Tile Floor Substrates

There are various types of tile underlayment but all serve to smooth out uneven.

Tile floor substrates. Vinyl tiles are often used on floors. Preparation for installing floor tile depends on the type of subfloor in the room you are tiling. When you remove the floor covering you will see more flooring underneath possibly underlayment definitely subfloor. And the underlayment a final layer that lies just beneath the surface flooring and which is selected to match the needs of the flooring material.

It is important to distinguish the components of a flooring system in order to understand the best installation practices for ceramic tile. Except for slab floors any flooring system consists of three primary components. A substrate has to be. This system also allows differential expansion and contraction between the tile and the substrate and can be used on a wide range of substrates which have traditionally been viewed as problematic.

A tile floor consists of three individual layers. The joists or structural support component. Including plywood osb post tension concrete slabs green concrete radiant heated floors and gypsum underlayments. The difficulty is that tile can be installed over a number of substrates and each requires specific preparations to ensure a long lasting tile floor.

A subfloor is the bottom most structural level of your floor. The subfloor which is usually a layer of osb oriented strand board or plywood. Chipboard cushioned vinyl flooring particle boards of any type oriented strand board osb interior grade plywood tongue and groove planking and hardwood floors are unsuitable substrates for direct installation of ceramic tile. To determine the requirements for a tile subfloor i partnered with jim and rich from diamond tile located here in maryland.

Vinyl sheeting is made of similar material but is furnished in large rolls and cut during installation to fit the shape of the room. Vinyl composition tile vct is comprised of flat typically square synthetic tiles that get glued down directly to the substrate. The tile shop carries the materials needed to lay the groundwork for your project. The subfloor the underlayment and the surface tile you walk on.

Tile is hard and will break or dislodge if the surface bends under the load and many wood surfaces can expand or contract negatively impacting their ability to stay level and support the weight. For more information download our pdf about types of subfloors. What all tiles share is the need for a good base or substrate the material to which the tile is fastened with mortar or mastic cement.