I have a small mudroom built over the landing pad of some old steps. The steps have recently been redone. The mason was unable to completely take down the landing pad walls because he said the dirt underneath would fall out. I didn’t look underneath myself to see if it was hollow or properly supported as I’m not a contractor or inspector.
Now to what I want to do. There was plywood glued to old tiles which I ripped out. I’m planning on removing the old tile which appears to be set on top of the concrete landing pad. I want to raise it, because past the door threshold it goes down approximately 1.5 inches, then to go into the house is a 1.5 inch rise. What I need to do ia fill in the cracks in the top landing pad and use self leveling concretr to ensure it’s even.
Now to the question. What can I use to raise it approximately 1 inch? I’m going to use backer board and tile, which will raise it about .5 inches but what could I put underneath? From reading the forums backerboard and plywood should not be applied directly to the concrete. If I need to apply the tile directly to the conrete I will if there are no other legitimate options, but I much rather raise it. Also, if the old landing pad is hallow, I imagine using nails would not be a great idea?
I too am thrilled about my mud room being built on decades old steps. Unfortunately, the cost of a complete tear down and rebuild is too much for me to take on right now.
Thank you in advance for any advice.
thomasheatingandcooling1 