Can You Lay Tile Over Tile – If you’re sick of looking at old, ceramic tile but don’t have the time (or budget) to demolish your old flooring, there are actually multiple types of flooring that you can install directly over your ugly old tile. Today I’m sharing different types of flooring you can put on top of tile- no demo needed!….
In an ideal world, I would have replaced all the nasty $$ flooring above my previous fixtures, before moving a single box of my possessions in.
Can You Lay Tile Over Tile
Unfortunately, at the time, I was basically broke and had no spare change to do such a thing.
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You see…eight years ago, floating floor systems such as LVT or LVP had not yet developed into what they are today- with the obvious use for installation over pre-existing subfloors. In fact, what I knew to be my only option at the time involved the tedious and messy task of demolishing my existing floors and then paying a subcontractor a hefty premium to install new flooring.
And so…I lived with a floor that I absolutely hated for about four years…that is…until I encountered the Click and Lock flooring system that the manufacturer’s instructions claimed I was messing with in my kitchen. Can put ceramic tiles.
Since that discovery, I’ve used two other types of flooring in a similar way throughout my 1980’s Rancher, so I thought I’d use this post to show you the different options that exist for this unconventional type of application.
For your shopping convenience, this post contains affiliate links. As a Rewards Style and Amazon affiliate, I will earn commissions on sales at no additional cost to you.
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LVT was my first foray into the world of floating flooring. As you can see in the photo above, my husband and I used luxury vinyl tiles to cover the dated ceramic tiles in my kitchen (you can read my LVT install tutorial here), and it made a world of difference.
The beautiful thing about LVT is that it is great for areas exposed to water because the product is waterproof (unlike traditional hardwood). I also found the product to be very low maintenance given the absence of grout and the inevitable dingy grout line problem presented with traditional tile.
The installation of this product is relatively beginner friendly and we were able to completely change the look of our kitchen in a weekend.
Not all luxury vinyl tile is suitable for installation over existing tiles, so you need to ensure that it is clearly marked as “suitable for installation over existing tile subfloor” in the manufacturer’s instructions.
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If the LVT flooring is not thick enough, you risk the telegraph effect where the ceramic tile grout lines begin to surface through the new flooring for a very beautiful look.
Luxury vinyl tile and luxury vinyl plank are essentially the same product. They are both waterproof and do not require grout or sealing, although luxury vinyl planks come in longer pieces and are more ideal for a wood-like effect.
While you might think I had tiles installed in my bathroom, this particular type of click and lock flooring was actually a plank….
As with LVT, you need to make sure that the luxury vinyl plank product you go with has thick enough padding attached to avoid the risk of telegraphing. From a distance, you’d never guess that the flooring in my bathroom (you can read more about my bathroom here) wasn’t real tile.
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Two years ago, my mind was completely blown when Shaw Floors approached me wanting to collaborate on a new type of engineered hardwood that could be installed over tile and hardwood subfloors similar to LVT or LVP.
I decided to install engineered hardwood planks in my foyer (which had super ugly ceramic tiles) and in my dining room, living room, and bedroom (which had solid hardwood that looked like it came straight out).
What’s even better about floating wooden planks is that they are both waterproof and scratch resistant. What I found more beneficial about this product compared to LVT and LVP is that when we went to sell our house this year, we were legal to brag in the MLS description that the house had brand new hardwood flooring.
While floating hardwood planks can be a little more expensive than luxury vinyl products, if you have resale value in mind, this is definitely something you want to consider.
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Given the advanced nature of this particular product, this may be the only hardwood option on the market that can be installed over a tile subfloor. At least, this is the only product I’ve seen of its kind.
While I have never personally used laminate flooring with an attached pad, it is comparable to most vinyl products in that it is DIY friendly and similar in appearance.
I would say that the biggest difference between vinyl and laminate (at least in terms of function) is that vinyl is completely synthetic and laminate is not.
Although laminate contains wood byproducts, it is not the best choice for rooms exposed to water, such as bathrooms or kitchens.
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In terms of looks, however, if you’re going for a hardwood floor vibe, the aesthetics of laminate may be a bit more convincing.
As with any product, you need to ensure that the manufacturer classifies the product as suitable for installation on tile. Not all laminates are created equal!
Having lived with LVT, LVP and floating hardwood planks for years, I can personally attest that these are all very viable options and we have never had any problems with telegraphing.
With so many different flooring options to choose from (technology is so amazing) I hope you now see that there really is no excuse for living with an ugly tile floor!
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For your convenience, I have selected flooring that is acceptable for installation over tile…
If you want to read more posts about flooring that you can install over existing tile, click the link below…
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It’s like having your own interior designer, life coach (and drink buddy) for free. AF- living wonderfully on a budget. Today I’m sharing how we installed a new vinyl plank floor on top of our existing ceramic tile flooring with just a few simple steps to make sure it’s level. We used Golden Select vinyl planks in Smoky Barrel.
Floating Tile Flooring
When things changed suddenly and drastically this spring with the pandemic and our spring break vacation being canceled, we decided to hunker down and tackle some home projects. We hadn’t decided whether to replace all the tile in our basement because it seemed like a huge job since the ceramic tile was laid directly on the concrete subfloor. But we also knew we really wanted to change and refresh the look of the basement as well as create a more consistent flooring choice throughout the space. The old tile was unlevel, difficult to clean, hard on the feet and cold in winter. It wasn’t exactly our style or color choice either.
In January I repainted all the walls white and we added a wallpaper feature wall. I also bought some area rugs to cover the sturdy tile and warm up the space, which certainly worked well as an interim measure.
But once we decided to give the family room a makeover, updating the ceiling, flooring and trim, the project kind of snowballed into the basement common areas and hallways.
In fact, before everything blew up epidemically, we headed to Costco and bought enough boxes of Golden Select vinyl plank flooring (in smoky barrels) to tackle the flooring of the entire basement except for the three bedrooms in which the carpet is in reasonably good condition (and which in the winter keeps things warm). We could have ordered the Golden Select online from Costco as well, but were impatient to get started!
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Before we started, we removed the wall baseboards and made sure to vacuum and clean our floors thoroughly.
I purchased this premium floor patch compound at my local hardware store and mixed it according to the package directions. Because our tile had a faux-slate type texture, we wanted to layer the vinyl before installing it on top.
I used a wide putty knife to apply the compound to the grout joints and any areas that were low, making sure to spread it evenly and scrape off any excess product.
Since we had already installed the vinyl plank in the family room, we lined up the floor board with the door so the line would continue. To determine how wide our first piece should be we laid it out first, going back from the family room door.
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You can see below, where the door is open
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