Hi there I've just bought a house and the upstairs box room has a concrete floor( built above the garage). What I would like to do is make this floor alot warmer and put carpet on it (prev had cheap laminate flooring). In my mind I would like to put 150mm celotex XR4150 followed by 2 part self levelling compound and then underlay and carpet. Is this the right way to do this? How do i fix the celotex to the concrete floor? any help would be appreciated. thanks SC
I personally think 150mm is way overkill. But it's your call. I would lay down 50mm max thickness Celo or similar, cut to fit neatly - or use an expanding foam gun very carefully to fill any gaps. For carpet, you'd need to overlay this with chipboard flooring, I reckon, 'cos the celo is not very solid and needs protecting. Whether a DPM is needed, I dunno. In theory the Celo itself is a waterproof membrane being poly foam with foil both sides. I think I'd also just have the whole thing 'floating', tho' probably no harm in sticking the Celo down with a few tubes of adhesive - just a bead near perimeter and a couple of diagonals. You could probably do the same with the chipboard layer - just adhere the darned thing down - it ain't going anywhere. The chipboard layer doesn't need to be thick as it'll be fully supported - I think you can buy thinner stuff around 12mm thick which is also T&G'd along its edges?
thanks DA i think you might be right 50mm will be too much as it might take it higher than the level in the hallway. I will go with 20mm prob and then 22mm T&G. What I did notice yesterday was that the concrete floor had some cracks - so would it be wise to put some latex self levelling compound down first (3mm) and then proceed with the floating floor? thanks SC
I wouldn't bother - it's not as tho' it's a ground floor which could have damp issues. If you have ~45mm overall thickness to play with, I'd look for thinner chipboard (as it will be fully supported) and thicker insulation - 35mm? That will make a HUGE difference to the comfort of that floor. I'd glue the sheets down - use something like StixAll - and also a few beads to secure the chipboard, basically to stop excessive movement. It could be a wee bit springy without . Cut the insulation sheets to size. Then fit them all down in one go with a few adhesive beads or 'dabs'. Lay your chipboard sheets over it at random and put some weight on it to if necessary, as the insulation sheets may well have a 'bow' in them which could spring up before the adhesive sets. Next day, start laying the chipboard.
ok will do. will measure what thickness i have to play with and take it from there. Its only a small 3.1m x 2.8 (8sq mtrs) so ive calculated i will need 3 celotex boards and then 10 T&G boards. thanks once again.
HI DA i have 55mm to play with but I figured that If i go with 35mm celotex plus 18mm t&g - 53mm then with the underlay and carpet ( 25mm combined) will raise the level between the room and the hallway.. so would 25mm celotex be better? unless T&G are available in 12mm? SC
I was kinda hoping someone else with more experience of flooring would jump in and offer advice , 'cos my experience of this is very limited. I know you can get 12mm chipboard flooring, but I don't know for sure if it's available in T&G. It might sound stupid, but it's always worth having a look on fleabay to see if there's a cheaper alternative; you never know, there could be someone fairly nearby who's removing a 'click-together' laminate floor, and this sort of stuff goes for next to now't 2nd hand. You are chust looking at a solid floating layer that'll protect the insulation, and be a nice firm base for your underlay and carpet. WHAT DO PEEPS THINK?
the previous owner has left some laminate boards - so are you saying this can be used as well and NOT necessarily chipboard T&G?? if i can then I will see how much of it is left. thanks DA
If the laminate flooring is designed for 'floating' - ie: it doesn't need to be glued down - then it sounds ideal . I guess a thin layer of the recommended laminate underlay first would make sense? Absorbs small movements, makes it quieter, etc.
DA advice is always very good 18mm t&g onto of 25 celotex would be best bet floating with the joints glued