Self-leveling underlayment is the prep step that decides whether a finished floor lays down flat or fights you. Detroit Concrete pours self-leveling compound onto a primed substrate, where it spreads and settles to a perfectly level finish, ready to take tile, plank, polish, micro-topping or any other finish. The slab below stays; the surface above goes on without shimming. Every project starts with a free written estimate.
Almost every finished floor failure comes down to substrate flatness. Tile cracks because the substrate dips. Vinyl plank shows lippage because the slab humps. Polished concrete telegraphs every patch because the slab was never level. Self-leveling underlayment fixes all of those before the finish goes on.
We prime the substrate with a manufacturer-matched primer, mix the self-leveling compound to the published water ratio, and pour it onto the floor. It spreads and settles under gravity to the lowest point, finds level on its own, and cures into a hard, sound surface that bonds chemically to the substrate.
From there, any finish goes on the new surface, tile, plank, polish, stain, epoxy, micro-topping. The result is whatever the homeowner wanted, on a slab that is now actually flat enough to take it.
Recent work
How it works
How We Self-Level a Floor in Detroit
Test moisture and substrate
We confirm the substrate is sound and dry, identify high and low spots, and pick the matched self-leveling product for the substrate (concrete, plywood, existing tile).
Set elevations and prime
We mark the finished elevation, contain the perimeter so the leveler does not run where it should not, and prime the substrate with the manufacturer-matched primer.
Pour and rake to elevation
The leveling compound is mixed to the published water ratio, poured onto the substrate, and gently raked or smoothed to the marked elevation. Gravity does the actual leveling.
Allow to set and cure flat
The compound sets to walkable in hours and cures fully over the published window. The new surface is flat, sound, and ready for the finish above without further levelling work.
Where it shows up
Renovations, Tile, Polish All Need It
Renovation floors are the most common use. Old slabs, patched slabs, slabs in older buildings rarely sit at the flatness modern finishes need. Self-leveling underlayment turns them into a usable substrate without a tear-out.
It also routinely goes under polished concrete when the slab is not polish-ready, under micro-topping when extra fill is needed, and under heated floor underlayment as part of the radiant heat stack. The flatness is what every system above depends on.
When you need it, what it bonds to, thickness and finishes above in Detroit.
Not always. If the substrate is already within tolerance for the finish you want, self-leveling is unnecessary. We measure first; if the dips and humps fall outside what the finish can handle, self-leveling is the honest fix.
All three, with the right primer and product for the substrate. We pick the matched primer and self-leveling product for what the floor sits on, so the bond is engineered for the surface, not assumed.
Most products handle up to about an inch in a single pour, more in lifts with proper bonding. We size the pour to the substrate's worst dip and the finish's flatness requirement.
No, it is a finishing prep, not a structural floor. It bonds to a sound substrate and brings it flat. If the slab below is structurally compromised, that has to be fixed first.
Walkable in a few hours, ready for tile or plank typically the next day, ready for polishing or staining once fully cured to the manufacturer's published window. We give you the exact timeline on the project.
Homeowner reviews
What Detroit Homeowners Say About Their Self-Leveling Pours
Old kitchen slab was a wave. Self-leveling brought it dead flat and the tile went down without a single shim. The result looks like a brand-new build.
G. R.
Detroit
★★★★★
Polished the basement floor after a self-leveling pour. The polish was perfect because the substrate was actually flat for the first time.
V. D.
Dearborn
★★★★★
Plywood substrate in our addition. They primed it properly and the leveler bonded so well I forgot it was on plywood. The plank floor sits perfect.
O. B.
Ann Arbor
★★★★★
Heated floor underlayment plus self-leveling plus micro-topping plus polish. Whole stack done in sequence and the finished floor is dead flat with even radiant heat.
I. U.
Sterling Heights
From the blog
Concrete Guides & Articles
Practical reading on planning, finishes and caring for concrete in Detroit.
Tile, plank, polish or micro-topping above an out-of-tolerance slab, tell us the substrate and the finish and we will measure, plan the pour, and put it in a written quote.
