Concrete and timber
Latex self levelling screed
Liquid latex and cement, poured to give a perfectly smooth, level and durable finish over concrete or timber. Ideal for thin coverings like vinyl and LVT, which show every bump underneath.
Subfloor preparation
The bit nobody sees decides how long your floor lasts
Any flooring company can lay a carpet. Not many will tell you the floor underneath it is the problem. We find out first, and fix it properly.
A real job, Brighton, summer 2026
Seven layers under one carpet
The lounge and hallway had moisture coming up through the concrete and the parquet was lifting. All of it had to come out before anything else could happen. Four days of work you will never see, and the reason this floor will still be right in ten years.
- CarpetCormar Primo Grande. The only layer the customer ever sees.
- UnderlayWilsons GrandeWaltz 9mm, PU and memory foam, lifetime guarantee.
- GripperFresh, right round the perimeter. Never reused.
- Levelling compoundKelmore LevelMore Flex and Fibre, back up to the height of the rest of the house.
- Grip primerKelmore PrimeMore Grip, so the next layer bonds instead of sitting on top.
- Damp proof membraneKelmore One Coat DPM Fast, a two part epoxy. The moisture stops here.
- Smoothing compoundKelmore LevelMore Pro, floated across the whole floor to get it flat.
- Bare subfloorEvery bit of old parquet lifted out first.
What you walk onWhat it sits on
Check your own floor
Three signs your floor has a moisture problem
Wood or parquet lifting
Cupping, or popping up in patches. It is not always just old.
Cold, slightly damp carpet
Put your hand flat on the carpet or underlay. If it feels cold and damp, take note.
A musty smell you cannot trace
That is almost always underneath you.
If you have any of these, do not let anyone lay a new floor over the top. It needs sealing properly first, or you are burying the problem under something more expensive.
The right base for the floor
Latex screed or plywood, depending on what is there
Uneven floorboards
Plywood subfloor
Sheets of plywood fixed over the existing boards to give a solid, structural surface. Stronger and more stable where the floor needs it, and the right call under heavier coverings.
Damp
Damp proof membranes
A two part epoxy membrane and moisture suppressant from Kelmore, who supply all of our subfloor products. On a job where trust mattered, we brought the Kelmore rep out to the house to talk the customer through it.
Why quotes are so different
The cheap quote is the expensive one
If a flooring quote felt suspiciously cheap, we can tell you what was left out. The prep. It is always the prep.
Prep takes days, it costs money in material, and the customer never sees it. So the easiest way to win a job on price is to skip it and hope nobody notices for two years. When someone quotes you half what we do, ask them which of the seven layers they are skipping.
I was looking for a company that could deal with all of the subfloor as well as the beautiful finished carpet on the top. I got three quotes, and figured you were better placed to deal with the subfloor.EmmaBrighton
Let us look at the floor before anyone quotes it
The site survey is free. Steve comes out, lifts a corner if he needs to, and tells you what is actually going on underneath. Then you get a quote with every line in it.