How To Tile on uneven floor?
I want to put tile down in my basement. The floor is concrete and feels like a basement with some furniture on it. I’m hoping the tile will change that. I measured the level of the floor by putting my laser level on a shelf then measured the distance from the level line to the floor throughout the room. It turns out the floor is way out of spec compared to the 1/4” per 10’ guideline. But, I wouldn’t have known it was out of level without measuring.
Can I get away with slapping tile down on the uneven and unlevel floor or will variations become more noticeable once it’s finished?
Question from user holmeski at stackexchange.
Answer:
If you didn't notice the floor was out of lever before, you should not notice the floor is out of level after tile.
The process for tiling may need to be tailored to the tile that you are putting down.
Tiles that are rectified have a square edge and need to be installed with some type of Tile leveling system There are a number of different types, but they all work with the same principal of raising or lowering the edges of tiles to match each other. Needing to use a leveling system will add time and money to your project. Getting the floor ready to start tiling can be more work depending on how much the floor dips and slopes. ( How to compensate depends on how bad the floor is and we don't know that exactly.).
If you were to use a tile without rectified edges, or edges that are beveled to allow a slight variation in installed height differences, you will eliminate the need for a leveling system. ( If my basement it would be my choice.).
From your description that the floor was not noticeably sloping, I would be confident that I could install non-rectified tile on the floor with a good result. Ask questions of the professionals you intend to purchase the tile from as to what size trowel to use and what type of thinset mortar for the tiles you like before making a final decision.
Answer from user RMDman at stackexchange.
I want to put tile down in my basement. The floor is concrete and feels like a basement with some furniture on it. I’m hoping the tile will change that. I measured the level of the floor by putting my laser level on a shelf then measured the distance from the level line to the floor throughout the room. It turns out the floor is way out of spec compared to the 1/4” per 10’ guideline. But, I wouldn’t have known it was out of level without measuring.
Can I get away with slapping tile down on the uneven and unlevel floor or will variations become more noticeable once it’s finished?
Question from user holmeski at stackexchange.
Answer:
If you didn't notice the floor was out of lever before, you should not notice the floor is out of level after tile.
The process for tiling may need to be tailored to the tile that you are putting down.
Tiles that are rectified have a square edge and need to be installed with some type of Tile leveling system There are a number of different types, but they all work with the same principal of raising or lowering the edges of tiles to match each other. Needing to use a leveling system will add time and money to your project. Getting the floor ready to start tiling can be more work depending on how much the floor dips and slopes. ( How to compensate depends on how bad the floor is and we don't know that exactly.).
If you were to use a tile without rectified edges, or edges that are beveled to allow a slight variation in installed height differences, you will eliminate the need for a leveling system. ( If my basement it would be my choice.).
From your description that the floor was not noticeably sloping, I would be confident that I could install non-rectified tile on the floor with a good result. Ask questions of the professionals you intend to purchase the tile from as to what size trowel to use and what type of thinset mortar for the tiles you like before making a final decision.
Answer from user RMDman at stackexchange.