Self Leveling Conrete

[iamsmuts]

There's an old thread on uneven floors here:

Lifting on a slightly slanted floor (Garage home gym)

My basement floor is slanted. I can't reorient my rack in a good place so the slant is front to back. The beams are just over 84 inches from the floor. So I can't build much of a paltform and fit my rack. (I could trim them a tad, I suppose. The wood is incredibly hard. From the 1930's. . . )

I'm thinking about trying to level the area around the rack with self leveling concrete.

Those of you that have done this, if you don't mind, I have a few questions: Did you use primer? How sturdy is a 1/4 to 1/3 layer of this stuff? How long does it take to harden before I can put the rack back in place? Does the hardening time differ much between the quick dry and the regular?

Any tips would be appreciated.

[amsgator]

Leveling concrete isn't very strong so you might wind up breaking it apart while lifting/dropping weights...something else to consider is this:

Building A Lifting Platform on a Slope by Greg Everett - Equipment - Catalyst Athletics - Olympic Weightlifting

[manveer]

I'm renting, so I laid plastic down on the floor and poured the self-leveling underlayment into there. This created a separate slab - a negative profile of my uneven floor. Came out perfectly level except for one corner where I could've used one more bag...not a big deal, but a little annoying. At the highest point of the original floor, the self-leveler is very thin since I didn't fill in more than that. I built a platform on top with three layers of 3/4" OSB.

I've had this setup since October 2014. I was worried the self-leveler would crack and move, but I haven't noticed any changes yet. I deadlift every week on it. Maybe it is cracked like crazy but still held in place. I won't know until I move. I think I waited 24-36 hours before I started building the platform on it.

I have read differing opinions on the need for primer. Everyone seems to agree that you have to get the floor very clean before you pour. My advice is to buy more than you think you'll need and then return any extra. It took quite a bit because my floor was very uneven. Also, go fast once you've started mixing/pouring the first batch.

Here's a post from my log. I wrote a bit more about it around that time:

I could've used another bag. The corners closest to the camera in the pictures are slightly off level, but I will just stuff some shim material under there. Everywhere else is dead level.

I laid down a piece of OSB and put a horse stall mat on top just as a trial. Loaded 135 on the bar and did a couple of deadlifts and the bar didn't roll. I didn't realize the horse stall mats (from Tractor Supply) would have a diamond plate pattern on one side and narrow diagonal stripes on the other side. That helps keep plates from rolling.

[iamsmuts]

Leveling concrete isn't very strong so you might wind up breaking it apart while lifting/dropping weights...something else to consider is this:

Building A Lifting Platform on a Slope by Greg Everett - Equipment - Catalyst Athletics - Olympic Weightlifting

Thanks for the link. I don't have the headroom for much of a platform though.

I have rubber mats on the side of the rack for deadlifts and power cleans. I also mainly use bumpers for deadlifts. I hope that a 1/3" layer of self leveling concrete would hold up.

[iamsmuts]

Nice. I'm renting too, but I don't mind making permanent, how should we say, improvements. The basement gets a little water here and there in the rainy season. The area where I lift stays pretty dry though. I'm not worried about run off here. The sub pump is in the far corner.

[Simon Rest]

there's a product sold down here called Ardit - it's made by Pacific Dunlop so you can probably get it there, or something very similar. It's a high slump, high strength concrete used for levelling. I've used it in a large number of commercial applications. It's piss easy to use and shouldn't crack even in thin applications. No primer or scabbling is needed. I'd still put rubber matting over it for some extra protection/grip.

[Bryan Dobson]

There's an old thread on uneven floors here:

Lifting on a slightly slanted floor (Garage home gym)

My basement floor is slanted. I can't reorient my rack in a good place so the slant is front to back. The beams are just over 84 inches from the floor. So I can't build much of a paltform and fit my rack. (I could trim them a tad, I suppose. The wood is incredibly hard. From the 1930's. . . )

I'm thinking about trying to level the area around the rack with self leveling concrete.

Those of you that have done this, if you don't mind, I have a few questions: Did you use primer? How sturdy is a 1/4 to 1/3 layer of this stuff? How long does it take to harden before I can put the rack back in place? Does the hardening time differ much between the quick dry and the regular?

Any tips would be appreciated.

I have been "living with" a 1" slope along an 8' platform for a while now. I think this is a woirthwhile project. I havea 3 layer thick plywood platform so compression strength of the underlayment should not be an issue.

[iamsmuts]

I tried leveling the area inside my rack today. I primed it last night. I'm going to shim the uprights. If that doesn't work, I'll try leveling a wider area. I used two bags on about 30 square feet.



Primer drying:



My weather stripping levies didn't hold:





It's hard to tell, but the left side is about 3/4" and the bottom left (furthest from the rack) is a solid inch thick. I feathered some of the edges.

Before the second pour, the bottom section was perfectly level. The upper part was still off. Hence the second pour. It should be pretty close inside the rack now.

[MattJ.D.]

I found drywall shims to be perfect for leveling a platform. They're about 45" long, so for an 8x8 platform you'll have to do a little bit of cutting and glueing with them, but its simple. Yeah the seems wont be a perfect incline, they'll look more like little steps but whatever, they work.

Strait-Flex 45 in. Drywall Shims-DS-45 - The Home Depot

[iamsmuts]