Self-Leveling Concrete & Overlays in Pinecrest FL - a level base for your new floor
A slab with dips and humps that won't take the floor you picked? We pour a level base so your new floor goes down flat.
- Service
- Self-Leveling Concrete & Overlays
- Call
- (786) 435-0197
How can you tell your slab needs leveling?
Dips and humps underfoot
Lay a long straightedge on the floor and it rocks on a high spot or leaves daylight over a low one. That usually means the slab was poured or patched uneven, and if new plank or tile goes over it, the joints tend to open up or the tiles crack where they bridge the gap.
A rough slab after tear-out
Once the old tile or carpet comes up, you're often looking at ridges of old mortar, patches and leftover glue. New flooring laid over that follows every bump, so it's far cheaper to deal with the surface now than to pull up a new floor later.
Furniture rocks, doors drag
A table that won't sit still or a door that scrapes in one spot usually points to a floor that's out of level, not bad furniture. Putting a new floor over it carries the same slope into the new room and makes it harder to fix down the road.
Do I need self-leveling concrete before my new floor goes in?
Self-leveling concrete, which most of us in the trade call self-leveling underlayment, is a thin base layer we pour in Pinecrest homes and businesses so your tile, plank or vinyl goes down flat instead of following every dip in the concrete. It can go over a concrete slab and, in some cases, over a solidly bonded old floor like tile, epoxy or terrazzo, and it sits under your floor covering rather than being the finish itself.
Most people call me because they've picked out a new floor and found out the concrete under it isn't flat enough to take it. What moves the price is how big the area is, how far out of level the slab sits, and how much has to come off or get fixed before we pour, like old flooring, glue or a slab that needs a moisture system under the leveler. The schedule mostly turns on that same prep and on what your finish floor needs from the slab, and the estimate I write spells out the prep along with the leveling so you can see both before you decide.
Details to note before an estimate
- Rough size of each room
- The finish floor you've picked
- Old flooring or glue on the slab
- Cracks you've noticed in the concrete
How we handle self-leveling concrete and overlays
We start with what your new flooring needs and what's under the slab, since that decides which leveling product fits. Then we clear the floor and clean the concrete down mechanically, by grinding, shot blasting or scarifying, and we pick the method at the estimate because not every one suits every project and people living or working next to, above or below the room can rule some out. Diamond grinding throws a lot of dust, which is why the prep makers say to run it with a capable dust collector. Once the slab is clean we prime it where the product calls for primer, pour the leveling layer so it spreads out flat, and leave you with a base that's ready for the floor going on top.
A lot of these jobs start with something coming up first, and our concrete floor stripping and removal work takes off old tile, coatings and loose flooring so the slab is bare and sound before we level. If it's the worn concrete out around your pool that's bugging you, that's a different job from leveling, and our pool deck coatings and resurfacing page walks through it.
Other work that often goes with leveling
Concrete Floor Stripping & Removal
When loose tile, carpet pad glue or a tired coating covers the concrete, this clears the slab so the leveling layer sits on something solid.
Pool Deck Coatings & Resurfacing
Our leveling work goes under floor coverings, so when it's the worn concrete around your pool that bothers you, this is the service to ask about.
What happens when you call about self-leveling in Pinecrest?
Call or send the form
Tell us the rooms, the floor you're planning and anything odd you've noticed in the slab. Most of the time I'm the one who calls you back to set up a visit.
I come out and look
I check the concrete myself, hear what you have in mind and tell you plainly what the slab can and can't take. The written estimate spells out the prep along with the leveling, so you can see what each part of the price is paying for.
We prep and pour the base
We set a date, and our installers do the prep and the pour while I'm on site with them through the job. That way you've got one person to ask if anything comes up once the slab is open.
We walk it with you
Before we pack up, we walk the finished floor with you. You see the base your new flooring will sit on before anything covers it.
Questions before you book self-leveling concrete
How much does self-leveling concrete cost per square foot in Pinecrest?
Self-leveling compound on a concrete slab, applied with primer, usually runs about $2 to $8 per square foot across the US, and that's the national market range, not our price. Where a job lands depends mostly on how deep the pour has to be, how much prep the slab needs and whether old glue or a moisture system is part of it. I'll put your own figure in writing after I've seen the floor.
Can self-leveling go over a ground-level slab in my Pinecrest house?
Often it can, but moisture makes some self-leveling products a poor fit for slabs at or below ground level, though most can work with a vapor barrier or moisture system under them. That's why what's under your slab is the first thing to sort out, since it decides which product fits your floor.
How do I know if my concrete is dry enough for self-leveling and new flooring?
You go by what the floor you're putting down needs, not just the leveler, because one leveling maker's guide notes a slab can be dry enough for its leveling product and still too damp for the finish flooring. So plan around the moisture needs of the floor you pick, and I'll check the slab with that floor in mind when I come out.
Will cracks in my slab show through new self-leveling and flooring?
Cracks that still move can, and I'd rather tell you that now than have you find out a year from now. One leveling maker's product sheet says moving joints or cracks in the slab can carry up through the self-leveling layer and crack the finish floor. If your slab has active cracks, plan on those lines running up through the leveler and into the new floor, and we'll talk through where they are at the estimate.
How do I get old black glue off my concrete floor before leveling?
Find out what it is before anything grinds it off, because one leveling maker warns that old cutback adhesive may contain asbestos and that removing it by machine can be hazardous. That maker tells owners to ask the adhesive's maker and the proper government agencies how to take it off. If I spot it at the estimate, I'll point it out so it gets sorted before any prep starts.
Who handles construction permits in Pinecrest?
The Village of Pinecrest building department does the plan reviews, inspections and permitting for all residential and commercial construction in the village. We're based in Pinecrest and work across the cities around it in Miami-Dade County, so before we start we check with whichever city or county office covers your address on whether your job needs a permit, and if it does we handle our side of the paperwork and walk you through the part you sign. Contractors working in Miami-Dade are licensed by the county, which certifies flooring contractors to install floor surfacing on floor decks built by others, and we're licensed and fully insured.
Get a written estimate for leveling your floor
Send the form and we'll reply within one business day, and most of the time it's me on the phone setting up a time to see the floor. The on-site estimate is free with no obligation, and you'll get a written breakdown of the prep and the leveling to keep either way.
Explore our services and areas
Services
- Epoxy Floor Coatings
- Commercial & Industrial Epoxy Floor Coatings
- Garage Floor Coatings
- Polyaspartic Floor Coatings
- Metallic Epoxy Flooring
- Urethane Cement Flooring
- Polished Concrete Flooring
- Stained Concrete Flooring
- Terrazzo Flooring
- Basement Flooring
- Concrete Grinding & Surface Preparation
- Concrete Sealing
- Concrete Resurfacing & Overlays
- Pool Deck Coatings & Resurfacing
- Concrete Floor Stripping & Removal
Tell us about the floor you're planning
Call (786) 435-0197 or use the form with the room size, the floor you're putting down and any old glue you've spotted, and I'll show up knowing what to look for.