ᐅ Screed installed three days ago and still damp?

Hello everyone,

The interior plaster has been in place for 4 weeks now, and finally, the screed was installed in the house last Thursday. My neighbors, who are building with us, were airing out the house and mentioned that the attic is still very damp. Unfortunately, all the windows were closed when the screed was laid, and it’s extremely hot, so it’s currently not possible to enter. They ventilated the other two floors with shock ventilation. We will wait another day.

Now the painter wants to come next week to prime the walls and so on. However, I’m not ready for that yet. I want to ventilate thoroughly and let the screed dry properly first. I wanted to ask you if it’s really necessary to wait? We will be applying primer on the plaster and then spray paint directly afterwards.

What else should I consider regarding the screed, and when can flooring be installed on it? What work can be done in parallel once the screed can bear weight?

Best regards,

thank you!!

1. What type of screed?
2. New screed = ventilate several times a day by briefly opening windows (starting around the third or fourth day)
3. Painter scheduled for primer application next week is not a problem
(3b. Is the wall already finished to Q4 level for painting? Otherwise, it might not look good.)
(3c. Or will painter’s fleece be applied? You will likely get settlement cracks eventually. Not mandatory, but very likely.)
4. Screed undergoes functional heating
5. Screed undergoes covering-ready heating
==> There are protocols from the screed installer on how to proceed for both steps
6. Perform a CM measurement to confirm the screed is ready for covering
7. Starting next week, you can safely carry out various work on the screed. It will definitely be load-bearing – so electrician work or similar can be done.

Bauherrin123 schrieb:

they said the attic is still very damp.

What does very damp mean? With fresh screed, 80% and above is completely normal. Especially when heating starts and water is pushed out of every pore. Usually, the base coat plaster is applied shortly before, which also introduces a lot of moisture into the house.

The windows were kept closed during installation because fresh screed should not be exposed to drafts in the first few days. Some even go as far as recommending to open only the windows on one side to completely avoid drafts, even after weeks.

If the painter enjoys working in a dripstone cave, let them be. They will probably leave the windows open all day anyway, so you save yourself the hassle of constantly going there to air out.

Q4? If you have the budget... sanding to Q2 and filling the rough spots is usually good enough. By the time you move in, someone will bump something against the wall and Q4 will be ruined anyway.

Expectations are really getting more and more unreasonable.

xMisterDx schrieb:

Q4? If you have the money... sanding at Q2 and filling in the major flaws is also fine.

That’s why I’m asking about the quality and the next steps.

xMisterDx schrieb:

If the painter is eager to work in a dripstone cave, let him do it.

After a week, the air is usually fine. Things only get interesting again during the functional heating phase. The question then is what type of screed is installed. If they start with it next week (due to calcium sulfate screed or accelerators in cement screed), the painter will definitely face a dripstone cave. Then he will probably just turn around and postpone his work.

xMisterDx schrieb:

Some even go as far as recommending to open only the windows on one side to completely avoid drafts, even after weeks.

And then there are my screed layers, who just tilted the windows to create a cross breeze 😉