it's the standard way flush transitions are addressed in new tile and hardwood isntallations without placing other products under the tile to create a ramp that may or may not sacrifice the stability of the installation in the future. it depends on the thickness of the tile itself. what do you consider "quite a bit" ? also it needs to be asked, do you really want a ramp under your tile ? if you have a 1/4" tile with a setting bed made from a 1/4" notched trowel, the total thickness comes in just below a half inch. Using a 3/8" notched trowel increases that by 1/8" Using a 1/2" notched trowel increased that by 1/4" Plus with thinset you can squeeze the tiles down and butter them up alot more effectively to achieve the flush transition. this doesnt necessarily have to be accomplished throughout the entire install. It could be spread accross the last few rows to accomplish the flush transition. Mortar sticks to mortar alot better than any 3rd prty ramping product. This is the way flush transitions are supposed to be accomplished in tile isntalls.

OK, why would replacing the subfloor help? That is what I called the GC to see about doing and he said it would not help. I can not do that myself but did call a contractor to inquire. Apparently yes I have a high spot running the length of the house along the steel beam, which has not settled like the floor to one side (the livingroom). The floor to the other side does not appear to be sagging as much, but that is the side that had the fire and I believe the joists were probably replaced. The floor is NOT "perfectly" level beyond that, there appear to be some small dips that are very slight. Using a 4 foot level, not a 6 since I don't have one, I just placed it in about 3 other places and found no noticeable areas where the floor is not flat. Adding another layer of 1/4 in plywood would be fine, but there is no way to make that a smooth transition that I can think of since the new piece would create an even more abrupt change in level. Taking out the subloor along the beam might help but then it would be less than 1/2". It is 5/8" now, and if I reduced that by 1/4 inch, that would only leave 3/8", not enough to nail hardwood to, I don't believe. I would really rather not take up the first 3 rows that are face nailed, if at all possible. I have those nailed in straight to within 1/8" over a 16 1/2 foot run, including past a 6' opening, and that was a bit of a PIA to get to that point. I didn't know you could nail hardwood to leveling compound? My problem with filling the "dip" is that it is more of a permanent drop in the level of the floor beyond that point and I would have to increase it across most of the entire floor. There is actually a small "ramp" going up the hall past the bathroom on the opposite side of the steel beam, but that is also where a neighbor said the fire was. I believe the subfloor and probably even the joists were replaced after the fire on that side of the steel beam in 1994, but the joists and probably the subfloor on the livingroom side are original and date to 1960. I don't know what a fire or the process of putting out a fire can do to steel beams and joists. The house was fully inspected when I purchased it 10 yrs ago, and I still have the 20 page report. The structure was determined to be very sound. I have seen no evidence of movement in the house in the last 10 years, no big cracks or even increasing numbers of small cracks, in ceilings or walls, and what I can see of foundation looks OK. Windows open and close fine, etc. I guess if the contractor I called doesn't feel it will help, I am a little uncertain about where to go from there. I am sure I can find someone who would do what I ask, but are you sure it will help? Why won't the new sub floor just assume the same position over a short period of time? Here is a photo of the layout with the flooring direction. The flooring is being laid perpendicular to the joints, parallel to the steel beam. I am trying to install hardwood through the livingroom and kitchen and started along the wall that divides the two. I plan to reverse the boards using a spline to install the kitchen side. At this point, I plant to start the kitchen tomorrow and put this aside until I can figure out the correct thing to do. When the kitchen floor is in, I can at least proceed with my remodel and have the new kitchen installed. In the meantime, I will need to figure this out and thank you all for your help so far and hope you can help me resolve this. Sue

Hi there, you can use any size tile you like. Large format tile is very trendy right now, as far as style goes. Transitions all depend on the height of each floor. First, I'd have to ask if your hardwood flooring is solid or engineered. (because the subfloor would typically be different for each) If you have a cement/concrete subfloor, chances are, there won't be a huge height difference once the new tile is installed next to your hardwood (if it's engineered. Therefore, you'd be able to use traditional transitions like T-Moldings or multi-purpose reducers, you can even use a saddle (whatever look you like more). If you have solid hardwood flooring over plywood, the floor prep for tile is a little more involved. There are 2 ways to go about it; 1, install wire mesh (to act as a skeleton) and pour a self-leveling cement for your tile to be installed on to p of. This would add between 1/4" to 1/2" on top of the plywood subfloor, then your mortar and large format tile. The other way to install tile on top of a plywood subfloor would be to use cement board. You could install the cement board, and patch whatever discrepancies there are to make the subfloor nice and flat for your tile. After that, you're all set to install the tile. Always plan ahead for which transitions you'd like before the install starts. You have to make sure that the ones you want, will work out with the heights, and location of the flooring. (like where the old floor ends, and the new tile flooring begins) I hope this helped! The Couture Floor Company The Flooring Blog (You can check out our trending for 2017 blog here for ideas for your new flooring)

go with the larger. the smaller size is more suited to older homes. is this the look you want? here's the narrow one to me, this is better suited for a more traditional home. not a young persons condo. these are also the gunstock Oak in wider widths is there anyway you could change the choice from gunstock and go with something like this instead? http://www.pcwoodfloors.com/product/prefinished-engineered-oak-mohegan-916x-6/ http://www.pcwoodfloors.com/product/prefinished-engineered-oak-matcha-916-x-5-6-7-12-4mm/ or maybe this natural white oak engineered? I just think these finishes and colors would be more appealing in the coming years http://www.pcwoodfloors.com/product/prefinished-engineered-white-oak-12-x-5/ or maybe do random widths and get both of the narrow and the wider widths