When repairing or building, you must ensure that the floor of your house is as warm and protected from moisture. Many projects often involve the construction of floors on the ground, this system is a practical and inexpensive option.
For reference
If the structure is provided with thermal insulation, then it will guarantee comfort and warmth indoors, reducing maintenance costs. A similar system will resemble a layer cake, which has several materials.
Layer layout
Quite often recently, floors on the ground have been equipped. The correct pie of this system provides for the presence of bedding, reinforcing mesh, screed, hydro and thermal insulation. Laying layers is necessary in stages. Before starting work, the soil must be prepared. The upper fertile layer is removed, the territory is cleaned of debris and foreign objects. At this stage, it will be necessary to level the surface. Then sand is filled, you can use any of its kind. After filling, the layer is well compacted.
The next step will be the laying of rubble or gravel. Thanks to this preparation, groundwater will not rise upward, in addition, you will be able to level the surface well. The thickness of this preparation is approximately 8 centimeters. As practice shows, floors on the ground are gaining more and more popularity. The correct pie of this part of the house is a system that provides for the next stage of laying a reinforcing metal mesh. With its help, it will be possible to strengthen the concrete screed and fix the heating pipes.
After completing all the above work, you can begin to equip the rough screed with concrete, the thickness of this coating is from 5 to 10 centimeters. After the solution solidifies, a waterproofing film is laid , which is sometimes replaced by a membrane. The main task of this layer is to prevent moisture from entering the concrete. Therefore, film strips must be overlapped. The joints are fixed with construction tape.
Warming and waterproofing
Next, the selected thermal insulation material is laid, in the role of which you can use foamed polystyrene or dense polystyrene with a foil coating. If it is assumed that the load on the surface will be quite impressive, then plates should be used. The thickness of this layer should be selected depending on the climatic conditions of the region where the construction is carried out. You can also arrange floors on the ground. The correct cake in this case should include laying the waterproofing layer in the next step. It can be roofing material, which covers in one layer. At the final stage, a final screed is installed, which will act as a finishing floor covering. Its thickness usually varies from 7 to 10 centimeters.
Main advantages
Among the main advantages of such a floor, one can single out the reliability of protecting a house from frost and cold. Regardless of the temperature of the soil on which the system will be laid, the soil will have a plus temperature. An additional advantage is that almost any thermal insulation can act as insulation material. For waterproofing, you can use a cheap roofing material or a special film. The flooring can also be absolutely anything, everything will depend on the preferences of the owners.
For the reason that the flooring is carried out on the ground, calculations are not necessary. In those places where the load is significant, it is recommended to increase the thickness of the warm floor cake. Quite often, homemade masters independently equip a warm floor cake on the ground. The design, the advantages of which are described in the article, can form the basis of the heating system of the entire building. This will eliminate the need to install additional heat sources. Its construction has excellent soundproofing characteristics.
Alternative installation of flooring on the ground
If you decide to equip the floors on the ground, the right cake may provide for a different arrangement of layers. Everything will depend on the level of underground water, the type of system, operational loads and other factors. In the above example, the main underlying layer is concrete. But in some cases, a pie is laid, where the screed is replaced by a sand cushion, the thickness of which is 150 millimeters. The sequence will remain the same, but ensuring an even surface will be more difficult.
If the floor polystyrene will be insulated on the ground, the device of the pie will be slightly different. In this case, the gravel layer should be laid 30 cm thick, the concrete screed 15 cm, then there is a layer of waterproofing and insulation, a reinforced concrete screed acts as the final layer.
An excellent thermal insulation is a mineral wool plate, which has a high density, resistance to deformation and a long service life. This material is recommended to be laid in two layers. In order to exclude water absorption, treatment with water-repellent compounds should be performed. Expanded clay can be used as an insulation layer, which will become an inexpensive and simple option. In this case, additional waterproofing is not required, in addition, expanded clay can replace a layer of gravel and screed.
Technology of work
If you want to perform warm floors on the ground, the correct cake can be stacked only after preparatory work. They have been described above. In the next step, a thick layer of sand is poured, which is spilled with water for better compaction. Then comes a layer of expanded clay. A rough reinforced screed is made, on top of which a waterproofing material is covered. It can be a plastic film, which is closed by a heater. The final screed will be the last layer, it also needs to be reinforced and the underfloor heating system laid in its base. It can be water or electric. When preparing the solution, pure river sand is used, as well as fine-grained gravel. Gaps when laying the layers do not need to be provided, as an exception, only the final screed acts. Concrete floor cake on the ground, the design of which may include linoleum and laminate, at this stage can be considered equipped.
Wooden floor

If we compare the usual floor with what is formed on the ground, several differences can be distinguished. In the latter case, it is necessary to provide a space between the floor and the ground, which will be a ventilated underground. Its height usually varies from 5 to 10 cm. To begin with, a soil base is prepared, this includes the leveling of the surface, adding crushed stone and its compaction. Then a layer of lean concrete is poured, and then marking is carried out, at this stage lighthouses are installed and places where brick supports will be located are marked. For them to prepare full-bodied products. Next, a double layer of roofing material with some overlap is laid, and if the soil is wet, then you need to lay it in two layers. The master stacks wooden pads that are impregnated with an antiseptic. If you are thinking about how to make the right floor cake on the ground, you should know that the wooden structure provides for the presence of a layer of slag, the thickness of which can reach a meter. Then, a beam is installed on the brick supports, to which you have to strengthen the floor boards using nails. Using a planer, the wooden floor is leveled, and the next step will be the puttying of the surface, which is especially true for those places where the nail heads are located.
Specialist recommendations
You can start work by arranging a dense and high-quality foundation. The soil is removed to a depth of 0.5 meters. Instead of the above preparation, you can fill in coarse sand, which is well compacted using a special tool or a vibrating plate. A 5-cm concrete screed usually acts as a bedding layer, and the cost of further work, along with the time of their implementation, can be significantly reduced. When wooden floors are ground, the correct cake may contain not only the above materials for waterproofing, but also a PVC membrane, fiberglass, polyester or bitumen mastic.
Conclusion
Without outside help, you can independently arrange floors on the ground. The correct floor cake with your own hands is performed using only high-quality materials and subject to the rules of the technology. For example, for the evenness of the entire surface, it is necessary to use the building level.