thank you. Good input. The sides are secured with eps-concrete and the insulation boards are staggered and held together, so it shouldn't be a problem. BUT very grateful for anything to consider before doing it. It becomes much harder to realize things afterward...