We're working on restoring an older (1952) ranch "bungalow" house. It originally had linoleum in the kitchen and living room, with carpeting in the hall, bedrooms and bathrooms. We took out all of the deteriorating carpeting. It was just laid down over the slab. Now we're tiptoeing through the concrete. It's a very informal house. Open kitchen & living room. No dining room. No entry way, foyer, or mud room. Three bedrooms. One & half baths. A little under 1300-sq'. Did I mention the concrete slab?!? ;-) My task is to find flooring...suitable for a retired DH, a large amputee dog, couple of small cats, and an old gal who has to clean up after the hoards. We live in a more rural area of SW Louisiana, are prone to fleas & other creepiecrawlies, torrential rains, visitors who either kick off their boots at the door or carry house shoes. Wall-to-wall Carpeting is definitely off the list. Ceramic & Porcelain tiles are definitely off the list. Laminate planks are too slick & slippery. (We had it in another house.) Hardwood is a possibility. (DH doesn't really like the hardness, tho.) Rubber is a possibility. (Colours are a bit funky but I think they're fun) I found the EVA Foam tiles while looking at rubber tiles. They come in wood grain and cork patterns, are 1/2-inch thick, 24-inch squares. They snap together jigsaw puzzle style and have different edging options (straight & beveled (probably similar to bull nosed)). One good thing is, they're rated for wet areas! Has anyone used this kind of tile on this list? What were your experiences; the good, the bad, the ugly? Given the style & age of the house, especially being slab, would it be in keeping? I'm leaning toward the cork pattern personally. I'd love a floating cork plank floor but it's all veneers and I'm loath to go that route. Especially walking right into the living room from the great out-of-doors... TIA for any shared experiences, hints, tips, and suggestions!

That makes sense the water is going to the sewer drain and not a sewer line! I'm surprised the concrete is the expensive part--- maybe you're in a difficult location where it would be hard to get the concrete there? In our case the expensive part is the sheer overwhelming physical labor of it all. The contractor came back today and I had done some digging above the old coal on the outside as well as inside it (in the basement) and had an unpleasant surprise (are there any pleasant surprises with this house?). Apparently, like everything else with this house, they cob-jobbed the coal chute closed by throwing bricks into it and pouring a thin slab on top. I don't know what caused the avalanche of dirt (and insulation) on the bottom inside the basement, but I do know that there is no concrete floor under it like there is in the rest of the basement! We assumed it was concrete and that the dirt avalanche could just be shoveled out. Course not. We had a lot of rain a few days ago and as I shoveled up some dirt inside the basement, expecting to see a concrete floor, instead it was just more dirt and a growing pool of water. The contractor thinks there is water coming up from the ground as well as through the wall. So that changed our plan a bit since they're going to have to excavate down outside the house to the basement floor level, pour a footer, build a cinderblock wall to properly seal off the stupid coal chute, and then do some waterproofing inside (clean out dirt, install drain in floor into sump pump which is fortunately only about a foot away, pour clean gravel on top, cover with encapsulating material). On the exterior he thinks it should just be graded away with dirt and with a hardscape/mulch/rocks/something, no plantings. The total is now up to $8500. I'm a little shocked that it's that inexpensive, for all the work they'd be doing (pouring a footer sounds like it would be exorbitantly expensive, right?). He also isn't going to be doing the concrete on the other side of the deck (under the kitchen window) since he thinks the water on that side is also coming up from the ground (sheesh) and it wouldn't do much good. So they're just going to grade the ground there with dirt. I asked him about a door at the bottom of the stairs and he said he could put up some of that encapsulating material and have it hang down over the opening, which would be better than nothing since an actual door isn't feasible. It sounds like you did more than your due diligence with getting bids and planning, so I really hope it works out for you! It's got to help somewhat, at least, if not get rid of the water 100%. If your water table is high (like it is here, apparently) then the french drains won't be 100%, but you'd probably know that by now. My husband is still digesting all this information, but if all goes well we'll be having it done early September probably. Good luck with everything!!

Thanks. tigerdunes.......what is the point of this thread? Just what I asked. There's no one living in that room and I'm of the generation that doesn't want to waste heat if it isn't really needed. Just wanted to understand how it would affect things if it has a return vent in that room. klem......This happened last year during a terribly cold spell too. The tech said it wasn't unusual for a geothermal. We're not uncomfortable.......I was just curious about closing off rooms to help make the ones we're living in more comfy. If I set the geo to, say, 66, it seems to only be able to heat up to 63 or 64. If I set the temp higher, the aux heat comes on, which I'm trying to avoid. Our geo installer likes to put in slightly smaller units, so that we don't have a.c. in the summer, but not enough dehumidification with it. Other than this little glitch when temps are -0, we are more than happy with our system.

It should come off if you do as Karen said. But if the peat became hydrophobic, it will not work. Hydrophobic peat is very dry and hard around root ball. If that is what I see, I soak plant/swish it around in a bowl with tepid water. Hopefully it will loosen peat enough to be crumbled or raked off. You could also use a bamboo skewer or chopstick. You likely loose few roots, but plant will grow new ones once it is in better mix. After rinsing, set the plant on newspaper or paper towels or cloth to soak up excess water. Keep it in a spot out of direct sunlight, that has good air circulation. Usually, few hours should be enough. Pot up plant into fast draining mix, do not water for few days. Plants that are potted too low/deep inside of pot will often have problem with bottom leaves (and some other problems) being rubbed-damaged. That is why it is recommended to use enough of mix to keep plant away from touching/pressing on the rim of pot. There is nothing you can do to fix already damaged leaves - they most likely will scab over and be ok. There is no need to take off those leaves. Personally, I do not like to pile mix on top of lowest leaves. If plants bit floppy - and many are until roots get established in new mix, just prop it with one or few bigger rocks. Soon, roots will grow and anchor the plant. Example of 'very floppy' plant, just repotted: