DIY fatigue

[LadyArowana]

Or you could lay the bricks in a pretty pattern and not bother with the self levelling and bung a nice cheap mat/ rug on top. I know picture is a kitchen.....

 

[plasticpigeon]

To me, laying bricks on cement and then laying screed on bricks sounds like more work than laying concrete, and will still require a fair amount of mortar. How big is the room. If it is not huge maybe mixing concrete in a plastic bath would remove the need for a mixer. Lay A's idea of a nice patterend brick floor sounds nice too, shame to cover over your hard work when it could be a nice feature!

 

[LadyArowana]

.......... and then I got totally carried away thinking about patterns etc :lol:

 

[Feltwell]

If it is not huge maybe mixing concrete in a plastic bath would remove the need for a mixer.

It's bl@@dy hard work mixing any meaningful quantity of concrete by hand. Much, much easier with a mixer. If giraffe can give you a hand - so one to mix, one to lay - then you'd be OK to get it done in a day, a small mixer is not expensive to hire and will go in the back of your van with the drum off.

You can make life a little easier by buying ballast rather than sand and aggregate - ballast is an all-in mix, just add cement and water.

You'd be welcome to borrow my mixer but it's a bit of a long way to come!

For your brick idea, although you'll have to mix the mortar every time I guess for the small quantities you need to lay a few bricks you can mix it in a gorilla tub.

 

[Penners]

My only note of caution is that in my limited experience of self-levelling compound, it's not that self-levelling and it's entirely possible to end up with an uneven floor unless you're quick and accurate with a trowel. Or maybe I just didn't mix it thinly enough!

You're not alone, Feltwell!

 

[Keithj]

Been there, done that. However thinly you mix it, something goes wrong somewhere. I have foresworn concrete for life.

 

[plasticpigeon]

If it is not huge maybe mixing concrete in a plastic bath would remove the need for a mixer.

It's bl@@dy hard work mixing any meaningful quantity of concrete by hand. Much, much easier with a mixer.

I'm am aware it is hard work! I mixed all the concrete for my bay window foundations with a shovel in a big plastic bath, probably about a tonne! Also the lime screed for my kitchen floor, the concrete for a patio and more recently putting in about 11 fence posts. perhaps I am taking these period construction methods a bit too literally, but I have no space to keep a mixer overnight in my little place

 

[Penners]

I have no space to keep a mixer overnight

How about in the bath?

 

[Feltwell]

But just think about the money you've saved on gym membership!

Mixing up concrete with a mixer is hard enough work as it is, you have my sympathy. My "inherited" mixer lives underneath my garage, so far it's used more by my neighbours than me! Every time I've had a job to do it's been so small it's not worth getting the mixer out for.

 

[agbagb]

Just a thought. Have you considered floor insulation board topped of with tile backer board? - Loads of extra insulation and no mixing (apart from a bit to bed the boards)

 

[Zebra]

Go away all of you, with your helpful suggestions. I'm doing it this way and that's that. LadyA, I do intend to create a beautiful brick floor in the kitchen from the pamments I've dug up around the place, but want plain modern tile in the bathroom.

 

[Feltwell]

Go away all of you.

Harrumph. I shall be mildly offended for at least a few seconds you know.

 

[plasticpigeon]

Agb's soultion sounds so obvious, now he has shared it.

 

[agbagb]

No, I insist you ignore my last post. I should only have posted it after you had finished :wink:

 

[Feltwell]

Agb's soultion sounds so obvious, now he has shared it.

I agree, it has real and very obvious merits and sounds easier than concrete or bricks - good lateral thinking! Can Zebra be swayed................. :?:

 

[Zebra]

Oh. Just read that properly. Can you do that? What do you mean, floor insulation boards? You insulate a floor with rigid foam like Kingspan, don't you? But under concrete, where the load is evenly spread.

 

[Feltwell]

Yep - check the "timber floating floor" pictorial on the below. Basically you overlay it with T&G moisture resistant chipboard to create a floating floor, then tile on that with a flexible tile adhesive.

http://www.kingspaninsulation.co.uk...-4622-97bb-5861799ab02a/Thermafloor-TF70.aspx

I have seen tiling straight onto floorboards using flexible tile adhesive in a first floor bathroom - didn't look great to me as a method but I have to say that several years later it was still all OK. Providing the owner never wanted to get to the underfloor pipes of course! I tiled onto 18mm ply in a first floor bathroom, ply well screwed to the joists below, and that was fine - the special adhesive proved to be flexible enough.

I would have thought you could get away with using any rigid insulation board, rather than it having to be a specific type. My opinion only though!

 

[LadyArowana]

Oh. Just read that properly. Can you do that? What do you mean, floor insulation boards? You insulate a floor with rigid foam like Kingspan, don't you? But under concrete, where the load is evenly spread.

Just goes to prove that you can trap any sort of animal, you just need the right bait :lol: This does sound like a suggestion worth considering though

 

[agbagb]

Yes it's like kingspan but with no foil and formulated for high compressive loading. The suggestion of TBB (Tile backer board) e.g. t.n. MARMOX is instead of chipboard although I've had no personal experience of it used directly on to floor insulation boards. The good quality stuff will take small mosaic tiles and is often used on wetroom floors after it's sealed with tanking compound or membrane.

 

[Penners]

Marmox - you either love it or hate it.