Which self-leveling compound do you use?

I purchased one of those kerdi shower kits that comes with a two-piece pre-sloped shower tray. It measures 60&#; x 32&#;. I&#;ve framed the walls for the shower and put down some additional underlayment. After gluing and screwing the ply, the floor in the stall ended up with a 3/4&#; pitch from one end to the other. I have to remedy this since the shower tray is factory formed with its own pitch for drainage.

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This is my first tiling project, so I could really use some guidance. My underlayment is currently 1&#; thick. Should I add another layer of underlayment and shim it level prior to installing the shower tray? Will some SLC be sufficient to address this problem? If so, can someone recommend a reliable brand of SLC?

Thanks.

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The product has been mixed incorrectly. Too much water. When this happens, all of the additives (the stuff that allows the product to be flexible and not crack) wash to the surface and you see what we often call "powdering". That's what all of that white stuff is.

This will cause two major problems. One, the cracking that you are already seeing. Two, if you were to adhere something to the surface, it would not bond properly. I would bet that if you were to pH test this as it sits, the pH would be pretty high.

That white stuff is actually latex or acrylic in a dry powder form. Sometimes, depending on the product, you may also see fibers in it. Some self-leveling can contain Kevlar fibers for reinforcing the product against movement. It kind of works like a teeny tiny version of rebar to provide dimensional stability.

Self-leveling is not like thin set mortar or really even trowelled patches. It has a very specific ratio of water to powder. If you get outside of that, either way, you severely affect the performance of the product. You cannot mix it to "feel".

It also has a very specific amount of time that you should mix the product. It then needs to set for a set amount of time to slake off. This allows any entrained air that's trapped in the mix to rise to the top and escape so that you don't have a lot of "fish eyes" (bubbles) in the mix that leave little pock marks in the finished surface.

When done correctly, it's like coordinating a symphony. Complicated but almost artistic and beautiful.

It's definitely a defective pour. It needs to come out and be replaced.

Whatever you do, DO NOT LET THEM POUR OVER THIS!!! It will be an absolute nightmare. It needs to be removed, re-primed, and repoured correctly.

If the product is not being run through a pump, then a typical self-leveling crew should really be 3 people minimum. 1 guy mixing, 1 guy controlling the product on the floor, and 1 guy prepping bags for the mixer and taking the mixed material and dumping it out. You can do it with 2 people if they know what they're doing but it can get pretty hairy if you run into a problem. You only have so much time, generally around 10-12 minutes to get the next mixed material down so that you are working with wet edge to wet edge. The exception to this is if you are using a type of self-leveling that is reactivatible. If that's the case, then you can use a set of self-leveling star rollers and reactivate the product. This returns it back to a more flowable state and then you can re-blend your wet edges if you started to "lose' the pour. The rollers break down the early bonding legs that start to form in the product and allow it to flow again. You can do this reactivation once and then that's it. It gives you about another 8-10 minutes of time to work with that wet edge.

I'm sorry that you had this experience. Please know there are many good quality mechanics in our industry who do good work and would never leave somebody in this situation. I wish you well getting it replaced and hopefully this time everything is done correctly and the job goes smoothly (no pun intended).

I'm a little late to the party, but I thought I'd add some observations...The product has been mixed incorrectly. Too much water. When this happens, all of the additives (the stuff that allows the product to be flexible and not crack) wash to the surface and you see what we often call "powdering". That's what all of that white stuff is.This will cause two major problems. One, the cracking that you are already seeing. Two, if you were to adhere something to the surface, it would not bond properly. I would bet that if you were to pH test this as it sits, the pH would be pretty high.That white stuff is actually latex or acrylic in a dry powder form. Sometimes, depending on the product, you may also see fibers in it. Some self-leveling can contain Kevlar fibers for reinforcing the product against movement. It kind of works like a teeny tiny version of rebar to provide dimensional stability.Self-leveling is not like thin set mortar or really even trowelled patches. It has a very specific ratio of water to powder. If you get outside of that, either way, you severely affect the performance of the product. You cannot mix it to "feel".It also has a very specific amount of time that you should mix the product. It then needs to set for a set amount of time to slake off. This allows any entrained air that's trapped in the mix to rise to the top and escape so that you don't have a lot of "fish eyes" (bubbles) in the mix that leave little pock marks in the finished surface.When done correctly, it's like coordinating a symphony. Complicated but almost artistic and beautiful.It's definitely a defective pour. It needs to come out and be replaced.Whatever you do, DO NOT LET THEM POUR OVER THIS!!! It will be an absolute nightmare. It needs to be removed, re-primed, and repoured correctly.If the product is not being run through a pump, then a typical self-leveling crew should really be 3 people minimum. 1 guy mixing, 1 guy controlling the product on the floor, and 1 guy prepping bags for the mixer and taking the mixed material and dumping it out. You can do it with 2 people if they know what they're doing but it can get pretty hairy if you run into a problem. You only have so much time, generally around 10-12 minutes to get the next mixed material down so that you are working with wet edge to wet edge. The exception to this is if you are using a type of self-leveling that is reactivatible. If that's the case, then you can use a set of self-leveling star rollers and reactivate the product. This returns it back to a more flowable state and then you can re-blend your wet edges if you started to "lose' the pour. The rollers break down the early bonding legs that start to form in the product and allow it to flow again. You can do this reactivation once and then that's it. It gives you about another 8-10 minutes of time to work with that wet edge.I'm sorry that you had this experience. Please know there are many good quality mechanics in our industry who do good work and would never leave somebody in this situation. I wish you well getting it replaced and hopefully this time everything is done correctly and the job goes smoothly (no pun intended).

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