finishing basement floor question

poured concrete basement (walls & floor).

saw other thread here w/gentleman asking questions about subfloors. out of courtesy, did not want to "hijack" the thread.

question, instead of laying down a subfloor of wood, tile, carpet, etc.

has anyone ever considered using a "raised" floor system ? of the sort that consists of square tiles, supported at each corner by a series of legs that stand on the concrete below the tiles.

i tried to google this, and have found no residential applications of that type of raised flooring systems.

it would seem to be a great idea (airflow underneath to dissipate any moisture concerns, as well as it's intended commercial use of having a space to lay all kinds of cabling underneath).

not sure what the cost would be, imagine it could get expensive. but, is the idea something that's appropriate for a home basement ? (presuming the ceiling height is present to accomodate the fundamental raised design of it).

it would seem to me, it's a suspended ceiling in reverse.

Reply to
mr jones
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"mr jones" wrote in news:hLqdnSbL1rID7tTVnZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@comcast.com:

You wouldn't be happy with the type of raised floor you're discussing. They're expensive, hard to install, and require maintenance to keep them from shifting around. They're great for computer rooms where AC is run under the floor.

I have seen tiles intended for resedential use, though. They were about an inch thick with integrated airflow, and they were designed for basements. Sorry, but I can't refer you anywhere. Maybe I saw then on This Old House?

Reply to
Steve

Oh, the days of computer room raised floors! The ones that I know of need about 6 inches of space for the legs. I have a pallet load of the things (2x2 steel squares with tile on them) and legs, they are heavy, expensive, but work. In my case they are now used for things like putting staging and such on the ground so the legs don't sink in! (I'm going to do a 20' workbench with them too, it will be strong, and as well, because they are steel won't soak up oil and dirt.)

You could simulate this type of floor with convential construction techniques easily, and for much less.

Reply to
PeterD

These are very expensive. I don't know how much though because my job started after the floor was installed by another contractor. But, I have heard of some rooms the size of a bedroom costing many thousands of dollars. I seem to remember one installer telling me that a job we were working, for a room about 20 x 30, was around $12,000 but he could have been blowing smoke up my perfume hole. I've worked many years in computer rooms, NOC's, switchrooms, etc. and can tell you that if you don't get a good install then you are going to have problems, even a sheet of paper is often thicker than the distance between the tiles. I have seen many rooms that had areas that the tiles didn't fit well and were raised a 1/4 inch on one side. We usually just jumped up and down on them until they seated but this didn't always work and sometimes if the tile did seat it would simply pop up again. Even a quality installation doesn't guarantee that the slab won't shift just a hair and pop up some tiles. Keep in mind though that my experience is from Arizona where a lot of the hard physical work is done by day-labor that was picked up on a street corner that very morning so results my vary. Also, you do get squeaks when walking on them sometimes because of tile edges rubbing against each other.

All that aside, they do, as you say, have the advantage of air circulation and hidden utility paths.

Reply to
caveat

Hello, There was a DIY show I had seen some time back maybe 1-11/2years back someone wanted to expand there deck with a hot tub but they set it a pad to the side of a concrete patio that was off of a raise deck. They used a modular system of short blocks that supported a square of deck panel a few inches off of the concrete. the square blocks set at the intersection of the four deck panels all held to gather with clips and screws "I THINK" so if a panel was damage it could be replaced. It gave a nice finish to a drab concrete patio. To finish the wood deck look they has. So if the tile or what ever you used as a floor could span the distance between the blocks and be supported only by the corners for the load then you could have the air space needed under the the surface over the concrete with the proper vapor shield. Also do not let any wood touch concrete, use some sort of water proof membrane even if the wood is treated. Because it could act as a wick. Some people say it doesn't matter but what the harm in adding a little insurance to keep from having problems down the road.

Charles

Reply to
ke4fxc_at_knology_dot_net

Hi, This link may offer what you're considering.

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out the 'appian way pedastal system' at the bottom of the page.

One purpose of the system is for commercial building rooftops that are sloped for drainage, but a people friendly, level outdoor floor is desired. The system consists of a cap that interlocks the corners of the tiles and a base that sits on the bottom. In between, four inch abs or pvc is cut to length to act as the support leg for the cap.

I used these tiles on my deck. I doubled up the joists to support the weight of the tiles and to provide a wide enough support for the cap. As the deck was built level, I only needed the cap part of the system to hold the tiles.

A raised floor of this type would be a piece of cake to install over a level basement concrete floor. Except for carrying them down the stairs!

I built my deck five years ago, and I love it. Virtually maintenance free. Every couple years I hose it down and put a sealer on it, just for looks.

The tiles were 18x18 inches and under two inches thick. They were in the $5-6 range. They were easy enough to cut on my 10 inch tile saw

Reply to
stevethompson

You're thinking of Dek-Block piers, which we used with very good results outside. Home Depot and Lowe's sell these. It's an interesting idea for a basement application and seems the cheapest way to achieve what the OP wants to do.

Reply to
KLS

another downside, many basements are short on headroom, so anything that decreases it futher is a downer........

a good underslab or french drain is better.........

Reply to
hallerb

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