Screed systems, compared straight

Cement vs anhydrite liquid screed

Cemfloor vs Gyvlon

Two of the most-specified liquid screeds in the South West, built on entirely different chemistry. Here's how they actually compare on site, not just on the datasheet.

Cement vs anhydrite liquid screed

Cemfloor vs Gypsol

Gypsol is the anhydrite screed most regional housebuilders specify by default. Cemfloor is the cement-based alternative that changes the answer once tiling or wet areas are involved.

Pumped vs hand-laid screed

Liquid Screed vs Sand & Cement

One is poured and self-levels in a day, the other is barrowed and hand-floated over a week. Here's what that actually means for your programme, your UFH and your budget.

Structural screed vs levelling layer

Liquid Screed vs SLC

These two get confused constantly because both self-level and both get pumped or poured. They solve completely different problems.

Screed chemistry explained

Calcium Sulphate vs Cement Screed

Every liquid screed on the market is either calcium-sulphate or cement-based. That one fact decides more about your floor than any brand name does.

Screed installation methods

Bonded vs Unbonded Screed

Bonded and unbonded aren't product choices — they're two different ways of attaching the same screed to what's underneath it, and getting it wrong causes cracking.

Screed installation methods

Floating vs Bonded Screed

Almost every UFH job today uses a floating screed over insulation. Bonded screed direct to slab still has its place — mainly where insulation already sits elsewhere in the build-up.

Screed vs exposed concrete finish

Screed vs Power-Floated Concrete

Power-floated concrete skips the screed layer entirely and finishes the structural slab itself. It's a different build philosophy, not just a different product.

UFH build-up options

UFH in Screed vs Overlay Systems

For new floors, in-screed UFH is the standard. For renovations with limited height, overlay systems can be the only realistic option — but they trade off some thermal performance to get there.

Heating system choice

Wet UFH vs Electric UFH in Screed

Both can be embedded in a liquid screed, but they behave very differently on running cost, response time and which rooms they suit best.

Wet pour vs dry-lay panels

Liquid Screed vs Dry Screed Boards

Two very different ways to get a flat floor: a pumped liquid that self-levels and cures, or a dry panel system that's walkable the same day. Here's how they actually compare on site.

Reinforcement methods compared

Fibre-Reinforced vs Mesh Screed

Reinforcement stops a screed cracking under shrinkage and load. Fibres and mesh both do the job, but not in the same way or on the same floors.

Depth options compared

Thin Screed vs Standard Depth

Modern liquid screeds can be pumped thinner than traditional sand-and-cement ever could — but thinner isn't automatically better for every floor.

Sound insulation compared

Acoustic Screed vs Standard Screed

Any conversion creating separate dwellings needs sound insulation between floors that meets Part E. Here's how an acoustic screed build-up differs from a standard one.

Exposed finishes compared

Polished Concrete vs Screed Finish

Both give you a hard, seamless, industrial-look floor with no covering needed. They're built and finished very differently, and the wrong choice is expensive to unpick.

Small fix vs full floor build-up

Latex Levelling vs Liquid Screed

These two get mixed up constantly because both self-level, but they're solving completely different problems at completely different depths.

Installation methods compared

Pumped vs Hand-Laid Screed

The method of installation is as important as the mix itself. Here's what actually changes on site between a pumped pour and a hand-laid screed.

Floating floor vs load-bearing layer

Screed vs Structural Topping

One spreads load and sets a flat finish; the other actually carries load as part of the structure. Confusing the two on a spec sheet is a genuine risk.

Prep and adhesive compatibility compared

Tiling Over Anhydrite vs Cemfloor

Tiling directly onto the wrong screed chemistry without the right prep is one of the most common — and most avoidable — flooring failures we see.

Substrate choice for LVT flooring

LVT Over Screed vs Plywood

LVT is unforgiving of an uneven or unstable sub-floor. The substrate you choose underneath it does more to determine the final result than the LVT itself.

Insulation build-up compared

PIR vs EPS Insulation

Both sit under the pour and carry the UFH thermal load — but they don't perform the same, and swapping one for the other changes your finished floor level.

Screed depth compared

30mm vs 50mm Screed Depth

The depth of your pour drives drying time, UFH response and floor loading capacity — it's not a number you should let slip by default.

Drying methods compared

Force Drying vs Natural Drying

Pressure on programme often pushes clients toward force drying — but it isn't free, and it isn't always faster in a way that matters.

Pour strategy compared

Single Pour vs Phased Pours

Liquid screed's big advantage is pouring large areas jointlessly in one go — but not every site or programme allows that, and phasing has its own logic.

Ground floor systems compared

Screed vs Beam & Block Topping

Beam and block is the structural floor — what goes on top of it is a separate decision, and it materially affects how the floor performs and finishes.

DIY vs professional

DIY Levelling vs Professional Screed

A bag of self-levelling compound and a pumped liquid screed pour solve related but different problems — mixing them up is a common and costly mistake.

Specification compared

Domestic vs Commercial Screed Spec

A screed for a family kitchen and a screed for a warehouse floor are not the same product, even when both are pumped from the same mixer.

Flatness tolerance compared

SR1 vs SR2 Flatness

SR1 and SR2 are the two flatness standards you'll see quoted, but they only matter in relation to what's actually going on top of the screed.

Screed drying speed compared

Rapid-Dry vs Standard Screed

Rapid-dry additives buy real time on a tight programme, but they change the mix cost and the tolerances you need to work to — not a decision to make on price alone.

Wet room screed compared

Gypsum vs Cement in Wet Rooms

A wet room is exactly the environment where the difference between gypsum and cement screed chemistry stops being theoretical and starts being a maintenance risk.