How can I prepare a mosaic tile floor so we can put down LVP?

Keaton Taylor

3 years ago

This house has mosaic tile in a few rooms in the basement. It's mostly flat but is without a doubt an uneven surface.

What is the least costly way to make it possible to put down some solid-core LVP (Lifeproof, etc) here?

- Could a 2mm underlayment account for some of this mess?

- Should I hire someone to come do a self-leveling concrete over it?

- Should I break it all up carefully and then resurface? (please no)

Halp!

Featured Answer

SJ McCarthy

3 years ago

Do nothing...and install the LVP as-is. The terrazzo you have is a HIGH VALUE floor. I mean SUPER expensive to duplicate.

I would 'give up' on the warranty of an LVP floor and just toss it in. To do anything to this floor will ruin it for future generations. To level it you would have to grind, grind, grind, grind to get SLC to grab. Once you do that, you have lost the value of the item. At that point, you might as well spend the $3/sf to jack this out. It will be worthless.

The TILE is see in the background can be left in place, you can do a bit of grinding and then fill the grout lines with SLC. You need to do some scarification of the tile to get the SLC to GRAB the tile. So long as it grabs you can fill the grout lines and flatten it to the best of your ability. I would EXPECT to use T-moldings where the two floors meet. The only way to avoid this would be to remove it all.

In essence you are covering the HIGH VALUE products with a lower-value product. I get it. The current floors are not very attractive (compared to today's trends). But realize the value of the terrazzo. If you were to replicate the floor today (with modernized product) you would be looking at $25-$30/sf. Compare that to the $4/sf product you are going to cover it with. Right. LVP is a downgrade compared to terrazzo. No way around it.

I would leave the terrazzo in tact and untouched. I would give up on any warranty and install the LVP over top.

The tile can be dealt with as you wish. But remember to put in t-moldings between the LVP sitting over the terrazzo and the LVP sitting over the tile.

NO underlayment. Most LVP's do NOT allow underlayment. Especially if they have attached underpad. This is LVP not laminate. If you want to get a cork underlay on these floors to help even out the surface then work with $4/sf laminate. That will buy you a TOP OF THE LINE European laminate. You can then use 6mm cork to correct some of the unevenness. But LVP will not allow that type of underpad.

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Comments (11)

Keaton Taylor
Original Author
3 years ago
Thanks @SJ McCarthy

So I don't care as much about the tile. The mosaic stuff here looks like someone bought a bunch of broken tile and grouted it into the floor. I've had my realtor and some others inspect the mosiac and apparently it's done fairly poorly - it's not level at all and has a couple of places where it's raised enough to catch a kids foot.

The other tile, I can't tell that it's actually Terrazzo or if it's just off the shelf tile from somewhere local, my realtor was pretty sure that it was from a local big box retailer.
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SJ McCarthy
3 years ago
The tile is the ALL white stuff. The terrazzo is the coloured bits.

Go ahead and remove all the tiles and the terrazzo and start over. I know you don't want to do it, but the terrazzo (if poorly done) may not be 'well adhered to the subfloor' (which is a requirement for the vinyl). If it is not fixed well enough to GRIND it so that you can ADD SLC then you might as well get rid of it. Which means you have to remove the tile to get things level.
User
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
Restore the fabulous and ultra chic expensive terrazzo. That’s $100 foot that you want to cover up with $3 cheap plastic. Completely wrong headed idea.
Keaton Taylor
Original Author
3 years ago
Yeah I have 4 kids so my concern is their safety when wrestling. I have zero interest in what is chic when it is poorly installed and poses a risk to my kids ¯_(ツ)_/¯
kempek01
3 years ago
If you lay LVP over the terrazzo, your kids will face the same amount of injury from their wrestling as without it (in other words, there isn't that much padding that will protect them!).

So since the terrazzo is in poor shape, have it all removed.

Just for kicks and giggles though, you might have the terrazzo inspected by someone who is not a realtor or a LVP salesman.

If this was on the main floor instead of the basement, I would tell you to buy a rug for your kids to wrestle on. (LOL)
trinan78
3 years ago
I was going to suggest the same. If you aren’t overly concerned about aesthetics, maybe just get carpet installed instead? That would be safer for your little wrestlers anyway and can make a basement feel a bit more cozy.
MaryBocaTX
3 years ago
Okay - so I have a question for one of the PROs or someone much more educated in this area than I. Would it be possible for the OP to have someone float some type of clear epoxy (or something?) over the entire floor to ”level” the areas that are uneven and dangerous, thereby creating a clear smooth surface that would show the BEAUTIFUL terrazzo...essentially encasing it? Sorry if this seems like a ridiculous idea - but, oh...the terrazzo...

Failing that, I vote for (inexpensive) carpet. We raised three boys, and I get it. Shampoo the carpet occasionally, and replace if needed. Maybe by then there will be a way to restore the terrazzo...oh, the terrazzo...:)
Keaton Taylor
Original Author
3 years ago
Okay so, update - I’ve had four people look at this floor and I’ve been suspicious from jump because it is NOT terrazzo. Someone literally laid chunks of broken tile in concrete. I know it kind of looks like terrazzo but it’s genuinely not.
kempek01
3 years ago
Now that we've established that the floor isn't a high value floor, and you want to change it economically, we need to know how unlevel the floor is. Underlayment is just going to keep the unevenness. Self leveling concrete might work, but the prep for that could be pretty tough. And removal is a pain.

So what about a big rug? The rug will take care of the unevenness, and won't be as intrusive in your lives. Unless you do a wall-to-wall carpet, I would just do a solid (or near solid) color.

How can I prepare a mosaic tile floor so we can put down LVP?

SJ McCarthy

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Keaton Taylor
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How can I prepare a mosaic tile floor so we can put down LVP?

SJ McCarthy

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Keaton TaylorOriginal Author

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