Removing Floor Tiles
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Before you Begin Step-By-Step:
Tools Needed:
Other Needed Equipment: Tools that might be used:
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Before you Begin
(Kneepads) (Tavy Thin-Skin Underlayment, Tavy Thin-Skin Glue, V-notch Tile Trowel) Safety is first! Assume that all ceramic glazed tiles made prior to 1978 and all imported glazed tiles contain lead until you can prove otherwise. Most DIY and Contractors tend to belittle the dangers of what we cannot see, we only read about the dangers and the stories of those that didn't heed the warnings. So, to protect ourselves from what we cannot see. Consider purchasing a toolbox and dedicate it to holding all your safety supplies. If you're removing tile to prepare the surface for any new installation, you might want to re-think if you even need to remove the existing tile at all! Consider a product called Tavy Thin-Skin®. This revolutionary product allows you to tile over any clean level surface including: vinyl, wood, composite, and even your old tile! The paper-thin membrane underlayment system prepares your existing tile surface so that you can lay a new layer on top of it. With Tavy Thin-Skin® and a 3/16" v-notch trowel to spread the glue, you can transform your kitchen counter-top and/or back-splash into a long-lasting tile creation. 1 roll and 1 bucket of glue will cover 100 square feet. Step 1: Demolish the Tile
(Work gloves, Safety glasses, Ear plugs, N95 Dust mask) (Towel, Sledge-hammer) Get a large towel or canvas tarp and place it over a section of tile to prevent tile shards from flying up as projectiles. Using a small 1.5-3 lbs. sledge-hammer strike the tile through the towel. Note: A common sledgehammer mistake is not properly controlling the wieght of the hammer. Using a sledgehammer that's heavier than the job requires will likely result in damage to the subfloor and pipes. Sledge hammers are designed to carry the brute force of the weight in the head on it's own. Swinging a sledgehammer with all your body weight behind it like you often see in the movies and HGTV will result in as much destruction as you see in the movies and TV. Typically this is not what's desired. Step 2: Scrape Up the Pieces Pick up the pieces of tile using your work gloves to prevent injury from lying tile shards. Use a hand-scaper to remove any remaining pieces as well as the tile adhesive that's left behind. Since this can be brutal work you might want to consider renting a power-scraper. A chipping hammer can also be helpful in removing pieces of tile. Make sure to purchase extra scraper blades as they tend to break from time to time. It's also a good rule-of-thumb to use hearing protection when using any power tools. Step 3: Clean the Floor Start out by using a stiff-bristle broom to sweep the floor of debris, then go over the entire area with a shop vac to remove all the loose particles. Since shop vacs are loud, protect your ears with hearing protection. Step 4: Check for Bumps Shine your flashlight parallel to the floor and check closely for bumps that are not easily apparent. Scrape any bumps away with your hand-scaper and then clean the floor with your shop vac. Step 5: Smooth & Level the Floor The overall idea isn't to get the floor perfectly level, instead we're looking to get the floor as "flat" as possible. However, there are areas that do need to be level such as where your toilet would go and areas that will contain a kitchen countertop or island. Using the largest contractor's level or straightedge you can muster up, lay the level in various spots to help you detect any dips and crevices in the floor. When detected use leveling compound to fill in these areas. Note: Leveling compound is designed to spread and typically will self-level (using the law of gravity). As the leveling compound spreads it WILL find those holes and drain into the space under the subfloor unless it is taped off with some trusty duct tape or masking tape before pouring. |
