Base for Ceramic Floor Tiles

[JonNews]

I am about to lay the above on floorboards in my kitchen. Last time I did this in my previous house I used expended galvanized steel mesh nailed to the floor at about 150mm spacing. The guy in Tiles R Us suggested either screwing plywood to the floor or using "flexible" adhesive directly onto the floor.

What's the groups opinion on laying ceramic tiles onto a floorboard floor?

I don't fancy the plywood option as I don't want to disturb the kitchen, apart from removing the kick boards (and reducing their width to accommodate the tiles). However I don't want the tiles to become loose after a couple of years.

Any advice greatly accepted. Jonathan-Dabbs-2004

[Mike Dodd]

If you get it wrong, it'd be days, not years before you notice.

Dunno about the adhesive, however, many in here have in the past promoted the 18mm+ plywoord option. I know from bitter experience that if you don't do this (or another viable solution) then you might as well hire a skip now, and throw the tiles straight in, rather than expend the effort to lay them, then dig them out when the bed / grout fails.

Just offering my limited experience, 'tis all.

Oh, and maybe listen to the advice from the tile-shops, it is their bread&butter.

Regards

[Broadback]

I have no experience of laying on floorboards, but would go along with Mike. I had a problem with a concrete kitchen floor with the wooden floor of the lounge projecting into it by 9" or so. All the tiles near the lounge had cracked. Solved it by fitting a sheet of steel from beneath the wood to the concrete, not practical in your case.

[Alex]

If you're laying over floorboards, then just a 6mm overlay of plywood should be fine, secured at max 200mm centres (IMHO) as long as the existing floor is in good condition. Remember to seal it with PVA before you tile and not to use screws that will protude through the existing floorboards when you screw it down (curse those plumbers!).

As for disturbing the kitchen - just cut the ply to fit slightly under the kickboards and that'll be fine surely?

Regards

Alex

[JonNews]

Thanks to those who replied it appears that the plywood has it. Jonathan-Dabbs-2004