[e90ca]

I'm planning to replace my current tile in my kitchen and dining room area with some hardwood. I've gotten a few estimates and they have said to just install the hardwood on top of the tile flooring which I currently have. The contractors have said it will be very hard to get the tile off of the floor. Underneath the tile is concrete.

Does anyone know if its ok to just install the hardwood on top of the existing tile flooring? The tile is also part of my my hallway area and it leads to a bathroom. If I install the hardwood on top of the tile, where it meets the bathroom, won't the bathroom be slight lower level? Will this look weird?

Any help or suggestion would be greatly appreciated!!

[Sara]

BAD idea..IMO. We have real hardwood floors in our kitchen and we have dogs. So where their water bowls are, even with placemats underneath the floor is warped because of the water... if you spill anything and dont notice it, your floor will warp.

[brokemywallet]

the contractor seems correct, b/c it will be a lot of extra work to bring up the existing tile. there's crap underneath the tile to hold it in place....it's very uneven & they would have to sand it flat so there are no rough/high spots on the floor. a lot of extra work.

sometimes they are honest & trying to save you some money, but I think they are right. as for the bathroom being uneven, i think they can rig some thin plywood underneath to get the bathroom to be even......but then again you want wood floors in the bathroom?

[MadDog]

Originally Posted by e90ca

I'm planning to replace my current tile in my kitchen and dining room area with some hardwood. I've gotten a few estimates and they have said to just install the hardwood on top of the tile flooring which I currently have. The contractors have said it will be very hard to get the tile off of the floor. Underneath the tile is concrete.

Does anyone know if its ok to just install the hardwood on top of the existing tile flooring? The tile is also part of my my hallway area and it leads to a bathroom. If I install the hardwood on top of the tile, where it meets the bathroom, won't the bathroom be slight lower level? Will this look weird?

Any help or suggestion would be greatly appreciated!!

Who did you get estimates from ??

We had hardwood floors installed by Blueline Floors, Blueline website and they did a great job.

[TSM330i]

I've installed quite a few hardwood floors in my house (about 900 square feet worth) and over 450 square feet on tile.

You're going to be putting down a type of hardwood flooring that isn't nailed, it's glued or snap together (you could do this yourself). The entire floor is essentially going to be a floating floor on top of the tile. It would be very expensive to rip up the tile floor and then you'll need to smooth it out and make sure it's even before you can put down the same type of floating hardwood since it's on concrete.

There have been quite a few people who are ripping up their hardwood floors in the kitchen because of water issues. You may want to look into bamboo if it's available. It's more durable for the kitchen. I have tile in my kitchen. If you opt to go with tile again, you'll have to rip up on the old floor anyway.

[InS0mNiAc]

Hah, I have personal experience with just this type of issue.

My family has (in the past year) had 2 sets of hardwood floors put in. The first set was done by a discount flooring place that made the same claim your place made. It's cheaper to install on top of the existing floor and we wont have any problems......well that was bullshit!

In the end the original floor creaked, moved, and needed to be replaced because it was installed poorly and on top of the original floor tiles. The second company that came in was extremely professional and took the time to not only explain but show us why we needed to rip up the entire floor and reinstall properly. They removed all the old tile (which only took them an hour) and all materials until there was just cement, they then poured a floor leveling liquid product onto the floor and let it run where ever it wanted to ensure the floor was then level. The liquid took about a day to dry.

The next day they installed some type of fabric between the wood and cement and then installed the wood flooring on top of that. The difference between the two installs is night and day. The floor around my house no longer creaks, moans, or moves around when shifting your weight.

My opinion...there's only a few material things in life that you don't half ass....your car, your bed, and the floor you're standing on

[solefald]

Me and a friend of mine just replaced carpet in his entire condo with laminate.
Super easy to do. Looks like real wood, easily snaps together, just had to make sure we cut it as close to the wall as possible, no more than a 1/4" gap. Took us 2 days to do 2 bedroom condo including closets, stairs and so on. We also put a special mat under the laminate.


If your old tile is OK, not cracked or loose anywhere, than you can lay it over the tile. If you are feeling adventurous, take the tile off yourself.

But yes, I agree with Sara. Real hardwood is a bad idea in a kitchen. Laminate would do a better job.

[ae8t6ix]

As an architect I advise against it, for the aforementioned reasons, unleveled floor surface, water damage and not just warping but water will get trapped between the tile and wood floor creating mold which is something much worse. Do it right IMH. A feel piece of advice you can break the tile yourself, then buy a scraper and scrap as much of the floor glue off then go to you local home depot and buy some Pergo and your done.

In regards to hardwood floors in the kitchen, warping, it all comes down to if the wood was finished correctly and waterproofed properly. Otherwise they should be fine. Good luck.

[samwoo2go]

break the tile...

[Neurorad]

The hardwood floor in my kit is very beat up, with water damage. Will replace with tile when the kit is remodeled.

Laminate/engineered wood floor thinner than hardwood, may not be a big height issue (compared with real hardwood).

We're putting laminate in our basement currently (workshop, playroom); replacing carpet (after a flood). In the process of choosing laminate; samples arrived yesterday in the mail. Also putting down some tile in a basement hall, and re-doing the basement bath.

Thank$, broken water heater!

[txusa03]

any contractor that tells you to place hardwood flooring on top of existing tile is a big hint for you to stay away from that contractor. That is not the best way to lay hardwood floor and it is the easy lazy way of doing wood floor.

Tile surfaces are uneven (for example grout line and no tile surfaces are even). If you want it done right, take off the old tile, buy the self leveling liquid to level out any imperfection in the concrete subfloor. No I am not a contractor or floor expert but many years of watching this old house makes me sounds like experts

So basically I just repeated what post #6 and #8 above mentioned.

[Maestro]

I think everyone said it, but Hardwood need to be nailed down no and if or buts about it so how do you nail into tile, that is your first clue this guy has not clue.

Now if you are saying Laminates those can float if done right and can be done over most surfaces. However, the more uneven the surface the higher the risk of running into problems later and having to replace it.

Next I know some people like Hardwoods in kitchens since it does look nice, I personally think it is a bad idea due to being near water and spills, and it is usually the highest traffic area in the house and they really get beat up. Also, I like my kitchen floor really clean and wash them with strong cleaners which is really bad for hardwoods.

However, again if your talking laminates, this is not much of an issue they tend to hold up better to wear and tear and as long as water does not sit on them or under it you will be okay. I put in a Basement bar and game room and put down laminates and it did fine on a concrete floor and drinks being spilled on it all the time.

So it really comes down to if you thinking real hardwood or laminate/engineered flooring.

Lastly, I rip out all old flooring and lay new, this way you do not have to worry about the height differences.

[e90ca]

Thanks for all the replies everyone. These really help with my plans. The reason for me to replace my existing tile is because i have a few areas where the previous owner of my house had some long cracks. And now that i'm planning to sell my home, I think it'd be better if I replaced it.

I'm now thinking to have tile in the kitchen instead of hardwood.

Is tile more expensive or cheaper than getting hardwood?

[Couch]

Have the job done right the first time. Do not place wood floor over the tile.

Rip up the tile, get the plaster under the tile scraped down to the bare concrete so it can be properly floated. Then install the wood floors.

Contrary to what has been said, just because you may miss some spilled liquid will not warp the floor. If you manage to spill that much fluid and not notice it, then you really need some glasses. A properly stained/sealed and installed wood floor will not warp under simple spills. Excessive water will of course.

Tile should be less expensive. Of course it depends on what type of tile you'll be using so it could easily be just as expensive. But same rules apply. Remove existing tile, scrape to bare concrete, float, and install. Especially since the current tiles have cracks and so forth.

And I would avoid laminate flooring. More than likely it will not add any value, and in some cases reduce your home value. People don't want crappy flooring.

[Neurorad]

Originally Posted by Couch

And I would avoid laminate flooring. More than likely it will not add any value, and in some cases reduce your home value. People don't want crappy flooring.

+1

Good for a playroom and workshop, not the best for LR etc.

Pay a visit to Home Depot Expo. Use the salesman's free advice. Price out hardwood & tile.

[Kiemyster]

real hardwood floors = fail
Laminate wood floors = win.

nuff said.

[ae8t6ix]

Pricing is all relative to the product line, if you buy italian porcelein tile then expect to pay a bit more than laminate flooring. Same with wood flooring, say you want bamboo hardwood flooring then ceramic tile will be cheaper. All in all they're the same.

Check out this site for tiles. We use them alot at my firm and the they allow you to place the color tile you select in a photo to find the look your going for.

www.daltile.com

[e90ca]

Hi all,

thanks a lot for your replies and suggestions. We decided to just replace our cracked tile with some Avanti cherry laminate instead. We are going to put our condo up for sale on the market, and since our agents has stated replacing the floors won't add any value to the home selling price, we just went with the cheapest. Afterall, its' still gonna look better than the cracked tile, and it may make it more inviting and appealing to the buyer.

[hotsand5]

I did the family room, hallway and all bedrooms with hardwood. My installer said not a good idea to place wood on top of tile. I am very happy with the results.

My kitchen and living room are connected, and share a pergo floor which is extreamly durable. I'll try to find a picture of it. Spend some extra $, and be happy with your floor for a long time!

[darkcloud]

Originally Posted by samwoo2go

break the tile...

Dito. Required tool = Sledge Hammer.

Now are you saying the tile floor was laid directly on top of a concrete slab? Or a concrete sub-floor was laid on top of a plywood floor?

If its just a concrete sub-floor then start swinging that sledge hammer. I just busted out a bathroom tile floor. It took about 1 hour to break out and clear the tile, thinset, and cement sub-floor. Then had a new 1/4'' plywood board laid down to have a fresh sturdy surface and now bigger, nicer tile or in your case hardwood can go back in.

If on top of the concrete slab then yeah, that will be a huge bitch. I'd at least break the tile out and then bring in a company. There is just no sense in paying someone $30-40 an hour to do the easy(well hard due to the heavy work, but not much brain power is needed) part of the job.

Good luck. IMO stay with tile in your kitchen and bathrooms if those are rooms you're considering replacing.

[gadget]

Originally Posted by hotsand5

I did the family room, hallway and all bedrooms with hardwood. My installer said not a good idea to place wood on top of tile. I am very happy with the results.

My kitchen and living room are connected, and share a pergo floor which is extreamly durable. I'll try to find a picture of it. Spend some extra $, and be happy with your floor for a long time!

Hey, Looks like my Grandma's house, actually, now that I think about it hers is a little more modern. Where do you park the stagecoach??? j/k

Answer is probably no I would suggest you not to go for it.It will be a very bad idea to remove your floor tiles and putting hardwood flooring on it.If you need some contractor help then you can take online help from a site it's call http://homeimprovementcontractors911.com/ hope It'll help...