floor covering over tyles

woolyhat

Help Thefloor tyles in my bathroom have cracked and lifted the grouting have got very dry . I would say all the tyles are loose. I want to know can I put floor covering over the tyles as if they are taken up there would be a big job to clean the grouting etc. The tyles have onely been put down about 3 years ago.
What is a realy good floor covering for a bathroom please? Thanks

slimjimmc

I'm not sure what you mean by grout being very dry, it's meant to be dry and reasonably hard.

Is your bathroom upstairs and with a wooden floor underneath the tiles? It sounds like a non-flexible adhesive was used to lay the tiles or the floor bounces too much when walking on it. Wooden floors also expand/shrink with temperature and moisture and all this movement can loosen tiles stuck with an adhesive which is more suited to concrete floors.

Have you considered laying vinyl floor covering? It's cheap, good looking and water resistant (very practical for a bathroom). You could also go for linoleum which is basically similar to vinyl but is a natural product. You could lay either over the existing tiles but I suggest you put down a thin underlay (such as 3mm foam) to help protect the covering from sharp edges or ridges in the tiles.

Another option are cork tiles but they need to be glued down so that might not be suitable since your tiles are loose.

woolyhat

Hi slimjimmc Thank you for reply. The grout is so dry it is like very brittle chalk. There is a wooden floor under the tiles. I would like to put vinyl instead of the tiles, the kind that is not cold to walk on. Is there a name for that particular kind? Also would it be ok to put the underlay and vinyl over the tiles? I'm afaid I don't have much of a idea about these things.
Thanks again woolyhat

Joey the lips

You can put vinyl or simular down but if you put it over the tiles it will raise the hight of the door and may give you more trouble. If it were me i would take up the tiles(If they have come up) and scrape as much of the surface as i can. If its smooth enough i would then lay vinyl down. If its not i would consider laying a tin sheet of ply then laying the vinyl on this.

woolyhat

Hi Joey the lips Thank you for reply. I suppose it would be no great deal to take up the tiles they are all lifting anyway.
I have another problem with another floor which is also tiled in my kitchen, all along the area where there are fitted presses the grouve is not filled with grout so alot of crumbs and food particles fall into these and I never feel my floor is clean,the grouting is not well done between alot of the tiles here.Again could I cover the tiles these are stuck well and on a cement floor. I.m afraid the man who done the work was not very well able to do the job but a friend who meant well. Thanks again

John Mason

would it not just be easier and cheaper to re-grout the tiles in the kitchen

Carlow52

Bathroom: take up tiles and go with a flexible covering.

kitchen: if the gap at presses/ kickboard is the main problem then get a tube of colored silicone to match and fill it in: eg floor design in Ballyfermot care a range of good quality ones, woodies et al carry expensive but poor quality ones