Like many homes built in the 1970’s, a step down into the living area was an established design feature. This is not the sunken living room, aka conversation pit, that was popular in the 1960’s. This is a small change in floor level that signals a transition in the space. As plans became more open, floors, instead of walls, defined rooms.
As you can see, the entry steps down from tile to plush carpet in the living. Level changes were used to clarify spaces. But, was this a good idea?
Not in this case. The problem here is that the traffic pattern to other main rooms is down the side of the living room. People have to watch their step, and fear of falling is not good design.
The plush carpet came up the wall a bit (ugh!) to cover the step ledge, as you can see from the glue. This is the step up into the kitchen.
So we decided to pour a concrete layer to level up the floor. To prepare for this, we took out the old entry tile, plush carpet, fireplace hearth, plus the cabinet and stone wall. Here’s how it looked during demolition.
Here is the space with the new concrete floor, poured over the entry and living room. Now all spaces are on one level. The dropped living room was a weak link in the chain of spaces. Now the spaces flow together, and we have a stronger plan.
We used Roberto Trejo – 923-8164. He specializes in small jobs. We were very happy with his work. He brought in the concrete by wheel barrow. They installed a grid of #3 rebar, 16″ on center, across the floor. Plus they doweled into the existing slab around the perimiter with short pieces of rebar. The surface was hand troweled to a very smooth finish.
More on the concrete floor finishing process later…
Thanks for sharing our Chelsea Moor Makeover!
Roselind Hejl
Roselind Hejl's Austin Update 
How much of a drop was your sunken floor? We are considering buying a home in Austin with a sunken floor and want to raise it, but it’s about a 5″ drop and that’s would be a lot of concrete! The family room looks to be about the same size as yours. Also isn’t concrete very expensive? I think I want to put in a hardwood floor in place of what’s there now -saltillo tile, so I was thinking of building up the sunken floor with 2×4’s.
Your thoughts please..
Shirley,
The drop in the floor was about 6″, just enough to trip people. We poured concrete into the dropped space, and then ground down the concrete in the whole house – entry,kitchen, dining, bedrooms, baths, etc. Then the whole floor was waxed. This is a finish we enjoy having. It is easy to maintain. However, the grinding and waxing was a hard job, and I don’t recommend doing it yourself.
Hardwood sounds like a good alternative for your space. I agree that it would be good to fill in the dropped floor – especially if it is a pass through space on the way to other rooms. Otherwise you will have a trip hazzard.
Keep me posted on how it goes!
Roselind
Roselind, Thanks for your quick reply! Yes, stained/waxed concrete is becoming very popular. My son’s company (PSW Real Estate) does this kind of flooring in a lot of their homes in Austin.
Yes, the family room is a pass through space and we prefer to have all one level. We’ll check out all options before we make a move and appreciate your input.
Shirley
I am not far away from you in Louisiana. I have the same issues as you: wood paneling, sunken room, the want for an acid stain concrete floor. I want this filled in asap.
If you don’t mind me asking:
Are you still satisfied with this?
What type of cement did you use?
Was Styrofoam laid down to lighten up the weight of the concrete?
Have you experienced any cracking?