Putting Down Tile Over Linoleum

Installing ceramic tile over vinyl or linoleum surfaces can be more complicated than expected and probably should be avoided whenever possible.

Putting down tile over linoleum. Use a dust mask and put a fan in a window to suck out the dusty air. The backer board must be on the same plane and plumb with the wall to be laid correctly. If you are putting the new linoleum over old linoleum or wood sand it down with a belt sander to make it smooth. Alternately you can hire an asbestos removal company to safely remove all the flooring.

Work backwards out of the room to let the tiles dry. Most hard tiles such as stone ceramic and porcelain will need a new underlayment put down over the old linoleum first. However if you can t remove the old surface or otherwise decide to install over it lay a backer board with thin set over the old surface to serve as your new subfloor material. This will also increase the height of the finished floor by as much as 1.

After the thin layer has dried which should take about 30 minutes use a notched trowel to add a second layer over the first layer taking care to create even ridges over the surface. When old linoleum flooring is in need of an upgrade though installing tiles of peel and stick vinyl over linoleum is a quick easy and affordable fix. It can be cut with a circular saw but is better scored with a sharp tool and snapped to create less mess and dust. The best solution in this circumstance is to cover over the asbestos flooring with a thin layer of plywood underlayment before putting down cement board and ceramic tile.

Spread vinyl tile adhesive over the old linoleum with a trowel and press the tiles into place in the pattern and layout you determined earlier. Essentially when you install backer board you re simply putting down another layer to have a better surface to tile over your linoleum. Spread adhesive and place the cut edge against the wall image 2. Installing over existing vinyl.

Once the tile is leveled off your next step is to remove the toilet so that the floor can be laid under it not cut around it. When you re ready to install tile over linoleum a thin layer of mortar should be spread over the floor s surface with a flat edged trowel. For partial tiles measure from tiles already in place to the wall. Linoleum is known for being affordable and easy to clean and these days there s a wide variety of patterns and designs to choose from.

Next if the tile s joints are deep you ll want regrout them to bring them flush with the tile so that the lines won t telegraph show through the vinyl floor.