I want to install click lock engineered bamboo flooring over my cement subfloor. Sounded easy enough until all the carpet was up and my cement floor was cracked and far from flat. So I got a couple estimates to have it fixed and hired a cement guy who said he could do it. He put down 10 bags of LevelQuick self leveling compound. Now I have a couple of worries.

1. I still don't feel like it's flat enough. I know it's recommended to have within 3/16” in 10’ but what does that mean? I know I need a straight edge to check but how do you go about measuring the whole floor? In circles? Back and forth? What's the overlap from measure to measure? If it's not perfect what are the consequences?
2. The LevelQuick is not sticking to the subfloor where he forgot to put down primer. It's cracked and sounds hollow. Is this going to cause any issues?
3. I have an 8' sliding glass door. After the LevelQuick the base of the door is now 1 1/8' on one side and 1/2' on the other. How do I put the new floor up against this being so uneven?

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

It's not that big a deal where it is not primed unless your adhering to it. Still shoulda done it though. The door is another story. Is your slab that jacked up? wow. Get a six foot straight edge, and noy a 2 x 4 either.

I've seen some slabs so bad I could only get them flat in one direction without pulling in a cement truck.

Yes my slab is that jacked up. I have problems with the sliding door not closing fully and some drywall issues. I might be able to even it out a little but it looks like my best option is to get a new door. Every good project should go over budget right?

Yup, cost over runs, just like the military.

Unfortunately if the level quick isn't sticking and sounds hollow, yes eventually it will cause problems. Walking on the finished floor time after time could cause the leveler to break loose after awhile. He may have used to much water or not the right product. I use a self leveler and never use a primer on concrete and it sticks like crazy. I would get a second opinion from another pro and see what he says. The way you check your 3/16ths in 8 feet is you put a 8 ft level across a high spot or low spot if the space between the level and high/low spot is more than 3/16ths. It needs to be fixed. Typically low spots are worse than high spots with the wood flooring being able to adhere to the concrete. We rarely use self leveler, most of the time we grind our concrete to flatten it out.

All the self leveling compound I use requires a primer. It helps it to flow better....stick better.....and reduces curling on the deep end.

Thanks for the tips. I'm sure I'm going to run into plenty of more questions.

I had the guy come back out and repair the area that was not sticking properly. I also had him level out the door more so it wasn't such a drastic slop. It's still not perfect but I'll get a new door eventually. I feeling better about the floor being flat but 3/16ths of an inch seems pretty hard to achieve perfectly.