floor tiles

RuthG

We want to tile our bathroom floor. It's upstairs and has a wooden floor. I realise we cant just place the tiles on the floorboards. Can someone tell me a good way to prepare the floor so we can tile it please?

BertieUK

It really depends on what type of tiles you would like to fit to your bathroom floor.

We tiled our bathroom with cork tiles first laying hardboard, pinned down with the correct type of nails, face down to the wooden floor,then with cork tile adhesive fitting the 12" sq tiles to the rough surface of the hardboard.

We then covered the tiles with two coats of varnish, and now we enjoy the comfort that cork tiles give.

Regards

BobUK

Pont

A totally even surface is needed (obviously existing floorboards aren't totally flat and even) so hardboard needed on top. Ensure hardboard is totally clean (no bits of grit etc), flexi adhesive, tile, bathroom (watertight) grout.
Beats me though, if I had floorboards I would never have tiled!

RuthG

My floorboards are old, uneven and have gaps in them that are beyond filling. We want to create a modern looking bathroom, though it is an older house (no it wouldnt be out of keeping with the rest of the house). We would prefer to use ceramic tiles and turn it into a kind of wet room, but not go the whole hog.

Would hardboard be sufficient? Does it need to be waterproof at all, or will the tiles on top be enough?

vax2002

think you need a tradesman, cant see many telling a open forum the trade secrets with work as short as it is.

BertieUK

RuthG wrote: »

We would prefer to use ceramic tiles and turn it into a kind of wet room, but not go the whole hog.

I would follow the advice of vax2002, because you realy require a speacialist, to advise you on obtaining the perfect conditions required for a 'wet-room' to work for you.

This is not the job that I would advise a DIYer to attempt.

Regards

BobUK

RuthG

Cant afford a professional. We are both competent DIYers and do just about everything ourselves. Just needed to know what was best to use, whether I have to take up the floorboards first, and whether I need to use plywood rather than hardboard.

googler

Hardboard will be no use at all. if you want to lay ceramic tiles, you should probably put down three-quarter inch plywood as a base on top of the floorboards. secure it to the boards with plenty of screws. if it moves, your tiles WILL crack.

Prep the plywood with dilute PVA before tiling.

What's a 'kind of wet-room'?

paye

In my bathroom i put a 6mm ply down on top of my existing floorboard and laid tiles on top of it. No problems what so ever. Before you tile over your existing floorboard check the condition for any running services that may be underneath your floorboards and re route them if you can. the last thing you need is a leaking pipe.

Or if you don;t want to take the chance of using marine ply you could buy a tile underlay.

see below a good link with step by step instructions below.

http://www.tiletown.co.uk/TilingAccessories/NoMorePly.aspx

vax2002

If you dont know what to use for a sub-floor then you are not even a mildly competent DIY'er.

RuthG

Thanks paye . I assume the ply is nailed down firmly? And also a flexible, waterproof tile cement is used?