Finished Basements:Looking at the New Concrete Floor

Finished Basements: Looking at the New Concrete Floor

Jerome Sammy

http://www.fbscto.com

Welcome My Friends,

As we venture once again into the "Looking At" series from Finished Basements, about finishing your basement we would take  a look at the New Concrete Floor. You could find more articles at http://www.finishedbasements.blogspot.com/ that would be worth your while reading and stocking up on  very pertinent  information.

Now that the foundation walls have been underpinned, the dirt floor have been leveled, the weeping tiles have been installed , the 4 inches of  3/4 in clear gravel has been poured and spread and the plumbing have been roughed in, it is now time to pour the new concrete floor.

Pouring the New Concrete Floor

You could order your concrete from either a Mobile Mix or a Ready Mixed truck. The Mobile comes with the dry product and it is mixed on site as it comes off the truck. The Ready Mix comes with the cement, sand , gravel and water already mixed together. The only draw back with the Mobile Mix is that you don't get a consistent mix all the time.

Make sure  that the concrete meets the Engineer specifications . Usually for a basement floor you will need at least 20 MPa @ 28 days, and about 5% to 7%  air content. If the Engineer require a slump test, it should be done before the first load is poured into the basement.

To achieve the height of the finished concrete floor you could use a laser level to check the height to make sure its uniform. If you don't have a laser level you could make short stakes from pieces of 2 x 2 material and pound those into the dirt floor to the desired height and check from stake to stake with a level. If you use the stake method you will have to pound the stakes below the surface of the concrete after you have the finished level.

You would probably need about 5 or 6 people to help with the pouring of the concrete floor. If the truck cannot back up and pour the concrete directly into the basement, you will need at least 2 people out side to deliver to the basement opening and 2 people inside to spread the concrete around. Have one person leveling the concrete.

The Leveling Process

• After a rough height is achieved the concrete then goes through a screed process to achieve a final height.
• Screeding involves moving a long piece of 2 x 4 lumber back and forth  while also moving in a forward advancement to even out the surface.
• After the screeding is completed the concrete is then troweled to make a smooth surface.
• The waiting game begins as you will have  to wait for the water to rise to the surface of the concrete and dissipate.
• When most of the water has dissipated the power trowel could be applied or if you don't have a power trowel you will have to use a hand trowel.

Wait for the Concrete to cure for at least 24 hours before attempting to walk on it.  Now that your floor has been poured and finished we could proceed to  the framing and Mechanical stage.

Watch out for the next blog on the Framing Stage.

Jerome Sammy

888-433-5340

http://www.fbscto.com

info@fbscto.com