Installing Floor Tile Over Plywood

While most floor tile these days is installed onto a layer of cement board or similar backerboard it is possible to lay tile directly over plywood.

Installing floor tile over plywood.

On a plywood subfloor you need either a layer of cement backer board or an underlayment membrane like custom building products wonderboard and redgard between the subfloor. A single sheet of 3 4 inch plywood is normally not adequate as a. This will cause either the tile itself to crack and even come loose or cause the grout to crack inside the joints. A number of different types of substrate are used for tile including plywood.

Start by measuring the room. A glass of water can detect deflection that s otherwise hard to see with your eye. Plywood underlayment is a thin plywood material that is most commonly used under resilient flooring materials such as vinyl and linoleum sheets and tiles. Installing ceramic floor tile to a plywood sub floor has unique challenges beyond that of installation on a concrete floor.

Plywood or osb flakeboard can expand and contract at too high a rate to be a stable foundation for tile. This process is not complicated but you will need to be willing to do some work. Get the dimensions of the room and then multiply them to get the square. The plywood will expand and contract at a different rate as the tile causing cracks to develop in the grout lines or tiles over time.

Step 1 measure. If possible you should always use concrete board underlayments rather than plywood. Before laying tile over any plywood subfloor it s important to make sure that the floor itself is free from excessive deflection or bending which can pop grout joints and loosen or crack tiles. This guide will show you how to prepare your subfloor for a tile installation project to ensure that it s fit to support ceramic or porcelain tile.

For wall installations plywood is overkill beneath the concrete or fiber board which is designed in five eighths inch material for wall settings. No matter how firm the subfloor. To install bathroom tile over plywood you ll have to follow a series of steps. Preparing a subfloor is an essential step for installing floor tile it provides a level surface that will allow the tiles to properly stay in place.

Installing tiles over existing flooring removing existing flooring can be a tough job and it s one you may want to avoid especially if the flooring is glued down. The preferred method for tile installations is to use a sheet of underlayment. The good news is that you can lay tile flooring over many other types of flooring materials carpet excluded as long as you use an appropriate underlayment.