Kitchen prep before tiling

colick · Jul 18, 2012

Hi all and hope all are well.

We recently employed a builder to make an extension on our small house which would give us a new kitchen dinier.
The extension is almost finished and we are comeing towards tiling. We are using porcelain 30x60 slate effect tiles but the problem is the floor itself.
Its a block and beam affair with polystyrene wedges hanging between the reinforced beams. On top of this we have 20mm chipboard.
The issue is its very 'flexible'. The builder 'who shall be laying the tiles' has voiced his fears but the only solution he can think of is to take the whold floor out and remake it more solid. We were planning on putting 6mm backerboards on top of the chipboard before tiling.

Can anyone give any ideas which can help with the 'flex' in the floor, what adhesive we should use and any other prep required.

The builder is a good guy and has said he wouldn't want to put his name to the job as he feels the tiles will lift after a few months but their must be a way of solidifying the floor before laying, isn't their????

Here's hoping someone can help.

thanks in advance.

DHTiling · Jul 18, 2012

Hi, that is classed as a floating floor and as it is, it is not suitable to accept tiles of any sort.

If you have the choice to remove the floating floor then i would remove and install a screed... no adhesive or overboarding will work on floating floors IMHO.. sooner or later it will fail.

Rookery · Jul 18, 2012

Dave said:
Hi, that is classed as a floating floor and as it is, it is not suitable to accept tiles of any sort.

If you have the choice to remove the floating floor then i would remove and install a screed... no adhesive or overboarding will work on floating floors IMHO.. sooner or later it will fail.

Agreed. I wouldn't tile on a floating floor ever. I'm surprised the builder didnt spec it differently seeing as he's doing the tiling.

John Benton · Jul 18, 2012

I got asked to do a job of 30m in 60x60 porcelain on a floating floor with UFH. Needless to say I turned it down. Later found out that the guy employed 3 guys for 5 days to lay it????? and guess what, it failed. £100 per metre tiles on a cheap substrate doesn't work.