Laying Wood Flooring Over Tile
Ask Danny, Flooring, Repairs and Installation by Danny Lipford
We are thinking about replacing our tile floor in the kitchen with hardwood. The tile is laid in a concrete foundation and would be huge mess to rip up. Is it possible to lay hardwood over an existing tile floor? If so, what do you recommend? -Donna
Hi Donna,
Yes, you can lay a wood floor over tile if the existing floor is in good shape and without cracks. I would suggest 3/8” thick, prefinished engineered hardwood flooring. Some brands can be installed as a floating floor that locks together and is not attached to the tile, or you can glue it down. Check to be sure the existing floor is flat first and fill in any low spots with leveling compound. If the wood floor is being glued to a slick tile surface, rough the tiles up a bit by sanding them to allow the adhesive to adhere better.
Good luck with your project,
13 Comments on “Laying Wood Flooring Over Tile”
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December 11th, 2008 at 10:01 am
Hi Danny,
My Kitchen currently has a vinyl floor which is glued down pretty good….I tried getting some of it up under the dishwasher area….Tough. Can I simply sand the existing Vinyl floor, make sure it is level and apply my engineered hardwood over top? My strips of EHW are aprox. 8 inches wide. Do I use glue, nails or both?? – Patricia
December 27th, 2008 at 11:06 pm
My kitchen and dining room is exposed aggregate flooring and want to know if I can lay wood laminate flooring right on top? Also, we’ve tried using a do-it-ourselves steam cleaning on the aggregate and it just never looks clean. Any suggestionss?
January 8th, 2009 at 5:01 pm
Hi, question, I want to put down red maple hardwood floor in my bathroom. Are there any special precautions if the house tends to be very humid and the bathroom in question is in the center of the house and does not have a an outside wall. There is very good ventilation though.
Thx.
Ben Erickson Says:January 9th, 2009 at 9:38 am
Hi Becky,
Personally I wouldn’t put hardwood on a bathroom floor due to the potential of water and humidity causing long term problems with the finish and possibly causing the wood to swell. Tile or vinyl would be my choice. If you do try it, be sure you have a good bath vent fan and use it whenever you shower or bathe.
February 10th, 2009 at 3:07 pm
Danny,
For putting hardwood over tile,you suggested using a 3/8″ thickness for the wood. Is there any reason that a 5/16″ x 2 1/4″ wouldn’t work or would that be ok, too. For a 3/8″ thickness the width would be 3″. The wood will be going in the hall and entry. Also, our kitchen has the 5/16″ and it would be nice to have consistency.
Thanks,
Jim
Thanks.
Jim
Ben Erickson Says:February 11th, 2009 at 8:35 am
Jim,
5/16″ x 3″ engineered flooring should work fine.
February 23rd, 2009 at 5:29 pm
Can I lay 6 wideplank pine board over 12 x 12 ceramic tiles- Existing tiles are in good conditon, level and the area is about 800 sq ft – I do not want to rip them and height or transitions are not an issue- Would you lay a sub floor first or nail into grout lines?
February 23rd, 2009 at 5:31 pm
Sorry – I didnt specify- above 6″ wide pine or wideplank hardwood
March 19th, 2009 at 9:45 pm
have outdoor tile deck (slippery when wet)that is being enlarged. Want to put 1/2 marine plywood on top of the tile, and then seal with epoxy type finish w/sand coat. Question: If i rough up the tile surface can i glue the plywood down…and will it withstand Palm Springs temperatures?
July 25th, 2009 at 1:02 pm
Danny,
I have tile in all my bedrooms in the new house I bought, in know laying a hardwood floor over it will heighten the floor considerably what about a vinyl that looks like would would that be difficult or raise the floor alot?
Thanks Melanie
October 8th, 2009 at 6:10 pm
Our house was built in 1969-70 with tile floors glued to the foundation. Carpet was added later. When the carpet was removed recently some of the tiles cracked when the nails and wood that held the carpet down were pulled up. We have noticed that some of the tile squares are no longer glued down in various places but a majority of the tiles are secure. We plan to install floating hardwood floors through out the house and do not plan to take up the existing tile floor. What do we need to do to prepare the tile floor for the wood flooring?
Ben Erickson Says:October 9th, 2009 at 7:49 am
Hi Dixie,
Your existing floor needs to be smooth and well attached, with no low or high spots. Start by removing any tiles that are loose and either glue them back down using thin-set or fill the void with floor patch. For more on preparing your existing floor or subfloor for a new one, check out our video on How to Level a Subfloor.
October 27th, 2009 at 10:21 am
DANNY , WE LIVE IN A OLDER MODEL DOUBLE WIDE AND THE DINNING ROOM HAS 4X4 PLASTIC TILES ON FLOOR. CAN WE PUT THOSE HARDWARE BOARDS THAT YOU BUY I BOXES OVER THAT AND WOULD IT BE A HARD JOB. THANK YOU BONNIE