Silk Purse Out Of Pigs Ear

[LM]

Hello all, I wanted to start a thread about some of the ridiculous jobs that we some times are forced into doing and how we dealt with them, hopefully you'll share some of your experiences and how you dealt with them also.
I had to deal with a really poor screeding job this week. I've done all this builders work for along time and arrived "blind" at the job on Friday, he'd been badly let down by his usual screeders and had to use new ones. There is a kitchen being fitted Tomorrow so as usual I was under pressure for time. Normally when we come across levels like this it's simply a case of self levelling the floor, but in this case for various reasons and pressure the builder was putting me under to help him out (and I didn't want to leave him in the lurch), I hadn't got a day to spare to level it so I simply had to get stuck in.
It's a 3 metre straight edge in the pictures below.

As you can see the height differences where ridiculous! The hall and rooms off it where actually all level with each other and it just fell away badly into the kitchen.
Normally when tiling a floor like this you have to start at the highest point and work back from it, but in this case due to the works going on outside I had to start at the wrong end and work into the highs. It took stupid amounts of adhesive to solid bed the tiles in this room and gradually ramp them up over the distance of the room so as the fall wasn't noticeable. The tiles were 1000mm x 500mm tiles with a rectified edge 🙁

And this was it finished up

I think the results were pretty good considering the state of the floor, the direction of work and the time I had to do it

 

[Italy]

Hello all, I wanted to start a thread about some of the ridiculous jobs that we some times are forced into doing and how we dealt with them, hopefully you'll share some of your experiences and how you dealt with them also.
I had to deal with a really poor screeding job this week. I've done all this builders work for along time and arrived "blind" at the job on Friday, he'd been badly let down by his usual screeders and had to use new ones. There is a kitchen being fitted Tomorrow so as usual I was under pressure for time. Normally when we come across levels like this it's simply a case of self levelling the floor, but in this case for various reasons and pressure the builder was putting me under to help him out (and I didn't want to leave him in the lurch), I hadn't got a day to spare to level it so I simply had to get stuck in.
It's a 3 metre straight edge in the pictures below.
View attachment 82030
View attachment 82031
As you can see the height differences where ridiculous! The hall and rooms off it where actually all level with each other and it just fell away badly into the kitchen.
Normally when tiling a floor like this you have to start at the highest point and work back from it, but in this case due to the works going on outside I had to start at the wrong end and work into the highs. It took stupid amounts of adhesive to solid bed the tiles in this room and gradually ramp them up over the distance of the room so as the fall wasn't noticeable. The tiles were 1000mm x 500mm tiles with a rectified edge 🙁View attachment 82032
View attachment 82033 View attachment 82035
View attachment 82036
View attachment 82037 View attachment 82038
View attachment 82040
View attachment 82039
And this was it finished upView attachment 82041
View attachment 82042
View attachment 82043 View attachment 82044
View attachment 82045 View attachment 82046
I think the results were pretty good considering the state of the floor, the direction of work and the time I had to do it View attachment 82034

😱😱😱😱

 

[Italy]

It will limit damage. with this. and correcting. with little skim coat fast.
then antonio. let go. all in the ocean. 😉

 

[Time's Ran Out]

It will limit damage. with this. and correcting. with little skim coat fast.
then antonio. let go. all in the ocean. 😉

I'am lost in translation here!

But as far as the OP goes - decent job.
We had one similar a couple of weeks ago and even 30 bags of level over 30 metres wouldn't have helped.

 

[Spud]

Any one can tile a straight floor, what you did there shows real skill and experience nice job

 

[LM]

It will limit damage. with this. and correcting. with little skim coat fast.
then antonio. let go. all in the ocean. 😉

Yes Antonio I have an art 72, but the problem here was that the rooms off the hall where all level with the hall,so for it to have been of any use I'd of had to grind down a hell of a lot of screed 🙂

 

[Italy]

I'am lost in translation here!

But as far as the OP goes - decent job.
We had one similar a couple of weeks ago and even 30 bags of level over 30 metres wouldn't have helped.

@LEE MAC is my traslate pocket 🙂

 

[LM]

Any one can tile a straight floor, what you did there shows real skill and experience nice job

Thanks Gary

 

[Italy]

Yes Antonio I have an art 72, but the problem here was that the rooms off the hall where all level with the hall,so for it to have been of any use I'd of had to grind down a hell of a lot of screed 🙂

leveling system. do wonders

 

[Time's Ran Out]

@LEE MAC is my traslate pocket 🙂

It's ok Antonio I'am from the Noth East of the UK. Nobody in the south can translate 'geordie' or read the English version.

 

[Italy]

It's ok Antonio I'am from the Noth East of the UK. Nobody in the south can translate 'geordie' or read the English version.

yes john. geordie ......
steal deer. of King 😉

 

[LM]

yes john. geordie ......
steal deer. of King 😉

That's Robin hood then lol

 

[Italy]

That's Robin hood then lol

no lee. geordie song. here in Italy. say.
geordie steal two deer. in the park of King.
The song is dedicated. the British geordie. like john

 

[White Room]

Looks good Lee, doubt anyone would notice it was a badly screeded floor.

 

[LM]

Looks good Lee, doubt anyone would notice it was a badly screeded floor.

Thanks Mark

 

[bcd-87]

Thanks Mark

how long did that take you mate

 

[LM]

how long did that take you mate

Because of the layout and working 'backwards' so to speak it took me 3 days to tile and about 3 hours to grout. Plus it was BAL green screed adhesive so I had to wait till the next day to stand on any work that had been laid, so in the rooms where the tiles are on the length, I could only lay half the room and then tile the other half the next day when the first half had cured, there's only 70 mts in the floor, so that's why it took so long

 

[bcd-87]

Because of the layout and working 'backwards' so to speak it took me 3 days to tile and about 3 hours to grout. Plus it was BAL green screed adhesive so I had to wait till the next day to stand on any work that had been laid, so in the rooms where the tiles are on the length, I could only lay half the room and then tile the other half the next day when the first half had cured, there's only 70 mts in the floor, so that's why it took so long

That's fast, fair play!! how did you get over the floor height difference? it looked bad

 

[gamma38]

70 mtrs. 3 days am i reading that right? that's some going

 

[LM]

That's fast, fair play!! how did you get over the floor height difference? it looked bad

You put a piece of the packaging card board that the tiles come in under a tile placed at the highest part of the floor, stand on it and that gives you the finish height of your highest tile, do the same with a tile on the lowest part of the floor in all directions and then with either a straight edge or a chalk line with a screw drilled into the floor at say the mid point if it's a large span, use these as height references to set your straight edge on and then when you lay a tile make sure that it has a solid bed and that the 'tilt' of the tile sits flush with the straight edge, follow this across the floor and then you will arrive at the highest tile it's at the exact height and plane as the highest tile on the floor. It took me a while to master this technique and it's good, but it's not as good as proper prep!
In this instance I also had an external door frame to consider when planning how to deal with this particular problem, that's why when all things were considered I chose to 'ramp' the floor down over what was a large space

 

[Bill]

You put a piece of the packaging card board that the tiles come in under a tile placed at the highest part of the floor, stand on it and that gives you the finish height of your highest tile, do the same with a tile on the lowest part of the floor in all directions and then with either a straight edge or a chalk line with a screw drilled into the floor at say the mid point if it's a large span, use these as height references to set your straight edge on and then when you lay a tile make sure that it has a solid bed and that the 'tilt' of the tile sits flush with the straight edge, follow this across the floor and then you will arrive at the highest tile it's at the exact height and plane as the highest tile on the floor. It took me a while to master this technique and it's good, but it's not as good as proper prep!
In this instance I also had an external door frame to consider when planning how to deal with this particular problem, that's why when all things were considered I chose to 'ramp' the floor down over what was a large space

A string line across the levels would have worked too - that is how we used to lay falls in floors.

Nice job.

 

[Old Mod]

Are they the new genisis clips Lee?
What D'u reckon?

 

[LM]

Are they the new genisis clips Lee?
What D'u reckon?

I'm not sure if they are 'new' Marc. Ive been using Genisis type clips now for over a year. They come with two 'block' or clip heads if you like options, smaller clips for 600's and below and the larger type like the ones in the above pics for anything larger, but the strap is universal to both.
The reason I'm running with the Genisis clips is that I can buy them from stock locally and I tried all sorts of systems before these ones, but never actually tried the Ramondi ones.
Imo these are very good, they're 1.5mm thick and can go up to 70mm in depth. Just like what you've said about the Ramondi type is the same with these, there's a limit to squeezing the pliers before you snap the strap, but you get to know that very quickly, one criticism would be that the pliers and the strap work like a cable tie would and after a while the teeth on the pliers ware out, but apart from that I can't fault them.

 

[Old Mod]

I'm not sure if they are 'new' Marc. Ive been using Genisis type clips now for over a year. They come with two 'block' or clip heads if you like options, smaller clips for 600's and below and the larger type like the ones in the above pics for anything larger, but the strap is universal to both.
The reason I'm running with the Genisis clips is that I can buy them from stock locally and I tried all sorts of systems before these ones, but never actually tried the Ramondi ones.
Imo these are very good, they're 1.5mm thick and can go up to 70mm in depth. Just like what you've said about the Ramondi type is the same with these, there's a limit to squeezing the pliers before you snap the strap, but you get to know that very quickly, one criticism would be that the pliers and the strap work like a cable tie would and after a while the teeth on the pliers ware out, but apart from that I can't fault them.

Well ok maybe not that new then haha
Yeah same principle as original Rubi system. I prefer the downward action of them over pushing from the side.
I see Rubi have brought out a new quick system, but not had chance to try yet.
The genisis, isn't it comparable in price to the Raimondi Lee?

 

[LM]

Well ok maybe not that new then haha
Yeah same principle as original Rubi system. I prefer the downward action of them over pushing from the side.
I see Rubi have brought out a new quick system, but not had chance to try yet.
The genisis, isn't it comparable in price to the Raimondi Lee?

can I quote prices here

 

[Old Mod]

I don't see why not mate, if prices are freely available on line.

 

[Italy]

can I quote prices here

no 🙂

 

[White Room]

I'm not sure if they are 'new' Marc. Ive been using Genisis type clips now for over a year. They come with two 'block' or clip heads if you like options, smaller clips for 600's and below and the larger type like the ones in the above pics for anything larger, but the strap is universal to both.
The reason I'm running with the Genisis clips is that I can buy them from stock locally and I tried all sorts of systems before these ones, but never actually tried the Ramondi ones.
Imo these are very good, they're 1.5mm thick and can go up to 70mm in depth. Just like what you've said about the Ramondi type is the same with these, there's a limit to squeezing the pliers before you snap the strap, but you get to know that very quickly, one criticism would be that the pliers and the strap work like a cable tie would and after a while the teeth on the pliers ware out, but apart from that I can't fault them.

Are they the straps with a curved bottom or flat.

 

[LM]

Recently Mark any that I've been getting have had flat bases

 

[White Room]

Recently Mark any that I've been getting have had flat bases

I got some from protilers on the net and got curved ones, complained and was told that's all they do now...obviously not.

 

[gamma38]

The curved ones are crap, I have about 5 bags somewhere in the garage. They will never get used.