About 18 months ago I installed some VCT on a concrete basement slab. Everything was fine for about 4 months (until cold weather started), and then some of the seams between tiles began oozing soupy, sticky brown liquid when walked on. Not a lot, and not everywhere, but enough to be annoying. The problem continued and became worse the following spring.
The specifics: it’s a walkout basement. 50 year old house. South Central Wisconsin. The problem is worst in the deepest part of the basement and tapers off to no problems within 15 feet of the exposed side of the basement. Mannington 12″ VCT tiles, installed with Mannington Commercial V-11 adhesive per mfg instructions. One caveat: I only did the half-assed moisture test with the taped-down plastic for 48 hours before installing. It showed no moisture.
Homeowner believes there’s serious vapor drive coming up under the slab, so he had a perimeter drain and sump pump installed last month. I peeled up some of the problem tiles and found scattered puddles of thin, watery adhesive. It looked as if the adhesive had actually re-liquified in spots. How is that possible?
So two questions for you: Do you think the perimeter drain will do anything to handle the sub-slab vapor drive, and do you think there’s a better way to install replacement tiles (like a different adhesive or sealing the top of the slab first)?
Thanks for your suggestions.
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I would be calling the tech line at the adhesive manufacturers to get any thoughts they have on this.
But probably not for a couple days. The experienced hands are likely to be on vacation or at the party, leaving the novices manning the phones.
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If it is a latex adhesive, it may have never fully cured in that moist environment.
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Yeah, it's a latex adhesive. The problem may be purely a moisture problem, but I'm guessing it's more of a chemical reaction with salts leaching out of the concrete.