Vinyl Flooring and Tiling Don't Mix

Many people are tiling right over their existing vinyl flooring, they may regret it in a few years. While tiling right over vinyl seems fast and easy now, and might even look pretty good for the first few months, it will later compromise the stability and look of your ceramic tile. Here are the major reasons not to tile directly over vinyl flooring.

Tile on Vinyl Won't Stick Well

The top layer of vinyl is similar to plastic and it is difficult to get anything to adhere to it because its shine is not porous.  A good bond needs porous material. No matter what kind of glue you try to apply to the vinyl, your tiles will not bond well. Some people recommend roughing up the surface of the vinyl for a better bond, but this really isn’t an effective method.

Blurb Alert! If you need more information on home improvement ideas, be sure to use our search function at the top of the page to find the best prices on books, electronic books, audio tapes and CDs.  The search is also programmed to call up the latest eBay auctions for specific items that you're seeking.

Since tile and your vinyl flooring will not adhere well to one another, there might be lifting after you lay the floor. If the vinyl begins lifting and pushing the tile up, you may have to replace a section of tile or the entire floor. If you tile directly onto vinyl or linoleum flooring, you may find at a later date that you need to remove the your entire new tile floor in order to remove the old vinyl because of lifting and instability. It is probably better to save yourself the time, money and hassle by removing your vinyl flooring before tiling.

To avoid cracking, it is important that your new tile floor is secure and stable. 

Tile on Vinyl Flooring Will Not Be Level

It is much more difficult to get the floor level if you tile right over your vinyl flooring. You won’t be able to figure out the anchoring pattern when you tile on top of vinyl and this is one of the key factors in a stable and level floor surface. It will also be difficult when trying to insert transitions where the floor rises or where spaces must be filled. If you start with a fresh or existing sub-floor, the end result will be a much more stable and level tile floor.

The Sub-Surface Under Vinyl Flooring Is Not Suitable for Installing Tiles on Top of the Vinyl

Vinyl flooring is usually installed on 1/4” plywood or particleboard. These substrates are not approved for tile because of a different material make-up. If you lay tile right over vinyl or linoleum, your tile floor will be unstable and will   develop cracks in the tiles or the grout. This is because vinyl flexes, cracking the grout or tile. It is nearly impossible to replace a tile with a chip or a crack once it is adhered, so you may end up having to replace the entire floor in the future because of the vinyl lifting and flexing.

Tiling a Vinyl Floor

If you do want to leave your vinyl down, then you need to prepare the floor structurally for the tiling. You will need to screw down the old vinyl and then create a mortar base using mesh and concrete. If you don’t want to get into pouring cement, you can lay down a plywood sub-floor. There are products on the market that increase the crack resistance of tiles placed on wooden sub-floors. This method isn’t really much different from removing the vinyl flooring. It may seem like a lot of work right now, but taking your time and doing it properly will save you a lot of time and money down the road.

Conclusion

Before you proceed with installing tile directly over vinyl flooring, keep all of this information in mind. Not only will you have difficulty with bonding and leveling, but you will also end up with a floor that is unstable and in some cases unsafe. This money-saving and timesaving route could end up costing you a lot in the future.

"Vinyl Flooring and Tile Do Not Mix" contributed by Shawn Beckman