If you are lucky--or plan well--your tile floor will be exactly as high as your non-tile floor. In that case, butt the tile against the wood and call it a day.But in so many other cases, you will need a transition if only because the tile turns out to be higher than the adjoining flooring.Whether porcelain or ceramic, marble, granite, or other materials, tile flooring requires a number of substrate layers for installation, and these layers are not dimensionally analogous to the layers found in non-tile applications. Tile flooring requires a mortar bed, which is no standard thickness. A good, professional tiler can maintain a nearly-uniform thickness, but this can be difficult for DIY tilers.So, you need a tile floor transition. In other instances, you may be dealing with uniform substrate--laminate flooring's underlayment, for example--but the tile and laminate simply do not match up. And even if you do have matching levels, you may not even want the gap between the two different types of flooring.
Gaps are known dust-collectors.But what kinds of transitional materials function the best under foot traffic, while not appearing to be an aesthetic imposition?You are probably familiar with surface tile transitions. Typically made of light-weight aluminum, these tile transition strips are silver- or brass-colored and can easily be cut to width with a hacksaw.Be sure to get the right type of surface tile transition strip. They are not interchangeable.Inexpensive, surface transition strips require little more than a hammer, nails, and hacksaw to install. Surface transition strips have one huge downfall. No matter how well-installed, the "lip" on surface transition strips will eventually catch on something (a shoe, a toy, etc.) and begun to gradually loosen. Also, these metal strips create a quite noticeable "clack" when walked on.One important installation note: beware of accidentally striking any part of the transition strip other than the nail. These aluminum strips dent easily, and these dents will distort the strips and thus prevent them from laying seamlessly on the floor.
The only solution to a distorted transition strip is to buy a new one.Better-functioning and more attractive, but more difficult to install, are flush tile transition strips.Unlike the surface strips, flush-mount strips take many different forms and even lend themselves to improvisation.As you might imagine, flush transitions can only be installed when both flooring surfaces have straight, parallel edges. By contrast, surface tile transitions are more forgiving, because they can cover up irregular, ragged edges.Two popular types of flush tile transitions:Transitioning from tile to hardwood often requires a threshold reducer. Ceramic tile often creates a floor level that's higher than neighboring floors, such as those made of vinyl, thin hardwood or carpet. The different levels can be visually jarring and cause people to trip. You can install a threshold floor reducer to help the floor transition from the higher level to the lower level gradually, without creating a tripping hazard. Thresholds usually appear in doorways and can enhance the beauty of your floors by bringing another decorative element to them.
Measure the height of your tile, including the height of an underlayment and mortar. Measure the height of the neighboring floor as well, then buy a threshold that matches the two heights. The reducing side should be deep enough to land on the neighboring floor snugly. Measure the width of the doorway. Cut your threshold reducer to fit using a table saw. Measure the distance of the track crevice to the edge of the reducer if you're using one that requires you to install a track. Some reducers use a track to hold them in place, while others attach directly to the tile. Lay the track under the last layer of tile as you're finishing your tile installation, if your reducer requires a track. Slide it away from the tile so it matches where the track crevice will fall once the reducer is set in place against the tile. Allow the mortar to dry overnight. Apply construction adhesive to the back of the reducer on the side that touches the tile. Use a zigzag pattern. Add a bead inside the track crevice, if applicable.
Add more glue to the subfloor if it shows between the two flooring types. Press the reducer onto the tile and over the track, if necessary. Hold it in place for at least three minutes, then place strips of painter's tape onto the reducer and the tile to hold it securely while the glue dries overnight. Ensure the top edge is lying flush over the tile and the bottom edge is tight against the lower flooring to prevent tripping hazards. Things You Will Need Measuring tape Table saw Construction adhesive Painter's tape Tip References World Floor Expo: Shaw Hardwood Special Installation TipsZickgraf: Installation Instructions Photo Credits Jupiterimages/Comstock/Getty Images Suggest a Correction Sign up or log in to customize your list. Here's how it works: Anybody can ask a question The best answers are voted up and rise to the top I have ripped out some old carpet and am preparing to install a new solid hardwood floor myself. In several places, the floor transitions to an existing tile floor.
The hardwood floor guys told me the best transition between the two is a T molding. You simply leave a gap between the two floors, and then place down the T molding between the two floors, so it sits on both surfaces. However, the height difference of the two floors is considerable, and the T molding does not sit flush. What are my options? Here is a diagram showing the dimensions. NOTE: Using the T molding is not a requirement, I could go some other route if there is a better option. tile hardwood-floor finishing trim molding In your situation, I'd use reducer molding instead of T molding: I ended up taking advise from @chris's answer and making my own transition from actual flooring. I cut away part of the flooring to make the transition piece sit flush on the floor and then on top of the tile. I then routed a rounded edge so the piece on top of the tile flowed down more gradually. I was a little worried about the routed part and how it would look compared to the top (finished) of the flooring.
But with a little flooring varnish, and then a rub with some scotch brite to dull the finish, it was a perfect match. This worked because the wood was not stained, and natural in color. If it has been stained, it would have been a little harder to match. We are very happy how it turned out. It's a smooth transition, more so than an actual transition piece like a T or reducer since it does not rise up higher than the hardwood floor or the tile. Here is a pic of a cut away piece with the routed edge: Here is a pic of the finished transition: You might have some more flexibility if you went with aluminum. Another option if you want to avoid using a molding between the two surfaces is to cut down the hardwood a bit so that they meet flush. This may or may not be feasible depending on the construction and thickness of the hardwood, and how long the join may be. From your diagram, it looks like you'd have to cut down once side of the hardwood about 1/4", and remove the underpad from the last couple of inches.
You'd also probably have to glue the last piece down to the floor, which might not work well if there could be significant expansion/contraction. I ran into a similar situation with engineered hardwood transition to a master bath small format tile. Before finding this page I looked at a number of different solutions. IN the end I decided to under cut the plywood engineered wood, similar to the process used by some of the other folks above. As the lip of the cut back boards rest on the tile and the expansions space is only 3/8ths inch wide it would take a massive amount of pressure at a specific spot to do even moderate damage to the floating connection. Obviously this is a photo of a scrap piece rather than the finished product which has a close fit versus the large gap shown. The exposed plywood edge is unnoticeable except on close examination. Because the area could potentially get wet or be in a more humid environment, I sealed the raw wood with lacquer. I imagine the same process could be used when laying laminate flooring also.