Tiles lifting - heated floor

[Tony_C]

Sounds like you're screwed anyway to be honest. Lift it and see whats under there, leaving it down guessing you will be no better off.

Give the ties a knock and see if they sound hollow all over. I think i know what my money is on considering the tiler will no longer acknowledge you

 

[Manor Jump]

If it’s that bad (needing new tiles, likely all need lifting), then I’m going to need the help of a professional! Any advice on how to find a good reliable tiler in the North West?

They sound mostly hollow all over. It’s weird, they definitely didn’t start out like that, but it’s rapidly getting worse now.

Do you suspect dot and dab? He assured me he didn’t do that, and I believed him.... but something is causing this problem.

 

[J Sid]

Really no point guessing, lift and look but my pennies are on start again, sorry

 

[Tony_C]

Do you suspect dot and dab? He assured me he didn’t do that, and I believed him.... but something is causing this problem.

At a guess I do suspect that yeah. Something is causing it and you know the best way to find out what 😉.

As for finding a tiler you can check the directory on here or advertise the job here. There are also means for this on social media pages too 👍
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That's 3 votes for get one lifted!

 

[Manor Jump]

Ha, yeah, I’ll need to line up a tiler first. There will be massive blow back if I make a hole in the floor and it can’t get sorted post Christmas! I will lift one and update here though.

If the tiler is found to be at fault I expect it’s not an easy thing to resolve. Possibly involving small claims court or something similar.

What bothers me most here is that I’m likely to now be left with a bill greater than it cost to fit them. I’ll need replacement tiles (they weren’t cheap) and I’ll need to pay someone to lift them up, make the area good again ready to tile, and then to fit. Makes me feel sick at the thought.

 

[Dumbo]

If it’s that bad (needing new tiles, likely all need lifting), then I’m going to need the help of a professional! Any advice on how to find a good reliable tiler in the North West?

They sound mostly hollow all over. It’s weird, they definitely didn’t start out like that, but it’s rapidly getting worse now.

Do you suspect dot and dab? He assured me he didn’t do that, and I believed him.... but something is causing this problem.

If they've been dot and dabbed you could tell using a thermal imaging camera . The dots will show up .

 

[CJ]

do you know what make of insulation panels??

 

[Dave]

Just a thought , it could also be an expansion issue if a perimeter joint isn't there to allow the thermal expansion.
Either way the floor is now de-bonded and needs to be rectified, I’d personally leave it to after xmas , so you dont have tiles missing during the festive period.

 

[Sean Kelly]

I feel for you.

Does the underfloor heating still work? I ask because if there are voids (gaps) under the tiles then the chances are that the heating cable will burn out.

Do you have any idea of what adhesive was used.
Flexible Bagged adhesive mixed with water is good.
Ready mixed adhesive in a tub is bad.

If the tiler did not pour a self levelling compound over the underfloor heating cable then the the cable will be unusable when the tiles are removed (as the cable will be stretched during the tile removable process).

 

[Manor Jump]

Thanks for the replies. I’m not sure what a perimeter joint is.

He definitely used flexible bagged adhesive, I bought all the gear, he just supplied the labour (which I think might make unlocking this even more messy).

There was no levelling compound used for sure, apparently it wasn’t needed as the wiring wasn’t thick.

The heating does still work, but I’ve not used it for months for fear of making it deteriorate even quicker.
I’m not surprised we’ll lose the heating. We didn’t really use it that often. We only installed it because we were worried about freezing cold tiles, but actually the insulation matting stops the floor from getting too cold anyway.