Laminate gives you the beauty of real wood without the upkeep or cost. Over the past couple of decades, the laminate flooring industry has seen massive growth and product improvement. Manufactured to resemble real wood, tile or other materials, laminate flooring is composed of layers of materials bonded under heat and intense pressure. Today’s laminate wood flooring choices look like solid wood but they’re simpler to install, and you can put them right over existing flooring material, including tile. Existing Tile Floor While tile is typically high-end flooring, it’s a headache to tear out, making it a good candidate for resurfacing with laminate flooring. If the tiles are relatively level and secure, the only prep necessary is the removal of the base around the floor perimeter and sweeping the floor clean. Any tiles that stick up more than 1/16 inch above the surrounding tiles should be chipped out with a hammer and chisel and the void filled and leveled with thinset. Height discrepancies of less than 1/16 inch shouldn’t affect the new flooring.
Laminate Padding Laminate wood flooring comes in glue-down and floating snap-lock varieties. Both install similarly, but not all glue-down types are suitable to install over tiles -- so read the manufacturer’s specs before choosing. In general, laminate flooring requires a base of thin polyethylene foam padding. This comes in wide rolls that install directly over the tile. For convenience, some brands come with foam already attached to the back of the planks. Installation Basics For the best results, start laying the laminate along the longest wall in the room. Each plank has tongue-and-groove sides and ends. The ends of the planks fit together when you tap them, and the sides of the planks snap together by inserting the tongued edged of one plank into the grooved edge of another at a 45-degree angle and then pushing the plank flat to snap it into place. The ends of the planks should stagger to keep the end seams from lining up, which creates weak spots in the floor. The simplest way to stagger the seams is to start a new row of laminate using the excess piece cut from the end of the former row.
Use 1/4-inch spacers to keep the sides of the flooring from touching the walls. Cutting and Fitting Laminate If you’re going to install the laminate flooring in anything other than a square or rectangular room, odds are you will have to cut around cabinets and door frames. Measure and cut the planks as you lay them. Make complicated cuts with a jigsaw. For cutting a plank lengthwise, called “ripping,” use a circular saw or a table saw. Laminate is approximately 1/4- to 1/3-inch thick, which means it will sit higher than door casings. For a professional look, use a jamb-saw to cut away the bottom of the casing and slip the laminate plank beneath. Read and follow the manufacturer’s safety guidelines when using power tools. References Fast Floors: Real Wood or Laminate Flooring? Photo Credits Jupiterimages/Creatas/Getty Images Suggest a CorrectionDoes it require a backerboard? Q: We will be renovating our bathroom soon but I want a "quick fix" now because I hate the ceramic tile
I found a great sale on some Armstrong urethane that I'd like to install. should I use for an underlayment? The salesperson suggested cement underlayment and patch. of the box of tile suggests that or an embossing leveler. Which one would be better? — Arlene, Rochester Hills, MI A: Tom Silva replies: A good quality vinyl floor is thick enough to be installed without an underlayment, which will only raise the level of the floor and give you headaches around built-in vanities, heat registers, baseboards, and other areas. Your greatest concerns when installing a vinyl floor over the existing tile are the tile's joints and the floor's height. Before you start, see if any tile is broken or damaged. Once you've removed lose or broken pieces, patch the empty sections with a liquid cement or mortar, letting it settle level with the tile floor. Next, if the tile's joints are deep, you'll want regrout them to bring them flush with the tile so that the lines won't telegraph — show through — the vinyl floor.
Once the tile is leveled off, your next step is to remove the toilet so that the floor can be laid under it, not cut around it.If your old ceramic tile is worn or dated, you can lay new tile right over the old, and avoid the huge job of tearing out the old tile. This assumes that the floor underneath is solid (concrete) and that there are no cracks in the existing tile (indicating underlying problems in the concrete). In fact, pros do it all the time. Surface preparation is paramount. Start by making sure all the tiles are solidly bonded to the floor. lightly with a wood mallet or a chunkA hollow sound is an indication that a tile is loose. any loose ones with thin-set. a 4-ft. level to find any high spots and grind those down using a right-angle grinder with a masonry wheel. sand all the tiles with a belt or orbital sander (80-grit) to scratch any surfaceRemove any moldy or loose grout with a rotary tool or carbide
Vacuum the tiles and clean with detergent and water to remove dirt, sealers and wax. with clear water and let it dry. Buy a latex-modified thin-set (one brand is FlexBond) and mix it in small batches to keep it from skinning over. Complete adhesive coverage is critical on large tiles (12 in. or larger) and even more important when you’re tiling overSome installers prefer to “flatback” each tile with the flat edge of the trowel before applying the tile to the combedOthers prefer to use a larger notched trowel (1/2 x 1/2 in.) to apply use, always comb the adhesive in oneThen set the tile on the floor and slide it perpendicular to the combed thin-set to knock down the rows and spread the adhesive.For years the only solution to installing hardwood floors over tile was rip it out and install the wood floor. What Types Of Installations Over Tile? The simplest in terms of getting the job done without messy demo work
would be a floating engineered floor. Floating floors were designed for these types of applications. Styles, colors, and appearances are numerous today specifically with the leader in floating floor technology; Only in recent years have some hardwood adhesive manufacturers given the green light to gluing over ceramic, but there are some important considerations before starting the job. For a successful glue down application over older tile the single largest issue associated with failures are older loosened tiled floors. Floors cannot be glued in this condition. Preparation before installing any glue down floor will require some additional floor work in the form of skim coating the surface that also fills in any excessive grout joints. This would be especially prominent with Saltillo or Mexican/Spanish tile. In addition, the slick surface finishes of most tiles should be roughed up to accept an adhesive bond. This can be accomplished with the use of a flooring buffer and very coarse grit paper.
Sorry folks, but this one may be out of the question in terms of functionality. In order to install a solid floor one would need a proper subfloor. Solid floors are normally nailed to wood subfloors. In this case another subfloor would have to be installed over the tile with a minimum thickness of 5/8" Exceptions may include dealing with some of the more popular solid 5/16" products. However, we urge this procedure to be handled by very experienced professionals or those that have had success with the application. Any new subfloor increases the finished vertical height 1 1/2 inches with a solid 3/4" hardwood. Appliance clearances with kitchen installations, baseboard profiles, and door clearances may be compromised. Furthermore, attaching a new subfloor (plywood) to the can be problematic. Fasteners may crumble or loosen tile beneath, causing potential noise problems underneath. Steps Before The Installation For any successful installation, floor preparation is paramount, specifically with the glue down method.
All floors have to be checked for flatness. In my first photo example above the installer checks for flatness and higher tile edges with a straight edge. Next, grinding high areas (right) so the new wood floor will sit flat once installed. Without fixing any of these conditions the new floor will flex with the undulations caused by a tile floor that is not flat. Creaking, and snapping sounds are likely. It's best to get it right first before any major complications happen after the fact.Trim Moldings Don't Work Well Unless you have plans to install the new floor in the entire home, transitions and moldings can create problems but there are solutions. For example, let's say the new floor connects to existing carpet. Prior to the new floor addition, problems did not exist when comparing the final finished vertical height of both floor coverings. However, when a new floor is added on top of the ceramic we now run into two different finished floor heights than can pose a troublesome trip hazard.