What Lies Below
This article and others that follow will be committed to home repair work and enhancement dealing with various locations from roof to basement.
If you are going to re-do the bathroom floor-- this means using up your tile, sheet vinyl, or ceramic tile and underlayments you need DIY unblock a drain to ensure there are no signs of water damage to the subflooring and examine to see if it is strong throughout. When laying down a brand-new flooring the main question is constantly can I lay tile over the existing floor or do I need to get the old one first? If the floor is level and sound you can normally simply tile right over it with plastic or vinyl flooring, however keep in mind just how much space you have for the restroom door, door frame and wall molding (if any) you might have to open or close the door from time to time!
If the underlayment is strong however not give up level you can use leveling embossers (like mortar) to fill-in low spots to make a level surface, otherwise place a brand-new underlayment over it, if you can. I have seen property owner doctor it up with thin plain wood strips don't do it! All materials need to be water and moisture resistant as possible. Always use at least a 3ft level to insure surface is not slanted in any cloggeed drain vic way.
For a normal ground level home like a ranch with no basement, flooring structures are 'framed', indicating the flooring sits on joists with 2-by's (stills) running perpendicular to the joists along the structure. 'Girders', (metal rods) at or near the center of the joists help in support. Above the framing lays the subfloor, usually a 3/4 ″ tongue and groove particle board, plywood or similar material. Above that there is a1/4 ″ plywood or cement board (wetness resistant) thats called the underlayment and might likewise have a sheet of roofing felt or similar product for included cushioning. Take additional caution when laying underlayment over the subflooring since the flooring might break if the seems match up so it's finest to stagger the seams.
Ceramic Tiles: Because this kind of tiling has ended up being popular in cooking areas, restrooms, halls and even living rooms for its sturdiness and style, I wish to commit this area on the subject.
Installing ceramic tiles in the bathroom will modify the height of components like toilets, vanity sinks and cabinets as well as the door and adjoining room it is best to get rid of everything and go back to square one. This implies eliminating the old underlayment too. You need to develop a level surface area or the tiles will crack or break. A lot of ceramic flooring tile is thick so you will have up to contributed to the old floor assuming you had plastic tile or vinyl to start with. You will be offsetting the height of the old fixtures and the door so a little cutting may be needed (If you are changing fixtures-no issue).
For tiling bathroom floors these actions will provide you excellent results:
* Using a 3/ft level check if the floor even throughout.
* Lay out a row of tiles, with spacers (cross formed inserts for grout lines) along the length and width of the space to assess the number of tiles you are using. This is also to see how many tile cuts you will have to make near walls.
* Put down cement board, cut to fit location and use a little layer of mortar to connect board to subflooring. Usage screws every 6 to 8 inches along the edges of board to protect in location. Usage mesh tape over the joints and cover with a thin layer of mortar.
* Utilizing a trowel use mortar about every 3 1/2 at a time and utilize smooth even strokes.
* insert cross shaped spacers on end in between each tile to guarantee rows are even. At corners lay spacers flat and butt tiles at the angles (dont concern, it will be very same with). You can likewise stand the spacers upright versus walls.
* When you get to the closet flange (toilet hole in flooring) you will need a tile nipper or tile saw to cut a partial circle. Do this for all sides and lay tile down as previously. You should do this likewise for sinks and cabinets.
* When all the tiles are down you must wait a least one day for it to set correctly this is an essential step before you put down the grout. When all set, mix tile grout to cover about of the room at a time, this will give you time to do to right. Secure the cross spacers and use grout with a grout float, then holding float at an angle capture off excess grout. Do this with action with the rest of the room.
* The last step is to dampen a clean sponge with water and rub out the access grout, rinsing the sponge often.