Waterproofing vinyl tile?

I stupidly let someone lay a new bathroom and kitchen floor in a rental double-wide. Original floor was terrible, old broken tile, etc. So he laid

1/4" plywood on the old floor and new square thin vinyl self-adhesive tiles on that. Looked fine and wore well for a few weeks. Until a kitchen sink drain let loose and dumped a bunch of water on it. Plywood warped and needs repairing.

What can I paint this floor with to waterproof it so water won't go between the tiles and soak the plywood? Haven't found anything yet with Google. I suppose floor wax might work but I'm afraid it will wear off all too soon unless frequently reapplied.

Ideas?

TIA.

Reply to
KenK
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I think they call that sheet vinyl, instead of tiles. With tiles, I don't see how you'd ever waterproof it. I guess there might be some miracle coating you could apply over the whole thing, but I would think even that would be temporary at best.

Reply to
trader_4

Tiles are waterproof but problem is water seeping around them. Sub-floor is the problem. I don't know what should be used as floor but had experience with my stall shower going to pot where the builder had put tiles over regular dry wall instead of the cement or waterproof board that should have been used.

Reply to
Frank

KenK wrote in news:XnsA6287199DAF32invalidcom@130.133.4.11:

Since I posted this I read about using groat between the tiles and caulk along the walls and other floor edges. Anyone tried this successfully?

TIA

Reply to
KenK

Sounds nuts to me. For one thing, vinyl tiles are somewhat flexible and I would think that as people walk on them grout that is placed in between would crack and probably fall out before too long. It doesn't have thin set underneath to adhere to, IDK how much it will adhere to the edges of the vinyl tiles. Even if it didn't deteriorate and come out, I doubt it would keep water out for long. I think you have to ask yourself if you aren't creating a bigger problem while attempting to fix a problem that should rarely happen. There are a lot of floors with vinyl tiles in kitchens, utility rooms, etc. I have them in my laundry room. There are also many kitchens with wood floors too. They all live with the small risk of a water leak damaging the floors. If you want something more resistant, then go with ceramic tiles. But I would think even those, if there is enough water on the floor for long enough, it could get under them and do the damage anyway.

Another factor may be the sub floor, the type of plywood used, how it was nailed, etc. A lot of floors get wet without warping.

Reply to
trader_4

If the joints between the vinyl tiles are wide enough for grout, the tiles aren't laid propely. If they are wide enough, rigid, cementatious grout isn't going to work even if the tiles were several times thicker than they are.

An acrylic caulk could work and a reasonably neat job could be done since excess caulk can be remove (before it hardens) with water; however, it will soon get dirty and look like hell. Silicone caulk wouldn't get dirty but applying it would make a mess.

Best advice (IMO): remove the tiles and put down sheet vinyl. Have it professionally done.

Reply to
dadiOH

dadiOH wrote: ...

yeah, waste of money for a small space to try to patch a rotten job. just get it out of there and put the right stuff in (be it tile or whatever else that can withstand water).

songbird

Reply to
songbird

pull up ALL of the layers down to the sub floor, install concrete board, cement all seams and tile.

do job right and you only need to do it once.

ideally use ceramic tile, it will last a lifetime, and not stain around toilets

Reply to
bob haller

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