Can You Put Laminate On Top Of Tile

Ceramic floor tiles are beautiful and durable but sometimes you want a change a new floor.

Can you put laminate on top of tile.

Today s laminate wood flooring choices look like solid wood but they re simpler to install and you can put them right over existing flooring material including tile. Sometimes it may come up fairly easy if the thin set used to install the ceramic tile isn t a good. The shims keep the edges from moving once you set them in place. Hi dorothy the short answer is yes you can install laminate flooring over a ceramic tile floor if the tile floor is in good condition and the tile are well attached level and flat.

One of the most troublesome click lock flooring problems happens when a hump in the. You can often lay a laminate over tile without any extra effort if the tile a smooth level and there isn t much depth in the grout lines. Depending on the thickness of the cement board and tile it can raise it from a 1 8 in to higher then what it originally was. If you re installing a new floor pedestal sink and toilet you should install the laminate flooring first so it s under the sink and toilet.

Problem being that the laminate can shift since it is a floating floor and your tile will technically be floating too. You ve got problems however if the tiles are uneven and have raised edges or if the grout lines are wide and deep. The edges are really sharp. Because laminate flooring floats above the sub floor on top of underlayment it will expand and contract slightly with the temperature and humidity of the room.

There may be times when you want to install laminate flooring over ceramic tile. You can simply grout as normal using very light pressure on the grout joint to keep the joint level. Most of the time ceramic tile is a lot of work to remove not to mention it can be dangerous. The process would be the same as installing a laminate floor on a concrete slab.

The good news is that you can often lay the new floor on top of the old tiles if you prepare the the tiles properly before placing the new layer of flooring. The cold surface of tile can attract condensation and when it s covered by laminate the moisture can t escape other than to migrate through the flooring boards. If you must go over the laminate it technically can be done but isn t recommended. Ceramic tile is like glass when it breaks.

Second the grout joints should be filled to level with the top or face of the ceramic tile to ensure a smooth surface for the laminate to rest. Ripping up your ceramic floor can be a long messy process. When you install the edge tiles image 9 be sure and fill all voids between the tile and the laminate with mortar. Once the thin set cures the edge pieces will not be going anywhere.