Plywood For Bathroom Floor Tiling

We have our large kitchen and hallway that was originally covered by 12 x 12 ceramic tiles on top of 3 8th inch plywood.

Plywood for bathroom floor tiling.

That usually means the underlayment and the subfloor also get wet. The safest most prudent course is to install tile on top of a cement backerboard such as durock wonderboard or hardiebacker. In this video we show you everything you need to know how to level a floor into a perfect flat and level floor in your bathroom using self leveling floor com. It supports your decorative floor finish whether it s carpet hardwood vinyl laminate or tile.

Plywood substrate alternatives. A subfloor is the bottom most structural level of your floor. Residential floors are typically sized for a live load of 40 psf and a dead load or 10 psf. For the best results when tiling onto plywood floors follow these instructions.

If you do not waterproof the subfloor moisture can make its way under the subfloor and cause mold growth or other damage. Often the subfloor consists of plywood that is nailed or screwed to the construction floor. If the floor is stiff enough to tile directly on the vinyl sand or strip the floor and screw the vinyl down before tiling. Cement backerboard is made for tiling.

Using the right type plywood ensures a long lasting floor. Preparation for installing floor tile depends on the type of subfloor in the room you are tiling. The floor tiles became loose cracked and ugly looking over about 2 decades of use. The bathroom floor gets wet.

Thin set was used instead of glue or adhesive. Deflection of l 360 for ceramic tile and l 720 for natural stone tiles. Tile floors are likely to weigh 15 to 20. Under british standards bs 5385 part 1 plywood has now been excluded as a suitable substrate material for the direct fixing of wall tiles therefore when tiling on to walls a tile backer board is required however tiling onto plywood floors is still acceptable under british standards.

The tile council of america tca recommends a max. Tile floors are especially heavy with layers of cement board mortar tile or stone and grout. Backerboard does not shrink or expand when it comes into contact with water mortar and grout both contain water. Now the entire flooring of ceramic tiles needs to be torn out and replaced.

For more information download our pdf about types of subfloors. The floor must also handle the weight of the tub shower tiles and other fixtures.