Tiles for kitchen floor, I like terracotta but..

mariat

Hello everyone,
For the past month or so I've been dithering over what tiles to lay on my kitchen/diner floor. It's got to the point where I have to make a decision, so I'd really appreciate some input from you guys and gals.
I want a natural tile, so ceramic is out, so is porcelain lookalikes due to cost. I've considered sandstone, terracotta and limestone. I'm after a rustic country look, but it has to be practical and fairly easy to maintain. Terracotta is my favorite, but can that be laid with sand/cement over ceramic tiles (over concrete screed)? If I have to use a tile adhesive it'll push the cost up considerably. How durable are they after they've been sealed? And what's the best sealer to use that won't darken the colour? I've used boiled linseed oil on some antique pamments in the past and it looked horrible.

keystone

Most pros would take the ceramics up first because a) you never know how well the existing tiles are bonded to the substrate and b) tile over tile is not best practice. But you can tile over tile if you really want to and are are prepared to gain floor height vis-a-vis next door. Bad news is that your sand and cement solution is a non-starter.

You need to clean the existing tiles first, use an SBR primer / cement slurry over the top then tile with a flexible adhesive before the slurry is fully dried out.

If using the proper materials is too expensive for you as indicated then I suggest you consider an alternative which is to use SLC over the existing floor to fill the grout lines and then lay a vinyl floor over that.

Cheers

mariat

Hi Keystone, thanks for the advice. Can you tell me what an SBR primer is? I know the existing tiles are stuck fast cos I laid them, so taking them up would be a nightmare. The rise in floor height is not an issue. Vinyl flooring is a non starter. Would the primer/slurry be necessary with any type of stone tile? What about porcelain tiles (if I can find some I can afford).