Repairs Beneath Floor
In the previous posts we were looking at two different bathrooms to be renovated, one in a basement, the other on a floor above.
The subfloor structure was what I was attending to. You will have different problems and employ different situations with a slab on grade vs. a standard plywood subfloor.
Let’s look at the bath with the plywood subfloor. I talked about the need to get the old flooring material out of there and remove and/ or cover up any residue of old adhesive.
I think you have to begin your flooring instalation with as mearly perfect a subflooring as you can get.
Now about the plywood subflooring. If you have got prior water damage by the tub, shower, or toilet this has to be fixed!
The subflorring may be moldy and not firm, or more simply the upper layers of the plywood may have begun to delaminate.
If you have gotdeterioration and soft spots due to mold, you’ll need to cut out and replace those subflooring sections. This isn’t as complicated or difficult as it sounds. Get an eletric stud finder to locate the joice under the damaged are.
Cut out the moldy orwater damaged plywood, and finish your cut so that the edge is in the center of the joice.
You will need to install some cross member supports, between the joices at the ends of the cut out area and possible midway. Between for extra support to attch the new plywood.
When you have got the floor open, remove any moldy insulation. If there is mold on the joice and it has not begun to deteriorate then this can be Killed with clorine bleach in a spray bottle.
Bleach is nasty stuff, so wear a mask gloves and cover up. When you are done, leave the area and ventilate it well.
Make sure the tops of the cros members are perfectly level with the joices so there’s no raised joints or dips. It is a good idea to screw down this plywood patch with galvanized screws.
Fill in all seams with leveling compound between the new plywood and the existing floor.
In the case of a water damaged subfloor without mold that is beginning to delaminate you will have to make a judgement, whether the wood can be screwed down, flat or possibly removed the top layer of the plywood.
If you take off a layer of plywood and the affected area is small, you can patch and smooth the area out with leveling compound.