Help with tile floor install
#1
06-16-04, 05:21 AM
Help with tile floor install
Actually I have a couple of problems.
1. I want to lay ceramic tile over an expansion joint. Is this possible? There is about a 3/8" gap between.
2. The floor is not smooth. There is a slight slope(about 1/2" over 8') where addition ties in to original slab. Will floor leveler fix this?
3. Also there is some type of black substance on the floor like a sealer. Not really sure what it is. Any ideas what it is and what to do about it?
My wife is adamant about putting ceramic tile down. My floors have been bare for almost 2 years because we can't figure out what to do about it.
Please help!!
1. I want to lay ceramic tile over an expansion joint. Is this possible? There is about a 3/8" gap between.
2. The floor is not smooth. There is a slight slope(about 1/2" over 8') where addition ties in to original slab. Will floor leveler fix this?
3. Also there is some type of black substance on the floor like a sealer. Not really sure what it is. Any ideas what it is and what to do about it?
My wife is adamant about putting ceramic tile down. My floors have been bare for almost 2 years because we can't figure out what to do about it.
Please help!!
#2
06-17-04, 07:56 PM
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Lets address #3 first... The black sealer you have been living on for, 2 years you say.
What type of floor was originally place on top of this "sealer"?
Please don't say VAT tile!
If it was VAT tiles of yester year, they had asbestos in them. That is what the "A" is for.
If it was VAT, or an older resilient floor, the black stuff your walking on and chipping, scraping off with your shoes and feet, along with sweeping, is called cutback adhesive.
Cutback adhesive is laced with asbestos. The friable dust will kill you eventually. Good thing you only lived with it for 2 years. Oh my GOD!
The expansion joint needs to be treated as a grout joint only filled with color matching sanded caulking or a control joint metal made by Schluter.
Floor leveler works if the substrate is concrete. They tend to crack out over wood subfloors.
What type of floor was originally place on top of this "sealer"?
Please don't say VAT tile!
If it was VAT tiles of yester year, they had asbestos in them. That is what the "A" is for.
If it was VAT, or an older resilient floor, the black stuff your walking on and chipping, scraping off with your shoes and feet, along with sweeping, is called cutback adhesive.
Cutback adhesive is laced with asbestos. The friable dust will kill you eventually. Good thing you only lived with it for 2 years. Oh my GOD!
The expansion joint needs to be treated as a grout joint only filled with color matching sanded caulking or a control joint metal made by Schluter.
Floor leveler works if the substrate is concrete. They tend to crack out over wood subfloors.
#3
06-20-04, 06:04 AM
You can use an elsatomeric membrane to bridge that control joint and isolate it,from undeneath the tile,e.c.g makes one and so does mapei keralastic i believe it is called there are others as well elastomeric membrane is the word to remember here.
Are there little squares in ther floor that you measure?If so then measure one of them and if the square is 9x9 then this is v.a.t. tile it was only made in the 9x9 format.But that doesn't mean that the glue is not "hot" and you need to take care of that as soon as possible,if nothing else get you some ardex feather finish and encapsulate the stuff and render it harmless
Are there little squares in ther floor that you measure?If so then measure one of them and if the square is 9x9 then this is v.a.t. tile it was only made in the 9x9 format.But that doesn't mean that the glue is not "hot" and you need to take care of that as soon as possible,if nothing else get you some ardex feather finish and encapsulate the stuff and render it harmless
#4
06-21-04, 05:58 AM
Hey Guys,
Thanks for the advice. The black stuff was covered by old resilient flooring. This house is over 25 years old. Where can I get the ardex stuff to cover it? Can I ceramic tile right over it? or do I need to put some kind of treatment so the thinset will stick?
Also where can I find the membrane stuff or the metal joint?
Thanks for the advice. The black stuff was covered by old resilient flooring. This house is over 25 years old. Where can I get the ardex stuff to cover it? Can I ceramic tile right over it? or do I need to put some kind of treatment so the thinset will stick?
Also where can I find the membrane stuff or the metal joint?
