Latex over boards and old tiles in Romsey
Latex screed earns its place on floors that a plain compound would struggle to grip. The powder is cement based, but it is mixed with a latex liquid where water would normally go, and that gives the cured layer a little flexibility and a stronger hold. It goes down thin, usually a few millimetres, and its job is to hide the texture of whatever lies under it.
Timber is the classic case. Bare floorboards shrink, swell and lift at the edges, so latex never goes straight onto them. The boards are screwed down first and covered with flooring grade plywood, fixed at close centres, and the latex is spread over the plywood. Kitchen and bathroom refits in older Romsey houses often reach this point once the old vinyl is pulled up and the boards underneath turn out to be uneven.
Old tiles are the other common base. Quarry tiles or ceramics that are still firmly stuck can stay where they are, as long as none ring hollow when tapped. We clean and key the glaze, prime it, and the latex fills the grout lines so the old pattern never shows through a new sheet floor. Uneven older concrete and thin, hard old adhesive can be treated the same way once anything loose has been scraped off.
Primer is never skipped. Plywood, tiles, concrete and calcium sulphate screed each take a different one, and a calcium sulphate floor must have its laitance removed before it is primed. Where thick glue or paint is in the way, our Romsey concrete floor grinding takes it off first.
When a Romsey floor needs more than latex
Latex is a finishing layer, not a repair. It will not keep a damp floor dry, it will not stiffen boards that bounce underfoot, and it cannot pull a floor that is badly out of level back into line. Spread over any of those faults, it only hides them for a while.
Damp is the first thing to rule out in the older part of town. Where a floor near Romsey Abbey has no membrane, moisture rising through it can push adhesive and sheet flooring off within months. The cure is to take the floor out and fit a membrane and insulation, which our membrane and insulation work covers, before any thin layer goes on.
Springy timber has to be fixed at the joists before it is overboarded. A concrete floor with cracks that move, or a screed that has lifted, needs repairs to the screed first. Where a room dips or slopes by more than a thin layer can take up, a new screed is the honest answer.
Homes built between 1919 and 1944 make up 5% of Romsey's housing, and floors of that age deserve a check for all three faults before anything thin goes on top. For flatness classes and general compound work, our floor levelling service in Romsey has the detail.
How we price latex screed in Romsey
A fixed written price within 24 hours, once we know the area and the base. See our floor screeding cost guide.
Who lays your latex screed in Romsey
K & B Screeding’s own team, led by director Donatas Bardisevicius. Founded 2019, company 12298780.
See what customers say in our Google reviews and on our testimonials page.
Latex Screed from Slough to Romsey
Romsey is about 52.7 miles south-west of our Slough base as the crow flies, with postcodes including SO51 and SO16. The nearest towns to it are Totton (4.9 miles), Eastleigh (6.5 miles), Southampton (7.2 miles) and Winchester (9.6 miles).
More on latex screed, part of our screeding services.
