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Concrete Floor Installation in Guelph

Concrete Floor Installation in Guelph

Guelph Flooring Pros pours new concrete floors, installs overlays and self-levels uneven slabs for homes and businesses across Guelph. We handle basements, garages, workshops, additions and commercial units, working directly for owners and as a subcontractor for general contractors and builders.

We approach concrete as flooring contractors, not as a foundation crew. That means we think about what goes on top from the start. A slab that will be polished, coated, tiled or covered with vinyl plank each needs a different finish, flatness and curing plan.

With more than 15 years of experience and 1500 completed flooring jobs, we have seen what happens when a slab is poured without that end in mind: tile that cracks along an uncontrolled shrinkage crack, vinyl that telegraphs every trowel mark and coatings that blister over a slab with no vapour barrier. This page explains the three types of concrete floor work we do, how we manage moisture and cracking, and what concrete floor installation costs in Guelph.

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  • 15+ years
  • 1500+ jobs
  • WSIB covered
  • 2-year labour warranty
Workers screeding wet concrete slab with board during concrete floor installation

1500+

floors completed

A Slab Is a Finished Floor Waiting to Happen

Most people think of concrete as what lies under the real floor. For us, it is the first layer of the finished floor, and it decides how every layer above it performs.

A slab poured flat, with a vapour barrier, sensible control joints and proper curing, is ready to become a polished or coated floor, a tile floor or a vinyl basement in weeks. A slab poured without that care can cost more to fix than it did to pour.

So we plan the pour and the finish together.

Broom-finished concrete porch slab, freshly poured after concrete floor installation

New Pours, Overlays and Self-Levelling

New Slabs for Basements, Garages and Additions

New slabs start with a compacted granular base, usually clear stone, then a 6 mil polyethylene vapour barrier and, where specified, rigid insulation. Reinforcement is typically wire mesh or fibre in the mix, and rebar where loads demand it.

The Ontario Building Code sets minimum requirements for slab thickness and concrete strength. Basement floors are commonly 3 to 4 inches thick, while garage floors are 4 inches or more with an air-entrained, higher-strength mix that resists salt and freeze-thaw.

If your project involves an addition or lowering a basement floor, it will need a City of Guelph building permit. We work with your contractor or engineer on those projects.

Overlays Over Existing Concrete

When a slab is structurally sound but the surface is pitted, stained or spalled, an overlay is often cheaper than tearing it out. We grind the surface, prime it and apply a polymer-modified cementitious overlay, usually 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick.

The result is a fresh, uniform surface that can be polished, stained, coated or left as a finished floor.

Self-Levelling for Flatness

Self-levelling underlayment is a pourable cement that flows out to form a flat, smooth surface. It is often the first step before tile, vinyl plank or a polished finish, and where most residential concrete jobs actually start.

We prime the substrate, dam off openings and pour the compound, using a gauge rake and spiked roller to control depth and release air. Most products can be walked on within a few hours and covered within a day or two.

Vapour Barriers and Why Basements Fail Without Them

Guelph sits on dense glacial soils, and many neighbourhoods have a high water table in wet seasons. Groundwater moisture moves upward through concrete as vapour, even when the slab looks dry.

Without a vapour barrier under the slab, that moisture reaches whatever is on top. Vinyl adhesives release, laminate swells, carpet smells musty and coatings blister.

Many older Guelph basements were poured with no barrier at all. When we pour new, the barrier goes in every time. For existing slabs, we test moisture and use surface-applied moisture mitigation where needed.

Finished smooth gray concrete floor in garage after concrete floor installation

Control Joints, Curing and Cracking

Concrete shrinks as it cures, and that shrinkage makes it crack. Anyone who promises a slab that will never crack isn't being straight with you.

What we do is control where it cracks. We saw-cut control joints to about a quarter of the slab depth, spaced roughly every 8 to 12 feet for a 4 inch slab, within hours of the pour.

We then keep the surface damp or covered for the first several days, because slow curing produces stronger, less crack-prone concrete. Before any flooring goes over those joints, we plan how to treat them, whether with flexible sealant, crack-isolation membrane or a matched joint in the tile layout.

Bull float marks on fresh wet concrete during concrete floor installation

From Pour to Finished Floor

A new or levelled slab becomes a finished floor in one of several ways, depending on the space.

Polished or coated

for garages, workshops, warehouses and modern basements. See concrete polishing and coating and epoxy flooring.

Tile

for basements and bathrooms, especially with radiant heat.

Vinyl plank or engineered wood

for finished basements once the slab passes moisture testing. See vinyl and laminate installation.

What Concrete Floor Work Costs

Typical 2026 prices in Guelph:

Work Cost per sq ft
New basement slab (base, vapour barrier, mesh, finish) $9 to $15
New garage or workshop slab $8 to $14
Cementitious overlay $5 to $10
Self-levelling underlayment $3 to $7

Basement access changes the number more than people expect. A basement with no walkout may need concrete pumped through a window, and removal of an old slab adds breaking and disposal costs.

FAQ

Concrete Floor Questions

How long before I can put flooring over a new slab?

Concrete gains most of its strength in 28 days, but moisture-sensitive floors like wood, vinyl and adhesives usually need to wait longer. Many slabs need 60 to 90 days or more to dry to acceptable levels. We test rather than guess.

Can you level a floor that slopes?

Yes. Self-levelling compound can correct slopes and dips of up to about 1 1/2 inches in one pour, and more in layers or with a fill underneath. It is common in older Guelph homes where slabs or framing have settled.

Do you pour basement floors?

Yes, including new slabs in unfinished basements, replacement of broken or heaved slabs and pours after plumbing or drainage work. For underpinning or basement lowering, we work alongside your structural contractor.

If your floor is sagging from above rather than below, our floor and subfloor repair page covers joist and subfloor fixes.

Free written quote

Get a Concrete Floor Quote

Tell us the space, the size and what will go on top, and we will plan the slab around it. Call 226-790-3755 or request a quote.

  1. 1

    Call or send the form

    Tell us the rooms, the floor you want and your timeline.

  2. 2

    Free on-site measure

    We measure, check the subfloor and take moisture readings.

  3. 3

    Itemised written quote

    Every line listed. No deposit needed to receive it.

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Open Monday to Saturday 7am to 9pm, Sunday 9am to 5pm.

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