Quick tile question

Zorba

Zorba

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May 21, 2008
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East Harbor, Lake Erie
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I have a three season room on my house that I am going to tile. My question is is it necessary to lay backerbord over the existing subfloor. I know this is crucial in situations where the floor will get wet (bathroom) but is it necessary in a dry application.

Thanks in advance
 
yes...helps prevent flex as well...if you have flex you have cracked grout..not good
 
You must use Wonderboard or Hardibacker or Schluter Ditra if the sublfoor is not concrete. As noted in previous post, the issue is "flex" and the resultant cracking in the tile and/or grout.
 
NO DOUBT - go with the backer board. I glued and screwed it to the plywood subfloor. Besides solving flexure issues, it bonds better to this material than plywood. You could also lay down paper and chicken wire, then a layer of concrete, then the thinset but that's probably most necessary if you've got an unlevel floor.
 
Dura Rock set in a mortar base and shot down with galvanized roofing nails is the only way to go to assure a stable floor.

1/2" is better, but if height is an issue you can get away with 1/4" depending on the substrate.

30+ years as a General Contractor and
I will not accept anything less on my jobs=no call backs

Just my $0.02 worth
 
Zorba said:
Thanks for the quick responses. Backeboard it is
Click to expand...

Unless your floor was originally designed with load and deflection criteria suitable for tile I would keep in mind the weight you’re adding and try to minimize it. While the underlayment does provide a good base it does not add structurally to your floor system
 
Daniel P Thomas said:
Dura Rock set in a mortar base and shot down with galvanized roofing nails is the only way to go to assure a stable floor.
Click to expand...

IMHO..

Not every homeowner has a pneumatic roofing nail gun. I have to imagine that hammering roofing nails through the Dura Rock is not going to work too well.

I would follow the advice given, but use flat head screws instead of roofing nails. They usually sell the boxes of screws (they are blue) right next to the Dura Rock.

Oh, I more thing.. Don't buy cheap mortar. Spend the extra money for the mortar with latex. It will allow some flex and reduce any chances of having a loose tile.
 
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Not only buy mortar with latex, also buy some plastic embeding screen type material to cover the seams with.

When I tiled my master bathroom floor on the second floor, I used 1/2" durarock and it has been going on 19 years with no flex or cracking. I screwed the durarock every twelve inches or less and went through one Makita drill and several philips head tips. I did not want to redo that again.

I had to cut the bottom of my bathroom door a tad to allow the raised tile to clear...
 
Ill throw .02 in, definitely ANY tile work needs to go onto a solid surface to prevent grout nightmares and even cracked tile.

I am actually finishing up the tile around my fireplace this coming weekend. Ill snap a pic.

And next winter is our kitchen remodel (cant wait :thumbsup:) where I will be gutting most of the kitchen except the cabinets and installing new countertops, new tile floor, backsplash, new sink.

We have done a room a year since we moved in. Only thing after the kitchen is the MBR suite extension.
 
Since you are installing this in a 3 season room, I'm guessing the room will be subject to freezing temps in the winter time. If thats the case, do not use any ceramic tile. You will have to use a porcelain tile and a thin set that is OK for outdoor use (No latex) Ceramic tiles can crack or come loose in freezing temps no matter what is used below.

Skip any of the grouts available at home depot/ lowes and get the Tec accucolor grout from a tile store. It will last much longer than the HD stuff and won't crack as easily.
SB
 
Strongly consider heated tiling grids if it works for your climate/Room. Nothing like walking barefoot on tile and it feels like a warm beach.
 
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