Understanding Tile Leveling (Alignment) in Basement Floors

Due to the nature of home building in Canada many home owners are finding that their unfinished concrete basement floor is not completely leveled. This is because due to building code, concrete floor in basement has be sloped downwards towards main drain. This is done as a flood damage prevention mechanism, in case your basement gets flooded, water will slowly make its way down the slope and into the drain. Leaving most of the damage to the drain area and the least to the rest of the basement. During a basement finishing process, we need to work around this natural slope in order to maintain its preventative measures while making sure the new floor looks great and is perfectly aligned.

Bathroom Floor Tiling in Basement using Tile Leveling (Alignment) System

Here at FinishedBasement.Ca we use the most advanced tools and techniques to get the job done effectively and efficiently which translates to numerous of positive reviews and thousands of dollars saved for our clients. One of such systems is called Tile Leveling System. It is a simple system that consists of a clip and a wedge. Clip is being placed between 2 tiles and wedge is used to hold the tiles together. Using these clips together, creates a uniform sheet of tiles that is held solidly and perfectly aligned. The mortar that is used to glue the tile to the concrete will get rid of any imperfections providing a smooth flat surface without any obstacles for the feet. This simple, yet effective tool solves the issue with the floor tiles being unaligned (other known as limpage). Using this system we no longer require perfectly level floor, as the tile floors will balance out the slope and sit uniformly aligned with the natural slopeness of the basement.
Not only will your floor be perfect, but you will also save a ton of money compared to leveling your concrete floor using various of mixes. Your bathroom floor will be aligned with other rooms which will prevent you from stumbling over when going between rooms.

HOW THE SYSTEM IS USED WITH BASEMENT FLOOR OR WALL

This is an example of Tile Leveling (Alignment) System that is used on Leveled Concrete Floor  or Wood Frame Wall

90% OF CASES

This is an example of Tile Leveling (Alignment) System that is used on Curved Concrete Floor  or Wood Frame Wall.

As you can see, TLS not letting the tile to move up or down and thus prevents limpage. With TLS tiles can be perfectly aligned 

CASES OF SLOPED BASEMENT FLOOR

This diagram shows Basement Floor at slope of >0.5 Degree

Basement Floor Slope : 0.5 Degree
Difference in Height over 5′ Distance : 1/4″

Basement Floor Slope : 1 Degree
Difference in Height over 5′ Distance : 1/2″

Floors with Slope of Greater than 1 Degree Are Considered Special Cases and Will Require Self Leveling Mix or Sand Mix in Order To Level.

Special Case

Basement Floor Slope : 1.5 Degree
Difference in Height over 5′ Distance : 1″

In such cases, special Self-Leveling Mix or Concrete Sand Mix will be required to properly Level the Floor.  The average cost of this type of leveling is $6-$19 per sq.ft.

Example of Floor Transition During Normal Alignment

LEGEND:

1) Scratch Coat (Metal Lath)

2) Tile Mortar (Glue)

3) Ceramic or Porcelain Tile

4) 2 Step Transition Molding

5) Laminate Floor Tile

6) Foam Underpad

7) Subfloor (DRICORE) Plywood

8) Subfloor Air Gap Technology

9) Concrete Floor

A: Distance: ~7-10mm

B: Distance: ~3-4mm

Example of Floor Transition With Self-Leveling Mix

LEGEND:

4) Overlap Reducer Molding

10) Extra Concrete Mix For Floor Leveling

11) Transition Molding Custom Extension

11-A) Transition Molding Custom Extension

In case where custom Transition Molding needs to be made, cost can increase by 30-50%. The cost of the transition reducer molding will be approximately $55-$60