Removing carpet backing from basement floor

[DCarr2]

I live in a fairly large ranch (2700 sq ft, the listing said 1400 the deed says 1400, my old house was 1400, this is way bigger than 1400 but who am i to argue lol)

the basement wast carpetted which I removed. the previous owners glued the carpet tp the floor. when I ripped out the carpet, it left behind thhis 1/8 inch fuzzy material behind... scraping it with a shovel is a bit fruitless, I thought about sanding it off but what a job... i cant power wash it with out destroying my sump pump.... I could sandblast it off but the dust situation would be a night mare...

thoughts?

 

[Marctrees]

What do you plan to put on the floor?

Not new carpet? Marc

 

[DCarr2]

Id like to paint it.

 

[Jakemedic]

I used an ice scraper and good gloves in my formerly carpeted kitchen. I do feel for you, it was a huge pain......in the hands! I laid a sub floor and tiled though afterwards. Not sure I got the glue off, but definitely the rubber backing. Good luck my friend!

 

[Slednut]

These work well, they have a 4 inch wide razor blade.

https://ungercleaning.com/p-941-4-inch-light-duty-scraper.aspx

 

[VWTim]

Rent one of these and a floor buffer for 1/2 day from your local rental outfit. It'll take it down to smooth in no time

http://www.tools4flooring.com/scrape-away-rotary-scraper.html

 

[vettex2]

8" floor scraper.
http://www.homedepot.com/p/QEP-8-in...r-Floor-Scraper-and-Stripper-62909Q/100067461

Don't believe the BS posted above.
I ran floor crews for YEARS.

 

[Vantastic]

8" floor scraper.
http://www.homedepot.com/p/QEP-8-in...r-Floor-Scraper-and-Stripper-62909Q/100067461

Don't believe the BS posted above.
I ran floor crews for YEARS.

Yep. Scrape it off.

 

[38 Dodge Coupe]

I have found that after you remove the carpet and use a scraper (pictured in the post from vettex2 ) to remove the remaining material that there comes a point where using a chemical to remove the mastic is necessary. I have found the product 500 MR by Blue Bear to be effective. It is not cheap or quick but the mastic remover is made from non toxic material ( soy based) and the smell is not toxic to you. I checked and a gallon of mastic remover for latex will run you about $35.00/gallon plus shipping. I ended up getting a quart to test with and then ordered five gallon bucket. I have also seen projects where a floor grinder is used ( with success) but at the time the house was occupied and I did not want to deal with the dust that would migrate all over the house.

 

[Daves69]

This stuff is amazing spray it on and scrape it off.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0006NL1JA/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[TurnipTruck]

We rented a concrete floor grinder after peeling and scraping the carpet and pad. It took an entire 10-hour day to get it clean enough to put down epoxy.

 

[theoldwizard1]

A power floor buffer and the proper Diamabrush will make short, easy work of it. Probably best with a bit of solvent. There are many to choose from.

 

[MBfreak]

25 years ago we moved into a house 190 sqm, most rooms had glued in carpet.
Under the glue a 35 mm thick particleboard, resting on a rubber grid net on concrete slab.

We wanted vinyl glued in carpeting.
Ripping out the old carpet was mostly easy, then I started to get the residue off. Had a pro carpet installer to look things over. He said " leave it". " I will smooth it out with a cement mix, less than 2 mm thick". Which he did in a display of craftmanship, not one spot on the wallpaper.
Then he glued the vinyl in, and it looks perfecy even today.

"When you get tired of the vinyl, easy to rip out, the cement will crack and come out too"

Good guy!

Ola

 

[Woz]

38 Doge Coupe and The Oldwizard1 have given you the information you need for the next step. There are many non solvent type foam backed carpet removers out there that work very well. A quick Google search will provide you the products and videos of the technique to remove the remaining foam and adhesive.

 

[Pen & Wrench]

I would try a scraper that you can put into a reciprocating saw, or saws-all. They are maybe 2 inches wide, and cost about 12 dollars. It worked really well for me taking glued felt off a wood floor, I would think it would work very well on a concrete floor. At least it is worth a try.

 

[tcianci]

have you tried water?

 

[engineer2]

As you know, never use a flammable solvent. There was a story in the news a few years ago where a couple of workers were trying to remove carpet glue with solvent. They didn't say what kind, but as you can guess, a spark or a pilot light lit it off.

 

[Jinks]

HOT water & a scraper. Did that back in '01 with a small beach house. The previous owner used glue down indoor/outdoor carpet & VCT tile. The carpet & tile came up, but left glue & residue. A small amount of REALLY HOT water & a scraper will take it up quickly.

 

[padroo]

Here is a YouTube video I found