Newbie DIY cutback problems

[Ams112789]

Ok. I'll try to keep this simple. The facts are... 55 year old block house (block including the interior walls) built on a slab. VCT tile is through the whole house, it's stuck down with the cut back glue. Both most likely contain asbestos.

We've got a very limited budget, and we were just going to pop up the old nasty vct and prime and paint the floor. This is where I've hit a brick wall... After taking up the tile in about half the house we went looking for paint, then I was told by several paint stores no paint would ever stick to that cutback glue.

Now I have seriously spent 15-20 hours over the past few days researching forums, products, and how to videos. My options seem to be this...

1. Shot blast (too expensive)
2 Grind it clean (grinding asbestos is frowned upon in most societies)
3. Encapsulate it with a skim coat of SLC (like ardex feather finish)
4. Just prime and epoxy it as planned and hope for the best

Now if I had he money I would just have someone come tile the whole house for me.... But I don't have the pesos for that.

I believe my best option is to go the encapsulation rout and skim coat it, get a concrete primer on it, and then epoxy it. I need some professionals thoughts.

What I've tried...
1. Scraping = nothing
2. Washing with hot soapy water = nothing
3. I got some adhesive remover from Home Depot = best results so far. I just tested a small 2'x2' area. It dissolved some of it. But took several coats of the chemical, filled the room with fumes. It's not practical to do the entire house because it took FOREVER and still did not get it clean enough to call it good and clean.

Hopefully someone here has done this before and can give me some advice or at the least comments... Please help... I'm desperate! Hahaha. I just want to move myself and my stuff back into the bed room.

This is not a $100,000 home, I just need something to cover up this nasty black floor that will last about 5-10 years.

Any thoughts?!?! The cheaper the better.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Darol Wester]

I would scrape it with a good razor blade scraper (4" blade) as clean as you can get it and go with the Ardex Feather Finish. If you haven't done much troweling, it might be easier said that done, but with a little practice, it should come out pretty nice. A little sand paper afterwards where it needs it and you'd be good to go.

 

[rugaddict]

the cheapest and easiest would be to put vct back down--about the cost of paint

 

[FloorMaven]

...I believe my best option is to go the encapsulation rout and skim coat it, get a concrete primer on it, and then epoxy it. I need some professionals thoughts...

You might consider Ardex SD-M.

 

[Ernesto]

Listen to your painters professional advice. Your totaly in the wrong kinda forum although we deal with this all the time. Painting the floor is the cheapest of all floor covering, if you can call it that. Plus, I hate to say it but your not supposed to sand cutback adhesive! Least dry sand it.
Flooring people do have alternatives to dealing with the residue, however I doubt even Ardex would want to warrant theirs over just paint.

Hows that for advice?

 

[Darol Wester]

SD-M. I like that. Looks like a great solution for cement.

 

[Ams112789]

I would scrape it with a good razor blade scraper (4" blade) as clean as you can get it and go with the Ardex Feather Finish. If you haven't done much troweling, it might be easier said that done, but with a little practice, it should come out pretty nice. A little sand paper afterwards where it needs it and you'd be good to go.

Thanks. I think I'll try that... I have a little experience with a trowel, not enough to say I'm good at it though. Haha. But good enough I'm willing to try it in my own house.

And thanks for the tip FloorMaven, I just glanced at the ardex sd-m. I'll certainly look into it.

Thanks for all y'all's thoughts and time. Certainly been the most help I've found yet.

 

[Ernesto]

SD-M Substrate Preparation
Substrates must be solid, thoroughly clean and free of
oil, wax, grease, asphalt, latex and gypsum compounds,
curing and sealing compounds, and any contaminant that
might act as a bond breaker. If necessary, mechanically
clean the floor down to sound, solid concrete by grinding,
shot blasting or similar. Overwatered, frozen or otherwise
weak concrete surfaces must always be cleaned down
to sound, solid concrete by mechanical methods. Acid
etching, adhesive removers, solvents and sweeping
compounds are not acceptable means of cleaning the
substrate. The use of sanding equipment is not an effective
method to remove curing and sealing compounds

Me thinks cutbac is asphaltic based and is a bond breaker.

 

[Ams112789]

Me thinks cutbac is asphaltic based and is a bond breaker.

Yeah I read through all their tech specs and stuff on the sd-m. But didn't realize cutback was a bond breaker.

Ok. So back to against that dang brick wall... Y'all are the flooring pros, I'm just a humble DIY'er. Haha. What options have I looked over? What in y'all's opinions is my best bet. Like I said I don't need anything fancy. Just a cheap floor covering. And the wife says no to VCT. ANYTHING but that she says.

If I could get my hands on a shot blaster I might try that, but none of my local rental stores even acted like they knew what it was.

So carpet, or some kind of floating floor, or tile? Some thin sets will stick to cutback right?

 

[Ernesto]

I have a solution, but I gotta run. I'll wait to see if anyone comes up with it. ta ta.

 

[Floorist]

You could always just roll out Kangaback everywhere but the kitchen and bath.

 

[Ernesto]

You could always just roll out Kangaback everywhere but the kitchen and bath.

My solution involves no traditional floorcovering, shot blasting, grinding, etching with chemicals etc. Its a simple solution yet involves three of four steps. Fairly inexpensive as well.

 

[Ams112789]

My solution involves no traditional floorcovering, shot blasting, grinding, etching with chemicals etc. Its a simple solution yet involves three of four steps. Fairly inexpensive as well.

Well Ernesto, just what might that be? A bunch of rugs?

 

[Ernesto]

Rugs are a traditional floor covering. The solution is here, one just need to be experienced. I'll also add I this not, thinset, won't work.

 

[Ernesto]

Plus I will add, sticks to cutback and you will be able to paint it.

 

[Ams112789]

Plus I will add, sticks to cutback and you will be able to paint it.

I give up... Sounds like a snipe hunt to me. Haha... Unless you've got some miracle mixture of more than one product. Cause I've spent several hours (10+) looking into this stuff and this cutback seems to be a beast to cover up right.

 

[Ernesto]

Your getting warmer. Yes, cutback is the ultimate in bond breakers. I would not call it a mixture, a compilation, yes. You got to be able to read between the mans lines so to speak.

 

[FloorMaven]

Unless you've got some miracle mixture of more than one product.

Use SD-F to encapsulate
http://www.ardexfeatherfinish.com/images/AT127 ARDEX Feather Finish tech data eng 1112.pdf

Then SD-M as your finished floor covering.

$15 of Sd-f goes a long way as you only need a skim coat.

 

[FloorMaven]

If I could get my hands on a shot blaster I might try that, but none of my local rental stores even acted like they knew what it was.

You'll still need a floor covering as shot blasting leaves a rough profile.

 

[Ernesto]

Use SD-F to encapsulate
http://www.ardexfeatherfinish.com/images/AT127 ARDEX Feather Finish tech data eng 1112.pdf

Then SD-M as your finished floor covering.

$15 of Sd-f goes a long way as you only need a skim coat.

Curses floor maven