How To Put A Concrete Floor In An Existing Garage

Laying a concrete floor in an existing building takes some special skills and tools.

How to put a concrete floor in an existing garage. Pour concrete for the new floor. Add all of the concrete right away so none of the mixture has a chance to dry out. Fill in the area with gravel 3 4 and compact it. This is especially important in a wet climate.

Lay the joists on edge across the width of the floor. You can set screed guides rails that you first use to get it flat then pull and fill in the void they leave. If more than 2 5 cm 1 inch shim the joists near the door trim the joists at the opposite end or do both. Some are designed to be left in place as expansion joints.

Install either 2 by 2 2 by 4 or 2 by 6 joists over the garage floor depending on how much room you have floor to ceiling. You do not need to wait for the scratch coat layer to dry completely. Place duct tape over existing expansion joints. Nail cross blocking boards to hold the joists together every 4 feet.

These bars will provide strength to the concrete. Measure the slope if any of the floor from the garage front to the door. Divide the garage into sections no larger than 144 square feet each. Place them 16 inches apart.

Allowing the concrete to dry too much between pours will create layers and make the concrete weaker. Pour concrete onto the existing slab until it is around where you want the final level to be. Make sure you have enough concrete to fill the entire area to the depth you desire. You can use a dense foam insulation around the edge of the slab and use that to guide your screeding.

Put in place a vapor barrier. Lay an impermeable membrane on the raw concrete as a vapour barrier. Have the bars prepared before pouring. Install wire mesh or fiber mesh as reinforcement.