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+--- Thread: Self-leveling concrete - My bonehead mistake (/showthread.php?tid=167)
Self-leveling concrete - My bonehead mistake - CC Solutions - 08-21-2011 08:20 AM
This is leveling 101.. You don't use warm water to mix self-leveling underlayments. Well I set up the job for a second floor pour at a local hospital. The closest water was an outside water bib on first floor. I had my guys run the hose up the wall, across the roof and through an access door to a hallway that led to our area.
The work began and I noticed right away that the material didn't self heal like normal. I had a shortened flow time between pours to blend the joints. The material set up really fast in the sunlit areas. Not until the entire 100 bags were down did it dawn on me that the hose running across the roof was warming the water. Luckily the roof was white rubber, but the green hose still absorbed radiant heat.
The job turned out not as good as we normally do, and I felt terrible. I talked with the flooring sub and asked him to evaluate the underlayment and let me know what his guys have to do to make it right. This bonehead move will cost me some money, but worse than that is it hurts my reputation.
RE: Self-leveling concrete - My bonehead mistake - Ernesto - 08-21-2011 04:36 PM
If it were me I'd tell you to take it all out and do it over.
What do you mean having him tell you what to have his guys do? Can you say DEMO TIME!Any installer would know warm water makes any patch or SLC set up super fast. You of course realize what happens to that stuff when it sets to quick, doncha? ...making scary face.
Me, I carry bags of ice and make ice water. Course I do not do commercial so in that case you woulda needed a truck full of ice.
RE: Self-leveling concrete - My bonehead mistake - CC Solutions - 08-21-2011 05:38 PM
I know... what was I thinking???
The job isn't bad, but it's not perfect. It is 3500sf and there are two cold joints between two big areas, and I wish I could have blended them better.
The installer thinks it will be just a little touch up, but I want to cover his costs on anything unusual.
RE: Self-leveling concrete - My bonehead mistake - Ernesto - 08-21-2011 05:49 PM
Are you going to do a psi test on it?
RE: Self-leveling concrete - My bonehead mistake - CC Solutions - 08-21-2011 06:09 PM
A tensile test? No, I was gone already. I asked if the flooring company wanted me to come back immediately to start testing, but they are familiar with underlayments and were not concerned.
We have a trusting relationship.
RE: Self-leveling concrete - My bonehead mistake - Ernesto - 08-22-2011 04:46 PM
Course they are not concerned. They want to go in and get the floor down and make some cash. If anything happens you know who they will blame.
RE: Self-leveling concrete - My bonehead mistake - CC Solutions - 08-22-2011 09:22 PM
Well anyone I work with is a team member, and they want no problems any more than I do. I trust they will evaluate the underlayment and act accordingly. I have repairs many substandard floors for them before....
Even though mine was not as good as I wanted it, it was still probably better than 95% of them out there....
RE: Self-leveling concrete - My bonehead mistake - eaadams - 08-25-2011 11:28 AM
(08-21-2011 06:09 PM)CC Solutions Wrote: A tensile test?
For those interested in doing their own tensile tests, I learned to use this on underlayment from the CTS Cement people, also have seen CTL use it on Koster jobs to test adhesion of the Koster: http://www.elcometer.com/en/elcometer-106/6-coating-on-concrete-adhesion-tester.html
I do not know how to do a 'psi' test on an installed underlayment.
RE: Self-leveling concrete - My bonehead mistake - CC Solutions - 08-25-2011 04:37 PM
That's the one I use.... They don't cost too much and they work well.
RE: Self-leveling concrete - My bonehead mistake - eaadams - 08-25-2011 05:42 PM
It is what UCLA trains the PE's to use.
But it is UCLA.... almost as bad as USC or ASU.
Go Davis Aggies
or CAL :|