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Can you tile over existing bathroom floor tile

15 years ago

My question- The existing tile in my tub/toilet area in my hall bath is set in a mud(cement). When the guy removed it in my master bath it took him all day and it was a very small section. He had to use a jack hammer and talk about dust. The tiles are 4 x 4. Can We just tile over these or do you have to remove tiles, smooth out concrete and then tile floor. Help.

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Comments (3)

bill_vincent
15 years ago
IF-- the tile is in good shape-- no cracks in either the tile OR the grout, and IF you tap the entire floor and find no hollow spots, and IF it causes no problems with elevation, then yes. You can hit the existing tile with a coarse sandpaper on an orbital sander to scruff it up, and then use an unmodified thinset mixed with a liquid latex additive, such as Mapei's Kerabond thinset mixed with their Keralastic additive.
cassie225
Original Author
15 years ago
This does not sound like a do it yourself job. Maybe I should just bite the bullet and have someone bust it up-since the old cast iron tub will have to be busted up to replace with a shower. I know how I felt when I tried to remove the wallpaper and found the walls ill prepared-then discovered that there were at least 2 different layers of wallpaper under the one I was trying to remove. Boy was I hot!!!. Wallpaper had to become part of my wall and get painted. That is probably how someone would feel about tile over tile.
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I’m not a pro, and have no experience with floor painting, but to me your floor looks fine. IMO you could paint the yellow walls with a neutral color, something like the white or (is that a gray in your floor tile?) get a white shower curtain, clean the grout and paint your vanity white with new hardware, or if your budget allows, just get a new vanity, they really aren’t too expensive. Good Luck!
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bill_vincent
15 years ago
Actually, it CAN be a DIY job. But like anything else, it's all a matter of self confidence. As a wise man once said,

Whether you think you can,
or you think you can't,
You're probably right.

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