Including a new tile flooring to a house completely revamps the appearance of the region, but placing new tile involves a great deal of preparation to ensure a secure and long-lasting setup. The trick to tile flooring installations is proper subfloor cleaning; any contaminants onto the subfloor can ruin the way the adhesive bonds, leaving your tile flooring bumpy and dangerous. Tile can’t be installed over carpet, and all adhesive from the carpet must be eliminated before you can start tiling.
Removing Carpet Pad
Oftentimes, carpet pad is held in place with staples, which should all be pulled out of the subfloor using pliers. However, sometimes the padding will be held in place by glue. In normal rug installments, the tack strips that hold the carpet in place will also be held by glue. Even when you remove all of the carpet padding along with the tack strips — generally with a pry bar and hammer used to force all of the materials off — the remaining adhesive will remain, and this must be eliminated before you can add tile.
Adhesive Solvents
The best way to remove old carpets glue from the subfloor is using an adhesive solvent. Many products are available from home improvement retailers; in case you opt to go with a brand-name solution, read and follow all instructions concerning application. Check to make sure it is safe to use on your type of subfloor (i.e., concrete, wood). If you’re seeking a similar product with no reading and scanning a lot of different labels, try mineral spirits or acetone, which are available from such retailers too. These all-purpose solvents work to loosen the glue.
Implementing and Scraping
Apply your chosen solvent following the product’s instructions. Most can be applied with a paintbrush or rag. Make sure you saturate the entire region that is coated with glue; the solvent will loosen the glue from the surface. Once the solvent has time to work (generally 5 to 10 minutes), scratch the loosened glue using a putty knife, razor scraper, or oscillating tool using a rigid scraper blade attachment. You may want to replicate applications and scrapings in regions with quite thick layers of adhesive; just keep working till you have eliminated all of the adhesive.
Other Planning
Bear in mind any contaminants onto the subfloor’s surface can ruin the tile installation, which means you have to thoroughly clean the floor of dirt, dust, wax, oil and dirt in addition to adhesive. Mineral spirits may also remove grease and wax buildup, therefore it may help you to wash the entire flooring from the solvent. Rinse the surface thoroughly with clean water at least twice before beginning to tile, because the chemicals in any residual mineral spirits can halt the tile adhesive from bonding completely.