I have been installing concrete microcement overlays for about 20 years and I can tell you that self levelers are without a doubt the one that takes the most experience and skill to pull off properly. Everyone thinks you can just dump and leave it like in this video. If for yourself and you dont care, then fine but for a paying customer this will never fly. Those pour lines end up being ridges and youll get discoloration from pour to pour especially if your water content isnt the exact same from mix to mix. You HAVE to use a gauge rake to pull it all even and then quickly smooth out with a trowel or magic trowel/squeegee to tie in your pour line and have to work FAST. Every load must be mixed the exact same amount of water or youll get color shifts from each bucket. Self levelers will also develop a bunch of tiny micro-cracks, no matter how well you prime and even if you use low water content.

@DaddyBear3000

2 жыл бұрын

Absolutely and having a spike roller to agitate and blend pours would have made a massive difference.

@balenabros3246

2 жыл бұрын

Facts

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

Also if you are getting microcracks are you wetting your surface before you pour? Maybe thats causing it!

@jamesmorrison7847

2 жыл бұрын

I agree with Mojo jojo. In fact on larger projects we used a specialized machine that mixes and pumps the self levelling product while our guy used the gauge rakes and long handled trowel to break the surface tension and prevent ridges.

@woozy607

2 жыл бұрын

Another important part is prep work, that floor should of been cleaned with a grinder

its great to watch your videos, as you explain things. You may not get the results all watchers would like, but the process is key. Way to go! Doing a overlay is not a easy job for one person, yet you somehow managed to pull it off. 2-3 people needed..One mix, one to use a magic trowel/squeegee to mix the line patterns you are getting, and if you want to color it, someone to sprinkle the color powder. There are so many companies making overlays from super cheap to stupid expensive. I have tried about 6 brands to make samples, and they vary in 3 groups...some are just like this, one color putty mix, and some are more like a gray concrete that dries with some concrete characteristics in shades.

Super excited to see all of the changes to this house as this series progresses! That floor pattern is so organic. Really surprised by how much I like that! 🤩

Nice video. I used LevelQuik RS and the matching primer. It was my first time and I had a similar experience. After 12 bags I learned quite a lot: The recipe on the bag makes a dry mix that doesn't flow enough to actually level. Especially in dry California. I talked to a pro tile-layer who uses the same everyday and he uses a way way wetter consistency (like 20% more water), and no problems. I'm usually skeptical of people who say "I never read the bag, always done it this way, my daddy taught me, blah blah", but he was right, even just a little more water made everything better. I could take my time mixing without worrying about it being too dry by the time I poured. And the lower viscosity made it flow so so so much better. I'm not one to deviate from manufacturer instructions, but since you had success with a wetter mix, I wanted to back your video up with my similar experience. Last thing people should know is that it doesn't fair-out like caulk or wall compound does. You can only spread it so thin before it looses its cohesiveness and you're just rolling tiny balls of grit around. It's best if you put it on thick, all the way up to vertical walls. It's not so great for skimming over a shallow low spot. If you're covering it afterward you might not care about surface finish, but it will tend to break up and turn to dust where it's very thin. Your mileage may vary! If someone disagrees with my method, that's fine, mix how you would like to! I'm just sharing what worked for me. That's what DIY KZread is all about!

No spiked roller or spiked shoes?

I'd love to see more progress on your remodel :). Also, I like that you show where you failed, but then took what you learned to make something really cool.

Curious. How is the floor holding out? Did it crack or flake like some of these commenters said it would?

For future furniture components give high strength grout a try. Its considerably stronger, may cost you far less & once you get the timing down you get a sense of when you can remove pieces from forms yet stil work the surfaces for say burnishing, carving, detailing etc. A very experienced boss told me about that when explaining how he cast all of these specialized pcs for a winery's venting system using custom cast pcs, it was very trick.

Previous scene. Oh cool he put shoes back on.... Next scene with no shoes and feet covered in concrete. Why???? Did you start mixing the bucket and decide to kick off your shoes?

@vernonalexis704

Жыл бұрын

Odd video lol

Great video. I really appreciate you showing the mistakes as well as the victory.

Nice video, very informative. It's important to learn from mistakes, thank you for sharing!

Hey Ben. Have you had any issues with cracking issues since?

thanks for sharing the 'fail' portion.. that is the best lesson :D

@boyshanks

10 ай бұрын

I totally agree. That was the best part 👍

I've made the same messy mistake while helping some friends w their new house haha I freaked out instead and we tried to rent a concrete grinder 😆 thanks for this video! It made me feel better about the mistake and giving the product another shot on my own floors.

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

Did it work on your floor?

Why would you want the concrete flooring flush with the tile instead of actually putting down tile, wood or carpet?

You need to rake (special rake with 1/8" - 1/4" gap with floor) the surface while pouring. This would have gotten rid of both the bubbles as well as the color variation.

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

A trowel works too!

@davidshore4811

Жыл бұрын

No you use a trowel and spike roller to roll the bubbles out at the end

@dennisjazz5142

8 ай бұрын

@@davidshore4811u dont use no damn trowl!

Nice job and that’s exactly what it looks when a wave washes up and the sand joins together we’ll put and a little extra water makes a big difference and that’s a great idea pour into another bucket to check mix thanks

Great tips about the mixing, dry spots, and lumps.

How thick should a concrete overlay over a wooden base be?

this video should honestly be titled "how to mess up every single step of self levelling concrete"

Hello there, I’m a new subscriber! Can you tell me how many self-leveling bags in total you’ve used in that area? Thank you

Learning is a frustrating process!! Good job! Great idea with the two buckets verification part...

It is very important to read directions. I used this as a complete beginner and had no issues. It worked perfectly, with one pour. I could tell on your first pour that not enough water had been added. It's supposed to be runny so that it will seek its own level, like water does. Also, it's not meant to be the finished floor so it may not hold up over time.

@judymiller5154

Жыл бұрын

what would you put over it? would Skimstone work? or are you thinking a flooring like tile or planks?

@UnsettlingDwarf

11 ай бұрын

seal the concrete and it is supposed to last longer then the house

I just had a total catastrophe doing self lever in my kitchen. You really need to be ready for anything and have all tools ready. Also don’t poor under your walls like this. Use spray foam to add a border. You need that space for expansion.

Oh man - I felt those stress levels at the start! End result looks great and will pocket that advice of pouring into a second bucket to test before pouring!!

Do you have to do it bare feet when you apply the adhesive?

Great video. Thank you for showing us your mistakes and workarounds.

I recently resurfaced my garage with this stuff. My findings were similar, where the mix needed more water and I ruined the first could of pours. I ended up misting the wet concrete with water to even out the swirls. It went OK. I need to do another coat with these lessons learned, though.

@NoName-be5ir

Жыл бұрын

How’s it holding up in your garage? I looking to do this in my garage but curious if it holds up to parking in it

@amwtm

Жыл бұрын

@@NoName-be5ir It's held up well. No spalling or immediate signs of wear.

Haha. Yeah everyone’s first concrete experience alone usually goes this way. The fear of “running out of time” and having your product set up on you. Key is remain calm, and be smooth. Everything is in the prep. Smooth is fast. At this point I can do all concrete projects but when I first started I felt like I needed to be the flash of concrete work. Gave me so much anxiety. Looks good brother

what kind of clear coat would you have put on the concrete? And also make sure it stay on?

On self leveling concrete, you do it backwards. Usually we pour concrete powder first before water. In self leveling we should put water in the bucket first then the concrete powder based on what it says in the packaging. In this way youll be able to eliminate the unmixed chunks in your bucket when you pour it down. But hey this is a really nice content. Kudos to you. You earned my subs. 4 thumbs up

They make matte concrete sealers with no gloss that will prevent things from soaking in.

I wanna do this. But I worry if I don’t do it right and have to repeat. How heavy is that. Will I have to reinforce my joists

I have installed more than 2 million sq. ft of self levelling cementitious underlayment for rehabbing commercial buildings and a few residential projects. We usually shot blasted the floors with a Blastrac machine to mechanically etch the floor and to remove surface contaminants. We applied a latex bonding agent to the concrete to adhere the topping to the concrete substrate. Temperature is very critical for these materials, and we used ice cold water on hot days to slow down the material from flash setting. Our most commonly installed product was Ardex K-15 in foot traffic areas and Ardex K-500 where there was wheeled traffic.

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

Ardex is the absolute best of any self leveler i have ever used! You could drive a semi over that stuff when its dry!

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

By wheeled traffic are you talking vehicles i assume?

@jamesmorrison7847

2 жыл бұрын

@@StonemanRocks At one time I was the largest user of Ardex in the country. I installed it all over New York City to rehab buildings. 80% of all construction in NYC is rehab of existing buildings.

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

@@jamesmorrison7847 Very impressive! I would have loved to work with you! Im sure I would have learned a lot of good nuggets of knowledge! My resume might not be quite as accomplished ,however, I think I could carry on a conversation with you over a cup of coffee about this topic! My experience is well rounded with a lot of commercial tenant development and new construction as well, movies, restaurants, hospitals, post offices ,custom homes , tract homes etc. not to mention probably 1000 shower/ bath remodels! I have used a lot of different self levelers in all kinds of different senarios. Ardex is by far the best!

I have a small backyard with unevent brick blocks floor from the previous owner, can I put concrete blocks on the top of the brick floor without taking all the bricks out? I'm thinking to get the flooring molds then fill concrete in (or use your method)?

Will the primer etch into painted concrete? Hydronic floor but the builder used a regular concrete instead of gypsum so the floor isn't super flat. They carpeted the floor but I'm thinking vinyl panels. If it wasn't painted then I'd go with regular ceramic or stone tile for faster heat transfer.

Good that you showed problems that emerge when pouring by yourself. There are too much vids when you see perfectly done things in ideal scenarios

Would it be better to use more water and just wait longer for the dry time?

Can you use this method to fix cracked outdoor concrete patio?

Been working with self levelling for 30 years clean buckets are essential if not more water is needed don’t try too do more than you can cover larger areas larger buckets are best even better have a hand mixing cleaning while you go 👍

Nice video. Glad you figured out the process after a hiccup. Mahalo for sharing! : )

This surface will not wear nicely. SLC will not last uncovered. It just isn’t like real concrete, it will start to abrade and sand will come out of it. At that point it will wear very fast. Maybe if you’re always barefoot on it… I would look into at least a surface hardener which doesn’t change the look but might keep this together longer.

@animalmother556x45

2 жыл бұрын

Yeah, SLC suuuuucks for this kind of application.

@mileshh515

2 жыл бұрын

He could do an epoxy topcoat though, right?

@homer009x

2 жыл бұрын

@@mileshh515 should work yes

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

Or do a skim coat of ardex! Cheaper by far than epoxy!

1 year later, how is holding on ? did it flake or anything similar ?

You mentioned your video sponsor Extra. I am interested and wanted to check out but could not find the link in description field.. please provide.

Nice job. The issue I always have with the self leveling is that you do add more water than you think. You really want it to flow.

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

Not too much though or you will weaken it and it will turn to dust!

@kimlewis5429

Жыл бұрын

​@@StonemanRocks south Louisiana climate (humid) barely had to add extra. But my niece in AZ had way different experience..had to add considerably more than I did. We had the same size area to do as well. And we both ended up pretty happy with results..

@StonemanRocks

Жыл бұрын

@@kimlewis5429 good deal glad it worked! The reason for the xtra water isnt so it takes longer to set up, its so that it flows or (self levels) better! What makes this stuff level itself is the shape of the silicon sand! Its more round so it rolls! More water = more space between the sand particles so more room to roll! You gotta watch it though too much water and it weakens it to a point its powdery the next day like any cement containing product, there is a line you can cross with too much water and your product becomes weaker ! Way too much water and its worthless! I live in new mexico so about as dry here as it gets! About like AZ.

@kimlewis5429

Жыл бұрын

@@StonemanRocks all great info! Thanks for sharing!

It's always a good idea to make sure there's water in the bucket first...then poor the bag in thirds I to the bucket, while mixing and adding water. Round 2...you knocked it out of the PARK!! NICE!!

I have a garage floor would to do this to but am concerned about how well the finished floor will hold up to the weight of cars driving on it. Thinking of using a fiber-reinforced concrete mix or adding fiber-reinforced additive to self leveling mix. Thoughts or suggestions appreciated.

@travs8048

5 ай бұрын

You need to find a product that the manufacturer recommends for use as an uncovered finish. Self levelers is supposed to be covered by flooring. It isn't strong enough for your garage.

Can the self leveler concrete pour be used in outddor basketball court to make it smoother surface? Thanks for answer anyone? I have a basketball court and inwant to use it as tennis court as well

I was watching and thought to myself... how funny would it be to leave the leveling compound bare and keep that as the floor. And then.. I got to the end of the video and am cracking up. Dude..

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

If you use a good product like ardex or comparable you absolutely could leave it as a finished surface! It will cost 3 times as much for the material however!

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

You could use it as a finish floor and acid stain it

can you use a stamp roller over it once it almost dry

How did a Self-Leveling mix end up uneven?

You were missing a very important tool , Its a roller that has spikes .That roller will take the bubbles out and blend the cement together.

How come you don't use spike roller to spread and get rid off the bubble

Shouldn't there be some sort of border tape on the sides, that keeps the concrete from binding to the walls? That way sound transmission to the walls is prohibited.

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

Huh?

@boyshanks

10 ай бұрын

I never thought of that. Good catch. 👍

Thank you so much your video helped me alot

Will this work on a patio?

Shouldn't you remove the bottom inch or so of drywall too?

Thanks! 👍

A week later you returned to count how many cracks were visible right?

Did I see that right did he self level the concrete upto the tile in the hallway

oh man had to chuckle when that first clump plopped out. The end result looks nice though

Nice job.

How much water per bag did you use?

How thick can you pour self leveling

I’m gonna use this stuff to level a small part of my basement floor then put subfloor over top. It seems everyone says the mixing directions seem off. Not enough water. Can any pro out there tell me a good mix ratio for this product for a consistent pour and self level. Any help would be appreciated.

@Anninukichild

Жыл бұрын

U want it like a thick milkshake

Great video and information 🙏🏽

Cement levelers don’t work on its own,you need to use the big throwell or a cement squiggy to spread it evenly and yes don’t need to mix more then you can handle

LOVE it.

How long before you can walk on it

Have you ever thought about consulting a pro, or even the manufacturer before putting out bad info like this? You could have had such a better time and better results by having a 5 minute call with someone who does this everyday. For anyone watching this: 1. NEVER alter the water amount, just change products based on your environment. 2. Spending $100 on the right barrel, mixing drill, spreader, and smoother will result in better installation and results. 3. Although it’s self leveling, it needs to be smoothed or agitated using a spike roller to break the surface tension. This is a must. 4. This product is not meant as a wear layer, there are other products that can hold up to surface wear. Also, applying a penetrating sealer will not change the look, and protect against staining.

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

You can too add xtra water and it can work for a wear surface too! You just need to buy the good stuff with a high compressive strength and do the right prep on the existing surface! Im thinking you are a well intentioned keyboard cowboy but that you have limited or no flooring exp! No one calls a trowel a “spreader“ ! And what the hell is a “smoother” lol! Plus $100 isnt going to buy a drill that will stand up to the rigors of tile /stone installations overtime not where I live anyway!

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

I take that back my smoothers name is Dave!

@seetherage

2 жыл бұрын

It’s on the bag and would have taken 2 mins of googling for them to find the right answer. I’m still perplexed that they are fine spreading bad information for other home owners. Especially with something that is such a pain to fix later.

@cowoverthemoo

16 күн бұрын

Experts are after perfection and perfection is costly.. he was after the imperfections, hence why he said he doesn't mind stains and he liked the patterns he got. Giving him the old rustic look..

Run a 9 inch high speed angle grinder with a segmented diamond tool (floor grinder} over the leveler with the wave pattern, it semi polishes and burnishes the surface and leaves a unique circular pastern then apply a concrete sealer

So satisfying 💪🏽🇺🇸

Can we use this method on cement plastered floor

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

What you mean by cement plastered floor exactly?

Nice Save Ben, hope your feet are ok.

Even after you added more water you still need more water and you must mix for 2 minutes. Also you do not need to prime when pouring over self leveler it will bond to itself.

Aren’t you supposed to grind any contamination off the floor before you prime.

{scratching head} Isn't the adjacent floor Saltillo floor tile? If so, that is typically 1/2 thick tile. IF SO, the concrete is level to the adjacent concrete and not 1/2 lower ...and you made a big mistake. Nevermind what this will do to the base of the sheetrock that absorbed the water in the mix over time.

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

Nah it dries so fast it wont hurt the sheetrock!

@joemoya9743

2 жыл бұрын

​@@StonemanRocks All these types of materials do not dry... they hydrolize. If they dried, they would be power. Hydrolysis is the process of breaking down the concrete as it reacts with water. In this instance, the water content is high so that the leveling can occur. The water in the mix will absorb into the surrounding material and/or evaporate. The difference between absorption rate and evaporation rate determines the rate of breakdown in the concrete.… too fast, and it cracks… too slow, and it loses cohesion. Here, the difference in the rate of absorption of water into the cellulose in the sheetrock and evaporation in the air (as well as the process of hydrolysis) means that the edges of the leveling material will probably crack over-time. It is not the speed of of evaporation of absorption but the difference between the rates of hydrolysis. That is why preparation of the both surface and leveling material has so many variations that the process becomes based more on experience rather than simply a list of instructions. As a result, most experienced persons typically tape moisture resistant craft paper or plastic to the wall adjoining the floor leveling material.

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

@@joemoya9743 you havent used much self leveler have you!

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

@@joemoya9743 its not going to crack on the edges ! And by the way mr wizard the way it self levels is partially a function of the amount of water but also do in fact to the shape of the aggregate silica in the product because it is round therefore it rolls when it “flows” ! Without enough water though it stops flowing and you get high spots. Water or not you still have to work it as you pour it with a trowel rake something! Too much water just makes it powder after it dries . I have never seen it crack from too much water! Also there is a chemical reaction that makes it dry not just evaporation ! You can tell as it gets warm to the touch while drying!

@joemoya9743

2 жыл бұрын

​@@StonemanRocks The chemical reaction you speak of is called hydrolysis. The rate of hydrolysis over the entire surface determines if it cracks or adheres properly. In this instance, if you want the leveling fluid to adhere or not crack, you want the evaporation of excess water to be the same through out the media. And, that will not happen if the rate of evaporation is slower or faster along the edges that are adjacent to the the sheet rock. How much of impact the the difference in absorption rate is determined by how much of the leveling fluid is touching the sheet rock. If it is very little, then the absorption rate into the sheet rock is also very little. This results in little chance of cracking. However, the video indicated he may have used as much as 1 inch of leveling fluid. And, that increases the chances of having problems along the edges. The good news is that self leveling uses lots of water and cement BINDER such as fluidizing adjuvant (also called superplasticizer designed to bind to latex primer and prevent delamination) and fine granulates (typically a sulfo-aluminous clinker and not silica since it is a quick setting mixture) to prevent shrinkage and cracking. The cement is typically Portland cement that contains Calcium Silicate and the major contributor to any potential cracking. Thus, the need for a cement binder. The key in making self leveling work is the proper amount of mixing of all ingredients applied to a homogeneous surface. And, sheet rock edges make the surface non-homogeneous. All this being said, it appears that he is using leveling fluid for a situation that should not have been done - at all. There was no floor height difference. He is comparing floor surface to foundation surface. He doesn't know the difference between flooring and concrete foundation. And, that is a fundamental problem.

I never imagined leaving self leveling cement uncovered.

I feel bad for the chump that you flip this house to, this looks like 🔥🗑️. Also the gypsum wall board probably soaked up a lot of moisture.

@minkyfran8307

Жыл бұрын

Keyboard experts everywhere ! 😂😂😂😂

You can't use self leveling this way as the final surface, it's just not strong enough. It will scratch, crumble and dust. You need something on top like boards, tiles, carpet or lino.

@springsowell16

2 ай бұрын

What if I use drylic wet look?

@viera4

2 ай бұрын

Instarnac is bullet proof.

@thomassymonds5300

Ай бұрын

I think you can if it's got fibres in it and is thick enough.

It’s best to have one person spinning the paddle as you slowly pour in the bag.

@HomeMadeModern

2 жыл бұрын

good tip!

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

Lol @ bucket tips by Joe!

No agitation of the floor leveller after spreading it. That wouldve taken care of the bubbles + make it even more level.

Another thing I’ve seen are those spike shoes made to aerate your yard when you walk. Anyways you can wear them and walk on the concrete and the little holes they make will be filled back up.

@HomeMadeModern

2 жыл бұрын

will try!

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

Golf shoes work too !

Would love to see the final result

Any cracking? I used this product in a hot climate and ended up with cracking. Perhaps I should have misted it with water and covered it with plastic while it cured.

@alexviau6950

2 жыл бұрын

Yup 7:33

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

Did you mist your concrete first? If not thats prob why! Esp if it was a really hot day!

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

O plus that product sucks and it has no compressive strength! You got to spend the money and buy the good stuff when it comes to self levelers! The more expensive products have more polymers mixed in and are worth every penny in my opinion!

Gotta love the weekend warriors 😂

Why shoeless?

Nice

Please talk to us, explain you use and the measurements

In the end it looks alright.

Need to think this through as many basements, garage floors and even open bathroom designs are purposely not even to direct water.

Do I have to also not wear shoes

It as a trial and error extravaganza. The end was expert result. Thank you for your articulated clear explanation. Now I can move on with trial and error in my journey.

i will try 10 percent more water. menards and home depot did not clump but formed mounds. dissapointed

EXTRA is right... a minute and a half Ad Read in a video that's less than 10 min, they sure got their money's worth didn't they

This is crazy how the video showed up in my feed. I was talking to my wife about this and Viola

Great "How Not to Do It" video. Using a 10' alum screed to level floor after pouring.

The runnier it is, the easier it is!

@StonemanRocks

2 жыл бұрын

Ya but too runny and it weakens it and it will turn to dust! So you are dead wrong! Thx for playing!

Use a smaller mixer attachment! That thing is huge!!

Maybe you could colour the different buckets differently the next time.