Tile Over Wood Subfloor

Tape joints with alkali resistant cement.

Tile over wood subfloor.

A couple options considered are. Score the surface of the board. Prepare a wood subfloor for tile a successful tile installation project requires a level surface. However there is significant debate in the tile industry regarding the conditions necessary for a long lasting successful installation.

While tile can be laid on plywood do not install tile directly onto. Lay down 1 2 inch thick cement backerboard over the wood subfloor or hardwood. If the tile is being installed in a bathroom consider applying an isolation membrane over your wood subfloor to further protect against expansion and contraction. First changes in humidity make solid wood shrink swell and cup more than plywood.

Place hardiebacker in staggered pattern so no four corners meet. Thinset is the wet base that you first trowel on the plywood to make the tile. Tips for laying tile on plywood subfloor for flooring use intervening sheets of plywood. Lay down a vapour barrier overtop the concrete pad then fasten 3 4 inch plywood using a ramset to the concrete pad.

Use thinset with a higher latex content. If you find hollows and valleys you must fill them with a self leveling underlayment. Splits and knots create weak spots that flex and lead to cracking tile. This is not to say that tile cannot be installed reliably over an osb subfloor.

Second the strength of wood boards isn t always consistent. If water seeps through the tile installation to the underlayment it will not cause the wood to swell as happens with interior grade plywood. Check for dips in the floor by sliding a 4 foot to 6 foot straight edge in different directions all around the room. Fasten hardiebacker 1 4 board with corrosion resistant screws or galvanized roofing nails 8 inches apart.

Tape over holes and. When used as an underlayment the plywood sheets are laid over the osb or plywood subfloor for a two layer base. The compound must be allowed to dry completely before proceeding with tile installation which can be anywhere from 24 hours to a few days depending on the brand. Trowel out bed of unmodified thinset over wooden subfloor.

Cut the backerboard to fit the edges of the room with a carbide tipped scoring tool. Installing over existing tile before installing ceramic tile over the existing tile you will need to roughen the existing ceramic tile surface to produce a better grip for the new ceramic tile. The most current ansi standards for tile installation a108 1999 specifically exclude osb.