Vinyl tiles on concrete floor - is it level enough?

Question

Hi allI'm planning to put self-adhesive vinyl tiles on a concrete floor.Overall the floor is level, but there are small-scale irregularitiesin a few places, i.e. a places where if you lay a foot-rule alongthe floor, you can rock it too-and-fro by a millimetre or two. Isthis likely to be a problem? Will I need to use a leveling compoundbefore laying the tiles?Also, given that the house (bungalow) was built in 1956, is it safeto assume that the floor already incorporates a damp-proof membrane?Thanks in advance,   Frank (DIY virgin)

meow2222 · Accepted Answer

gradual changes in level are no problem, but step changes are. Even a

1mm step change can end up slicing a 1mm thick tile in two.

If youre thinking of using wickes stuff, dont bother, they have not proven fit for purpose at all - and they wont even refund the cost of the tiles.

NT

Stuart Noble · Answer

The adhesive is designed to accommodate this level of irregularity. How were they unfit?

meow2222 · Answer

Vinyl tiles are not especially strong, so if you lay one over a 1mm step, as it gets trodden on over the years it will slowly deform over the step and eventually end up prematurely broken in 2. Yes it works for quite a while... but its easy enough to smooth the floor first and have it last longer.

The wickes ones had incompetent adhesive and dont naturally lie flat. Theyre cheap initially, but you have to redo them after a month or 2, using new adhesive, and solvent to remove the old.

NT

Stuart Noble · Answer

Yeah, sorry. Not thinking straight. VINYL tiles you fool.

Vinyl tiles on concrete floor - is it level enough?

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