Laying Floor Tiles On Plywood

Laying tile to veneer plywood risks loosening and unbonding the veneer creating an unstable base for the tile.

Laying floor tiles on plywood.

Under british standards bs 5385 part 1 plywood has now been excluded as a suitable substrate material for the direct fixing of wall tiles therefore when tiling on to walls a tile backer board is required however tiling onto plywood floors is still acceptable under british standards. Try laying tile over 1 2 durock or hardie and see what happens when the joists are 19 2 or 24 on center. Installing over wood. Before you can install floor tile there must be a viable subfloor that the tiles can adhere to.

For the best results when tiling onto plywood floors follow these instructions. Before you install your plywood subfloor first calculate the room s square footage to find out how much flooring you ll need to buy. Chipboard cushioned vinyl flooring particle boards of any type oriented strand board osb interior grade plywood tongue and groove planking and hardwood floors are unsuitable substrates for direct installation of ceramic tile. Space the field and edge fasteners correctly the top layer of plywood should be screwed down every 8 inches on the edge and every 6 inches in the field or interior section.

Step 5 drive deck screws every 8 inches along chalk line. For more information download our pdf about types of subfloors. The main caveat is that all vinyl formats call for a smooth subfloor including sheet vinyl vinyl tile and luxury vinyl planks and tiles. The key to a beautiful long lasting hardwood or laminate floor is a well prepared subfloor.

If the grout lines in the ceramic tile are deep you ll see and feel them under sheet flooring and if you choose to install preglued vinyl tiles they won t stick. Lay the plywood in place on the floor. Insert the deck screws. Preparation for installing floor tile depends on the type of subfloor in the room you are tiling.

To install ceramic tile over wood the wood surface must be structurally sound enough to support the weight of the tile. Hope you didn t like your beautiful new tile floor. A subfloor is the bottom most structural level of your floor. Follow these step by step instructions to prepare a wood subfloor for tilework.

Lay plywood in place on floor.