Any floor tile installers? Putting down a tile floor..

[Wakey]

This will be my first experience with installing tile.

I have a 700 square foot loft I want to tile.

It is on the 2nd floor of a 3 car garage. The floor is plywood with joists. If it was TGI type structured beams I'd feel better about the tiles not moving or grout cracking. Also it will help block out vapors from the garage below. I was wondering if putting down Schluter-DITRA Schluter-DITRA - Schluter-Systems would be a better choice over concrete board.

This is the tile we chose Shop Style Selections Natural Timber Ash Glazed Porcelain Indoor/Outdoor Floor Tile (Common: 8-in x 48-in; Actual: 7.72-in x 47.4-in) at Lowes.com Basically it looks just like the deck on the loft so it will match :laughing:

I've changed all of the lighting fixtures, switches and receptacles and the painting is done. I've already removed and cut (shortened) all 3 pocket doors and re-installed them ( pocket doors.. wow, what a royal pain )

So the tile is pretty much the last step outside of pulling the speaker cables for A/V.

 

[Egon]

First you have to determine if there is any deflection of the present floor. If there is then it must be stiffened by your choice of methods. Adding plywood usually works.

Tile flooring can be laid on plywood. The Shluter systems are expensive and used where movement may be possible.

Cement board is usually used for damp conditions.

 

[oosik]

I installed a little over 400 SF of unglazed quary tile in my house. Its installed over 3/4 inch plywood. The heavier plywood was just an added precaution to reduce deflection to a minimum. The tile is bonded to the plywood with epoxy cement grout. This was done in 1982 and there has been no cracking of the grout or tile. Our choice of "unglazed tile" became a PITA. We used mahogany colored grout and it was VERY DIFFICULT to clean off the unglazed tile. We finally cleaned all the tile after two weeks of scrubbing every day but I learned afterwards that there were products - grout releases - that would have made this task much easier. Your choice of a glazed tile will make grout clean up a snap. This project was finished with the application of a tile sealer product that has almost eliminated further staining of the unglazed tiles.

 

[Pixguy]

When I tiled a 10X10 bath on my second floor new home 10 years ago, I added 1/4" Hardieboard to the 3/4" T&G plywood to be sure there was no deflection. Ten years later, no cracks and all is well. I as told you want to be a minimum of 1" subfloor.

 

[KennyG]

Just curious since this is a "wood plank look tile" why did you decide on tile instead of a wood or laminate floor?

 

[oosik]

You are correct, pixguy. I was not really clear in my description of the underlayment. The 3/4 plywood was laid over the normal floor which is 2x8 T&G with flat side up. Perhaps a little over kill but I didn't want to be redoing things in the future. The plywood is screwed & glued to the 2x8 flooring.

 

[Pixguy]

You are correct, pixguy. I was not really clear in my description of the underlayment. The 3/4 plywood was laid over the normal floor which is 2x8 T&G with flat side up. Perhaps a little over kill but I didn't want to be redoing things in the future. The plywood is screwed & glued to the 2x8 flooring.

Thanks oosik, I don't hear I'm correct often while I'm home.
I also wanted to be sure and because I had carpet just outside the bathroom, I didn't want to go too high for transition so I just went 1/4" but I was there when the contractor glued my T&G onto my 2X10's.
I love the tile but wish I had listened to my wife who wanted me to put the underfloor heat like I did at our main home. I argued that it was just a vacation home and not worth the extra $1k but it is definitely colder to the bare feet at 5am even if 70° especially that I live here full time now.

 

[ray66v]

Ditra is a wonderful thing, if you are Mike Holmes, and there is no real budget.

If you are installing porcelain tiles, over any kind of decent wood floor, you can do fine with 1/4 cement board.

But, that depends on you having a properly built floor.

If you are at all concerned, why not use vinyl? The vinyl plank floors go in quickly, are reasonably priced, very durable, and totally crack proof.

A TBN member recently did a thread on his.

BTW: Ceramic planks are difficult to install, because any changes in the floor level get transmitted to the other end of the tile 24-28 inches away. This means if you do not have a perfectly flat floor, and no floor is, you will have peaks and valleys at the but ends, as you go across the floor. Keeping those to a minimum so they are not noticeable, is the challenge.

I would get shorter planks, if you are set on that type of tile. This will make it a little easier.

 

[oosik]

Pixguy, boy can I relate to that first statement!! Yes, we just recently experienced some of the most miserably hot wx in the 32 years I've been here(104F) and the tile floor was still VERY cool - all day long, too.

 

[lockhaven]

you can get expert advise by goggling. Not only does the floor need to be stiff but also free of humps and depressions. If you read some manufactures suggestions the cement board or other tile backing boards should be laid in a cement base over the plywood to level things out, screwed down and not walked on until cured.