Removing paint from a cement floor

[Bob Emery]

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I have a 20 year old basement floor which has been painted 3 times. The room is heated with an in floor heating system. The water lines are approx

1" from the top of the cement. I want to install ceramic tiles on this floor, but have been cautioned by a few people saying I must remove the paint first before applying thinset. I have found out that removing the paint is not an easy task. Sandblasting and high pressure washing are out of the question because this room is completely finished.So I am down to sanding or ?? Is it true that the thinset will not adhere to the painted warm cement floor? Any ideas? [e-mail]

[hallerb]

paint MUST BE REMOVED!!!!:( paint remover and its a big hassle. been there done that why i always say dont paint concrete......

protect all finished surfaces, and be prepared for a terrible smelly job. keep room well ventilated.

grinding can generate lead paint dust that will get into everything.

i suggest you scrape loose paint and repaint best you can..........

incidently paint stripper is the slipperest surface you will ever walk on, guaranteed fall

[benick]

If your heart is set on tile then you will have to put 1/2 or 1/4 inch Durrock cement board down with a Ram Set or Tapcons....Thinset will not adhere to painted concrete....Cracks in cement(if any) may transfer to the tile...TrafficMaster Allure or a laminate might be an *easier* choice...

[Danimal]

[IGot2P]

Where is the lead paint dust going to come from? The OP said that the basement was only 20 years old and there was no lead paint in 1989.

Don

[Danimal]

Bob why bother trying to etch, sand or strip the surface when it isn't even an issue? It isn't necessary to create work make dust or slimey floors using stripper. Screw Ditra* down and carry on as normal, problem solved.

[Nate Nagel]

better be short tapcons if the heat pipes are 1" below surface

I have had good luck with using floor stripper from the Big Box, full strength not diluted as per instructions. and a paint scraper. Hard work. (did this in my laundry room, mostly to get up adhesive from old vinyl tiles that I pulled up. I still should finish it but I have not, so if you spill lacquer thinner on it it gets sticky in some places. Been a little busy with more pressing home repairs (see prev. post)

sorry if I sound short my hands are tired and I got my f***finger on my left hand taped up (didn't change blades in my utility knife soon enough)

nate

[benick]

What is Ditra*sheeting ???

[Danimal]

see link here>

[Red Green]

Nate Nagel wrote in news: [e-mail]:

Both hands on the knife Nate with legs to the side for the overshoot.

Don't feel bad. I put an awl clear through the web of my hand where the fingers "V" once.

Red Green PhD / 20-20 Hindsight / School of Hard Knocks

[Red Green]

"Danimal" wrote in news:4b39714f$0$5335$ [e-mail]:

What about the heated floor 1" down?

[Oren]

The cat's meow...

Build a new house, use it...shower walls, floors even.

[Nate Nagel]

I was trying to strip romex, holding the cable with one hand. I'd already zipped it down the center and peeled it back, and was going to trim the sheath off. Had to pull a little too hard and whups! Lessons, etc. Not sure exactly how I caught it but I did.

I suppose I could have bought one of those sexy Romex stripping pliers, but where's the fun in that? I mean I've only stripped something like

10 or 15 cable ends today :)

nate

[Danimal]

Ditra was primarily designed to work in conjunction with heated floors.

[Red Green]

Nate Nagel wrote in news: [e-mail]:

Shit happens. Hopefully no nerve damage.

[Red Green]

"Danimal" wrote in news:4b397a1f$0$5323$ [e-mail]:

That's nice.

You said to screw it in. OP said water pipes are 1" down. Am I being a pessimist that screws will hit pipes or something?!!! I don't know Ditra and I don't know heated flooring but ughhhhhh...

[Danimal]

In this case PL-4 construction adhesive or liquid nails would be appropiate.

[RickH]

Someone mentioned a belt floor sander, I've never heard of one of these, (only the floor drum sanders or orbital pad sanders).

Personally I'd rent a floor orbital (floor buffer) style sander, that will remove all the paint that needs to go (IOW the loose stuff), and they are easy to use. If you are using mastic for the tile, you dont need 100% removal of the paint. If you are using thinset then you will need to remove it all to get down to the concrete.

[dadiOH]

What kind of paint? I have 100s of trim tiles and tile mop boards stuck to flat paint.

My suggestion...

1. clean a small area of the floor

1. mix up a cup or so of thinset

2. spread the thinset 1/8 or so thick on cleaned area

1. wait a week

2. try to remove thinset

There is no doubt it *can* be removed, the question is, how *difficult* is it to remove? Hard?...tile away. Pops off or easy?...back to the drawing board.

[Twayne]

Check the product containers.

Any ideas?

Paint Remover.