# Levelling Concrete Floor



## rwe2156 (May 7, 2014)

Hey guys,

Part of my shop floor used to be an apron off the barn where equipment was stored and it is sloped about 2-3" over 14 feet.

Looking for advice/suggestions on what kind of concrete.

I'm concerned about adhesion and cracking where the concrete tapers match the slope.


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## dhazelton (Feb 11, 2012)

You may be better off jackhammering that floor and pouring a new one. Or run sleepers across that are shimmed on the low end and put plywood down.


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## JeffMartineau (Jul 8, 2015)

I know there's a stuff out there that they sell that lifts the entire slab to level driveways and garages and things like that. It's almost like expandable foam for insulation. Maybe that would work with your existing floor?


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## kooldecker (Feb 8, 2014)

Im a concrete man, I may be be able to help. there are several products out there that would suit your needs. I have a few questions I would like to ask first. 
-how big is this area? I mean just rough square footage
-you mentioned it was an apron, is it outside or is it inside?
-What kind of traffic will it be seeing, I mean is it foot traffic, heavy equipment , vehicular? 
If you would like to PM me that is completely fine. I will certainly give any advice I can to help out a fellow jock.


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## rwe2156 (May 7, 2014)

Area approximately 10 X 20
It is inside (its my shop floor)
Mainly foot traffic & occasional rolling a machine across.

If it matters, it was broom finished pretty rough.
I thought about pressure wash/apply bonding agent/start at lowest point using sakrete.
What I'm mostly worried about is the where the concrete will be thin it will probably start breaking up.


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## Dark_Lightning (Nov 20, 2009)

That slope is there for water to run off away from the building (~1/8 per foot). If you are not going to cover it, you could get water inside the building when it rains.


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## rwe2156 (May 7, 2014)

Its inside my shop!


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## ShaneA (Apr 15, 2011)

You could also pour self leveler on it. 200sqft with an average depth of 1.5" would require a fair amount of product however. Maybe 50 to 60 50lb bags plus primer. $1200 range, if I was to guess.


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## MrRon (Jul 9, 2009)

200 sq ft of concrete isn't all that much. I too would consider breaking it up and pour a new slab to match the existing floor. The most direct way is most often the best way to go. "Mickey Mousing" only results in aggravation, time lost and added expense. The main thing is: Do it right the first time and avoid doing it all over again later. I have learned that lesson before; trying to save a buck, only ending up spending a lot more fixing it.


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## JerrodMcCrary (Jan 1, 2014)

Why do you need it leveled? Seems like that would be hard to notice 2-3 inches. I would probably just rip some wood runners and put plywood on top of them if all it is foot traffic and occasional rolling a machine across.


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## rwe2156 (May 7, 2014)

I thought about the plywood.

I just thought someone would have a quick and easy idea without getting into a lot of work.

I think I've got better things to do ;-)


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## dhazelton (Feb 11, 2012)

Self leveling concrete is usually tiled over. I would think it will break apart at your thinnest point. You could do asphalt tile or a cheap engineered flooring over that.


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## ChrisBarrett (Jul 4, 2015)

I have the same question, my basement floor is really rough and I was wondering if it was possible to pour self leveling on it and have it work out. It's probably 800 sq feet though. Would it crack apart at the thing parts?


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## Bieser (Oct 30, 2012)

I had a concrete floor in my new shop that was an old garage that was very uneven and cracked. I like working on wood floors so I decided to just lay sleepers down and put a plywood floor with cheap laminate on top of that. I would have broken the floor out if I was going to keep concrete, but would rather work on wood so it didn't take much convincing.


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## Finn (May 26, 2010)

> I thought about the plywood.
> 
> I just thought someone would have a quick and easy idea without getting into a lot of work.
> 
> ...


 Laying down some 2×4 and applying plywood on it is a LOT simpler than trying to level with concrete and it is reversible. I have done this same thing in my garage/shop. Good thing because a few years later I moved and took that wooden floor with me and returned the area to just a garage.


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## rustfever (May 3, 2009)

I, too am a concrete contractor. I've place thousands upon thousand of yard of concrete, mostly in the industrial arena. 
In my opinion, there are two ways of correcting your slope problem. Either remove and replace the existing concrete [best] OR laying a sloped wooden floor upon the old slab [OK]
The first is the most effective, the second may work if you meet some special conditions. Those special conditions would be recognized and specified by a design professional.
There is no 'Magic Pill' to help.


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## johnstoneb (Jun 14, 2012)

Concrete, quick, and easy are mutually exclusive terms.


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## buildingmonkey (Mar 1, 2014)

There are products made for this kind of a job. If your cap is thick enough, you can coat the existing concrete with a sealer, and pour over the existing slab. Otherwise they have some products made for a thin coating on existing concrete. Do a search on concrete caps or concrete coating. Sackcrete has an excellent website with proper recommendations. Or call your local concrete products supplier. I used a sealer over a porch cap 40 years ago, to put another 2" layer over. And it worked excellent. Think it was called thorobond.


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## splintergroup (Jan 20, 2015)

Sloped for drainage I assume (from slush dropping off of cars/whatever).

If you break up the slab and start over, you can install conduits for electrical and dust collection to save some clutter.

I have never seen a successful attempt to level such a slope with more concrete. It inevitably begins to separate and crack where it is thinnest. Only thing that seems to last is if you raise (and level) the entire slab such that you have a minimum of 3"-4" of new concrete (with wire mesh).

This is all personal experience so $0.02. The concrete contractors have seen it all I'm sure.


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## DrDirt (Feb 26, 2008)

Like some others mentioned - - foam jacking or mudjacking the slab will cost ~1/2 the cost of replacing the slab assuming the slab isn't already cracked… only sloped.

The drill holes in teh slab and pump in urethane foam or a slurry and it raises the low end. Common in foundation repairs/settling issues.
Neighbor had to jack thier driveway where it abutted the foundation of the house. It is messy but simple

Have a look at this - - and call for an estimate
http://concretejack.com/cost-of-slab-foundation-repair/


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