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Couple of tiling questions

yojimbo2's picture

Couple of tiling questions (post #205572)

yojimbo2 on Tue, 01/03/2012 - 10:27
in

Is it necessary to install an uncoupling membrane over concrete when tiling a small area, like 6'x6'?

 

and

 

Thinking of not removing baseboard and tiling up to it.  Is this a bad idea because you need room for the tile to expand and

contract, which placing it under the baseboard allows or it doesn't really matter except aesthetically.

-A +A

yo (post #205572, reply #1 of 6)

by calvin in reply to yojimbo2 [original] on Tue, 01/03/2012 - 11:09

I cuss out every damn one of those that tile up to and bury base.  In most cases with stock current basebd, it looks terrible too.

Similarly, not undercutting jambs.

 

As for membrane-dry and no cracks, probably not.  Potential for a crack from out of an outside corner?  maybe so.

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For a small space, without (post #205572, reply #2 of 6)

by DanH in reply to yojimbo2 [original] on Tue, 01/03/2012 - 19:03

For a small space, without cracks, you probably do not need a membrane.  It's a bit of a gamble, but probably a winning bet, if the concrete is sound.  (We tiled our downstairs bath 33 years ago and it's still fine.)

Do pull the baseboard.  Sometimes you need to bury a bit of trim, but in most cases it's much easier to pull the baseboard and trim (or undercut the trim) than to tile up to it, since you don't need to be as careful with your cuts, and don't need to grout/caulk the gaps.  Plus the job will look better.

To undercut vertical trim (like door trim), place a piece of the tile on the substrate (ie, the concete, in this case) adjacent to the trim, lay a Japanese saw or small carpenter's saw down flat on the tile piece, and saw away.  (With the thin Japanese saw blade you may want to add an extra cardboard shim or some such under the tile, to provide enough space.  With a carp saw the thickness of the saw blade is just about right to compensate for the thinset thickness.)  Or you can just remove the vertical trim and shorten it before re-installing.


We are like tenant farmers chopping down the fence around our house for fuel when we should be using Nature's inexhaustible sources of energy -- sun, wind and tide. ... I'd put my money on the sun and solar energy. What a source of power! I hope we don't have to wait until oil and coal run out before we tackle that. --Thomas Edison

thanks for the replies.  I (post #205572, reply #3 of 6)

by yojimbo2 in reply to DanH [original] on Wed, 01/04/2012 - 09:55

thanks for the replies.  I use a muli tool to cut the door jambs, much faster than the japanese pull saw.  The mult tool has pretty much replaced the pull saw in my tool kit.

 

new question.

 

What are people using to remove vinyl flooring from concrete? 

 

I am currently using three tools:

 

My makita demo hammer with a spade bit

Once the vinyl is up I use this product chucked into a grinder to get the paper and glue up:  http://www.amazon.com/Wagner-Power-Produ...

Haven't tried this out yet, but I'm planning on trying this out to see if it works:

http://toolmonger.com/2009/12/15/spyder-...

For small amounts I've used (post #205572, reply #4 of 6)

by DanH in reply to yojimbo2 [original] on Wed, 01/04/2012 - 17:55

For small amounts I've used the afore-mentioned multitool with scraper blade.  Not practical to do more than a few sq ft with it, though.

But for our two baths I used heat and paint strippers.

(Do keep in mind that many types of vinyl flooring contain asbestos.  And also remember that you can install tile over well-adhered vinyl -- the vinyl actually serves as an anti-fracture membrane.)


We are like tenant farmers chopping down the fence around our house for fuel when we should be using Nature's inexhaustible sources of energy -- sun, wind and tide. ... I'd put my money on the sun and solar energy. What a source of power! I hope we don't have to wait until oil and coal run out before we tackle that. --Thomas Edison

First I heard of this.  Sound (post #205572, reply #5 of 6)

by yojimbo2 in reply to DanH [original] on Wed, 01/04/2012 - 19:59

First I heard of this.  Sound like a huge time saver.  I found this as well:  http://www.tavytools.com/bndr6.html

Since I am doing bathrooms, several of them, I am worried about water damage to the vinyl.  I am going to pull the vinyl in this case.

  Is it necessary to (post #205572, reply #6 of 6)

by Geoffrey in reply to yojimbo2 [original] on Wed, 01/25/2012 - 00:07

 

Is it necessary to install an uncoupling membrane over concrete when tiling a small area, like 6'x6'?

NO, you don't need a de-coupling membrane over concrete, decoupling membranes are for installing tile over wood sudfloors  because wood moves at a different rate than concrete.  As is shown in the Tavy link (the directions tell you the installed surface will be like a concrete floor). I'm assuming the existing concrete is structurally sound and not cracked, if it is not solid it should be repaired.

Remove the base and undercut the trim as needed, it'll look better and save some headaches.