Thread: Ramp under carpet to raise height

Hi There,

Our house is tiled with carpet in the bedrooms and formal living areas. We are going to tile over the exising tiles which wil mean that where the tiles meet carpet there will be a hight difference.

I am looking at having the carpet installers install MDF ramps at the door ways under the carpet. Does anyone have experience with these ramps? I will only be raising the floor level by 8mm accross a ramp that is 120 deep.

Questions I have are;

Have others been happy with this solution?
How are the ramps attached to the concrete slab?
Does this work well at entrances to bedrooms?
Is this commonly done by carpet layers?

Any other comments will be most appreciated.

Thanks
frog_hopper

if you are on a slab i suggest you use a self level cement to ramp up the area this will make it less steep than using an MDF ramp,

MDF ramps are commonly used, they would be glued down with liquid nails.

Ramps are a pain especially when they blend in well so you don't know they are there until the bottom of your shoe thuds against it unexpectedly. Take the tiles up, it'll only take a day with an $80 ozito rotary hammer.

Agree with MS. Save a bit of $$ by tiling over the existing tiles for years of regret

Yes we have been ummming and arrring for a while about whether to rip up the old tiles. We have 65 sq m of tiles which is quite a bit and it will make a big mess. We've got two young kids, so it's not going to be pretty.

Then if we rip up the tiles, we probably shoudl take the skirting boards off too ... a never ending story. Although one rip-and strip company I spoke to said they could get the tiles off without wrecking the skirts.

The MDF ramps would only ramp up 8mm of height accross 120mm. I doubt it would be very noticable, but maybe the cement / self leveling ramp could be the go.

So confusing.

I worked in commercial floor coverings for many years and this is a common problem. Particually in office foyers where carpet

meets hard flooring. In large areas with large hight differences up to 30 mm we would use topping cement. The larger the hight

the further back you have to take the ramp. Over a standard door mdf is fine , glue it down with liguid nails. The wider you can

make the ramp the less noticeable it is. Some carpet layers will do it some won't.

Cheers Ray

Thanks again everyone and Thanks Ray.

Ray, would an mdf ramp be appropriate in a bedroom doorway situation? Does the smooth edge sit on top of the mdf ramp?

Regards,
frog_hopper

ramps are no problem. i've had to use them everywhere at my place where carpet meets tile (1000*500*20mm bluestone tiles). can hardly notice. smooth edge goes to the bottom. if it's only 8mm, is it possible to use a thicker underlay?

Rapid set mortar, ardex a45 for example. Done km's of ramps, 8mm is nothing over 40 to 50cm's. Sorry but I'm not a fan of mdf, too short and sometimes not a good idea next to bathrooms, etc(moisture)

Mdf is fine for a doorway in a home. The wider you make it the less noticeable it is. If you bring the ramp out past the doorway recess you have to bevel the two sides as well [ left & right ends]
If you have to raise 8mm I would make the ramp at least 150mm wide [ best would be 300mm]

Make sure the ramps are well glued as if they come unstuck down the track they rattle every time you walk on them The outside edge of the ramp has to be feathered down to nothing [less than 1mm] as if there is a ridge it will show through the carpet

The smoothedge goes at the top of the ramp against the tiles. It is nailed with a gap from the tiles so the edge of the carpet tucks down in the gap between the tiles and the smothedge.

You cant use thicker underlay or 2 layers as the smoothege goes against the tiles. As the carpet is attached around the perimeter of the room under tension on the smoothedge if the ramp is to abrupt the carpet will lift clear of the floor at the bottom of the ramp.

If you want the carpet layers to do the ramp you need to talk to them before hand The best way is to get the ramps fitted before the carpet layers arrive.
From the top of the ramp to the top of tiles needs to be 8mm [the thickness of the smoothedge batton] plus the thickness of the carpet plus 1mm so the finished carpet is 1mm below the tiles. In other words top of ramp plus smoothedge [8mm] plus carpet plus 1mm to top of tiles. As the floorguy says cement toppings are the best solutions but need more skill to do. I have used mdf or ply hundreds of times and never had a call back. If moisture is a concern use marine ply

Cheers Ray