How To Lay Tile Over Cement Floor

One of the first steps in refinishing a basement or turning a garage.

How to lay tile over cement floor.

Concrete floors are durable and easy to clean but not very attractive. Unlike wood or drywall sub surfaces cement backerboard will not rot warp or grow mold and mildew when exposed to water. Step 1 preparing the concrete. Dry fit the tiles on floor.

Lay several porcelain tiles in a row using spacers to simulate joints. Once a tile is set try to avoid touching it again. Yet this application does make sense since concrete is heavy solid and is typically thought of as an unbending uncompromising material. Measure a 2 foot section of tile.

Before you begin to lay the tile over your concrete slab make sure the concrete is properly prepared. You can purchase it in sheets or in liquid form. Opt to cut sheets of ditra membrane to fit the area you are tiling. Use spacers for accuracy.

Use a chalk line to mark your starting point on the concrete floor. Installing over wood. Chipboard cushioned vinyl flooring particle boards of any type oriented strand board osb interior grade plywood tongue and groove planking and hardwood floors are unsuitable substrates for direct installation of ceramic tile. This will help prevent cracking of tiles.

Ceramic and porcelain tile are so frequently installed at or above grade level on a cement board underlayment or directly on plywood that it almost seems novel to install tile directly on concrete. Now that you have a reference point you can be sure that the first row of tiles will be properly aligned. Then use a square tool to check that the lines are perpendicular to one another. To install ceramic tile over wood the wood surface must be structurally sound enough to support the weight of the tile.

Test how it will look like by laying the tile without adhesive. How to prepare for laying tile over a concrete floor. Lay the tiles into the mortar and using the spacers make sure you are running even with the chalk line. Installing tile directly on concrete.

Never install new tiles over existing tiles or onto an unprotected wood or plywood floor. It can be physically strenuous and messy but it is a home improvement project that will allow you to cut labor costs by doing it yourself. Check the distance between tiles and note the location of the. Laying floor tile over concrete is not a technically demanding job.