What this work covers
Floor screed leveling buries and protects heating pipes while creating the flatness, room-to-room levels, and drainage falls required by the final floor. General screed, local mortar repairs, and self-leveling compound serve different areas, so one completely level plane is not the answer everywhere.
When this work is needed
Use it after heating-pipe installation, around an expanded floor or removed threshold, and where a bathroom or balcony needs a controlled fall to a drain. Pressure-test and mark the pipes before burial; after the screed sets, a leak or crushed line is much harder to locate and repair.
Decide before mortar is placed
Fix the pipe protection, finished levels, and wet-area falls as one setting-out plan.
- Passed pressure-test result and marked routes for every buried heating pipe
- Reference floor levels at rooms, expansions, thresholds, doors, and fitted furniture
- Required drainage falls and drain heights in bathrooms and balconies
- Areas for general screed, local repair, or self-leveling compound
- Curing time, access restrictions, and moisture limit before each floor finish
Check in the quote
Separate pipe protection, screed, slope formation, repair, and self-leveling quantities.
- Are areas, average depths, mortar types, and self-leveling quantities stated?
- Are pipe protection, mesh, route marking, and pressure-test confirmation included?
- Are level references and wet-area falls identified by location?
- Are doorway and removed-threshold repairs included separately?
- Are flatness, drainage, moisture, curing, and access-control checks included?
If you have floor plans, pipe photographs, or a screed quote, I can help check the proposed levels, slopes, and buried-work evidence.
What to check on site
Once the pipes disappear, the screed has to protect them and become the correct base for both dry floors and wet drainage areas.
- Pipe Protection and Pouring References Complete
Confirm the passed pressure test, photograph and mark pipe routes, and secure the protective mesh so nothing floats during placement. Set room levels and drainage references, then agree how access will be restricted after the pour. - Floor Screed Mortar Placement Complete
Place the screed without dragging, crushing, or displacing the pipes. Compact and rule it to the reference points, leaving enough cover over the services while controlling the levels at doors, expansions, and adjacent rooms. - Slope, Level, and Self-Leveling Complete
Form drainage falls toward each wet-area outlet, repair local steps, and use self-leveling compound only where a flat base is required. Release air with a spiked roller, then check the dry surface with a two-metre straightedge and test actual water flow before finishing.
Where problems usually start
- Floor outside the flatness tolerance High and low areas can leave timber flooring hollow or create lipped and loose tiles.
- Heating pipe moved during placement An unsecured pipe or cover can float, become pinched, or lose the required mortar cover.
- Wet area finished flat Without a fall toward the drain, water remains on the floor and can lead to odor and finish failure.
- Air trapped in self-leveling compound Unreleased bubbles leave pinholes and a weak surface beneath the final floor covering.
Do not cover a new screed because it looks smooth from standing height. Check it with a straightedge, test the drain direction with water, and verify the moisture condition required by the selected finish.
Keep the pipe test and route photographs, level and slope references, mortar product and depth, pour and curing dates, flatness results, drainage test, and pre-finish moisture reading.
Timing and records
Allow about 8 to 16 hours of site work. Area, average depth, access, and the mix of screed and self-leveling work can change this; curing and moisture reduction require separate time.
Retain the pressure-test result, pipe routes, level and drainage marks, material and depth, placement photographs, curing controls, straightedge checks, water test, and moisture result.
The screed follows pipe testing and becomes the base for tile and flooring, so both the concealed work and finish tolerances matter at handover.