The secret to a perfect floor is what lies beneath it. James Ingram Carpets & Flooring provides professional floor levelling and subfloor preparation across Hampshire — ensuring your new carpet, vinyl, LVT, or safety flooring is fitted on a smooth, even surface for a flawless, long-lasting result. If your floors are uneven, cracked, or damaged, we fix them first.
An uneven subfloor is one of the most common reasons new flooring fails prematurely. Bumps, dips, cracks, and rough patches show through thin flooring, cause uneven wear, create trip hazards, and prevent proper adhesion. No matter how expensive your carpet or vinyl is, it'll never look right or last as long as it should without a properly prepared subfloor.
Floor levelling — sometimes called floor screeding or self-levelling compound — creates a perfectly smooth, flat surface that allows your chosen flooring to lie flat, bond correctly, and perform exactly as it should. It's an essential step that many flooring companies skip or charge extra for. At James Ingram Carpets & Flooring, proper floor preparation is built into our service because we believe in doing the job right the first time.
Common in older properties and ground-floor extensions. Concrete subfloors often have dips, ridges, and rough patches that need smoothing before any flooring can be laid properly.
Pulling up old floor tiles often leaves adhesive residue, uneven patches, and damaged areas. Self-levelling compound creates a clean, smooth surface ready for new flooring.
Years of foot traffic, moisture damage, or settling can leave subfloors cracked, uneven, or deteriorated. Levelling restores a solid, flat foundation for your new floor.
Luxury vinyl tiles and sheet vinyl are thin enough to show every imperfection in the subfloor beneath. Even small bumps and dips will be visible — proper levelling is essential.
Safety flooring in care homes, schools, and commercial kitchens must lie perfectly flat to maintain its slip-resistant properties. Subfloor preparation is critical for compliance.
When different rooms have different floor heights — common after renovations or extensions — levelling creates smooth transitions between spaces, eliminating trip hazards.
We inspect your subfloor during the free home visit, checking for dips, bumps, cracks, moisture, and any issues that need addressing.
Old adhesive, debris, and loose material is removed. The surface is cleaned and primed to ensure the levelling compound bonds properly.
Self-levelling compound is applied to create a perfectly smooth, flat surface. For deeper dips, multiple applications may be needed.
Once cured, your chosen flooring is fitted on the perfect foundation — resulting in a flawless finish that looks great and lasts for years.
While floor levelling is included as part of our fitting service when you buy flooring from us, we also offer it as a standalone service. If you've bought your flooring elsewhere and just need the subfloor prepared before your fitter arrives, we can help. We also prepare floors for other tradespeople — tilers, joiners, and builders who need a level surface to work on.
We provide floor levelling and subfloor preparation services across Southampton, Winchester, Portsmouth, Fareham, Gosport, Eastleigh, Romsey, Totton, Hedge End, Leigh Park, West End, and throughout Hampshire — for both domestic and commercial properties.
Floor levelling costs depend on the size of the area, the condition of the subfloor, and how much compound is needed. Minor levelling on a single room may be included in your fitting quote at no extra charge. We'll always tell you upfront if levelling is needed and how much it will cost.
Self-levelling compound typically sets within 2–4 hours and is ready for flooring installation within 24 hours, depending on the depth applied and room conditions. We always allow adequate curing time before fitting your new floor.
Carpet is more forgiving than vinyl or LVT because it has underlay beneath it, which absorbs minor imperfections. However, significant dips, bumps, or cracks should still be levelled — they can cause uneven wear, visible ridges, and reduce the lifespan of both the carpet and underlay.
Yes — we can level timber subfloors using plywood overlay or flexible levelling compounds designed specifically for wooden surfaces. We assess the condition of the boards during our free home visit and recommend the best approach.
Minor floor preparation is included as standard in our fitting service. If significant levelling work is needed, we'll flag this during our free home visit and include it as a clearly itemised line in your quote — no surprises.
Book a free assessment — we'll inspect your subfloor and advise on the best solution.
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