Problem after replacing the sill plate, from concrete slab to new tiled floor.
Hello,
We have a house from the 70s, pressure-treated sills that have been replaced from the inside, a ventilated floor installed, and it's been good. But there was a part of the house with a concrete/tiled floor where the sill was replaced from the outside, and there have been lingering odor issues there! Several different “experts” have looked at this, and I've received various suggestions that we've tested. You do everything to make it right! I've heard that “the smell spreads through electrical wires,” “it takes at least a year after sill replacement before you can start evaluating,” “replace insulation” (which we did, removed gypsum, insulation, asfaboard) “it's all in your head,” etc. But now we've darn well ripped up 16 m2 of tiles and concrete, carried it out, and the old underlying insulation. None of this smells at all. BUT the piece of gypsum that was under the concrete floor, inside where the sill was replaced from the outside, STINKS! If you've once smelled the scent of bad pressure-treated sill, you'll know. All that is now cut away; it was about 4 m. Because we could only replace what was above the floor. As far as we can tell now, it doesn't smell (though it does smell bad outside where this pile is). We are now sure that there is no old sill left in the house. We were afraid of finding some encased sill and thought that or a lot of old debris on the concrete slab was the problem. What we can tell is it was the odor-contaminated gypsum that smelled after the sill replacement.
Now I need tips and advice!
We want to clean the concrete slab; how do we do it best? We have used an industrial vacuum to clean. But we'll do it again! Should the concrete slab be cleaned with some product? I've read a bit about boracol(?) but our slab doesn’t seem to have any mold or fungus and doesn’t smell weird... Wash? With what? Ventilate, if so, how long? I understand it's very important that there are no residues/debris left on the concrete when pouring new, it needs to be clean.
Our plan on how to proceed after cleaning the concrete slab:
1) Pour a layer so that the floor/concrete slab is even.
2) Lay Platon mat or a similar mat. We weren’t thinking of laying mechanical ventilation here, as we have in the rest of the house. Or what do you say? Those who have seen the concrete slab say it is dry. It looks dry, but I don’t know what to look for...
3) Insulation/cellular plastic
4) Self-leveling compound/heating coils/tiles.
Anyone have any thoughts or ideas after reading my post? Grateful for tips!
We have a house from the 70s, pressure-treated sills that have been replaced from the inside, a ventilated floor installed, and it's been good. But there was a part of the house with a concrete/tiled floor where the sill was replaced from the outside, and there have been lingering odor issues there! Several different “experts” have looked at this, and I've received various suggestions that we've tested. You do everything to make it right! I've heard that “the smell spreads through electrical wires,” “it takes at least a year after sill replacement before you can start evaluating,” “replace insulation” (which we did, removed gypsum, insulation, asfaboard) “it's all in your head,” etc. But now we've darn well ripped up 16 m2 of tiles and concrete, carried it out, and the old underlying insulation. None of this smells at all. BUT the piece of gypsum that was under the concrete floor, inside where the sill was replaced from the outside, STINKS! If you've once smelled the scent of bad pressure-treated sill, you'll know. All that is now cut away; it was about 4 m. Because we could only replace what was above the floor. As far as we can tell now, it doesn't smell (though it does smell bad outside where this pile is). We are now sure that there is no old sill left in the house. We were afraid of finding some encased sill and thought that or a lot of old debris on the concrete slab was the problem. What we can tell is it was the odor-contaminated gypsum that smelled after the sill replacement.
Now I need tips and advice!
We want to clean the concrete slab; how do we do it best? We have used an industrial vacuum to clean. But we'll do it again! Should the concrete slab be cleaned with some product? I've read a bit about boracol(?) but our slab doesn’t seem to have any mold or fungus and doesn’t smell weird... Wash? With what? Ventilate, if so, how long? I understand it's very important that there are no residues/debris left on the concrete when pouring new, it needs to be clean.
Our plan on how to proceed after cleaning the concrete slab:
1) Pour a layer so that the floor/concrete slab is even.
2) Lay Platon mat or a similar mat. We weren’t thinking of laying mechanical ventilation here, as we have in the rest of the house. Or what do you say? Those who have seen the concrete slab say it is dry. It looks dry, but I don’t know what to look for...
3) Insulation/cellular plastic
4) Self-leveling compound/heating coils/tiles.
Anyone have any thoughts or ideas after reading my post? Grateful for tips!
If you are going to level the slab with leveling compound, make sure to vacuum thoroughly, prime, and then pour the leveling compound. Nothing more needs to be done here.