Self-Levelling Compound: Getting a Floor Flat Before Tiling

Large format tiles and timber flooring both need a floor that is genuinely flat. Chasing that with adhesive is slow, expensive and never quite works. A levelling compound does it in an afternoon.

When it is worth pouring

• The floor is out by more than about 3 mm under a 2 m straightedge
• You are laying large format tiles, which bridge hollows and crack
• An old screed is worn, patched or pitted
• Different floor build-ups meet at a doorway and you need one level

Depths and the rules that go with them

Baumit quick-set compound pours from 5 to 30 mm. Two figures matter:

• The minimum is not optional. Feathering to nothing at the edges leaves a thin skin that debonds and crunches underfoot.
• The maximum is per pour. Deeper corrections are done in layers, priming between them, not in one heroic pour.

The method

1. Prepare. Sweep and vacuum properly. Loose laitance and dust are the usual cause of failure.
2. Prime. Absorbent screed and concrete need a deep penetrating primer, or the compound loses its water too quickly, traps air and pinholes.
3. Dam the openings. Compound is liquid and finds every gap under a door.
4. Mix properly. Clean cold water, exact ratio, paddle on a drill, two minutes, stand, remix briefly. Extra water gives you a weaker floor that shrinks and cracks.
5. Pour and spread in bands, working to a wet edge. A spiked roller releases trapped air.
6. Keep moving. With a quick-set compound you have minutes, not hours. Mix only what you can pour.

After the pour

Walkable in a few hours, tileable much sooner than a traditional screed, but check the datasheet rather than the internet: drying times depend on depth, temperature and how well the room is ventilated. Keep the heating off and the windows closed while it sets, then ventilate gradually.

Need a hand with your job?

Send us your measurements and we will put together a materials list with prices. Call 085 868 8459, message us on WhatsApp or email sales@all4building.ie. We deliver across Ireland from our Cork warehouse.