How To Remove Ceramic Tiles Floor?

If you have a ceramic tile floor in your home, you may be thinking about replacing it with hardwood flooring or another type of floor covering. In most cases, you’ll need to remove the old tiles first. You can do it yourself, but it’s a messy and time-consuming process. If you’re a DIYer, though, there are things you can do to make the task easier. 

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How To Remove Tile Adhered with Mastic?

If your tile adheres to the subfloor with mastic, you can use a chisel and hammer to break the bond between the wall and the tiles. Start by finding a good spot to work in, like a crack or area with deteriorating grout. 

Then, take your chisel and use it to cut away the edges of the tile. Doing this makes it easier to pry the tiles out of the concrete without chipping the underlying grout. If you’re having trouble getting the chisel under the tile, you can put the back of your hammer on it and tap it hard to loosen it from the adhesive. 

How To Remove Tile Bedded in Mortar?

The mortar between the tile and the concrete will come loose easily, but you may have to break it up in pieces. This can be done with a cold chisel or prybar, but a hammer will help you make quick work of it. 

What to Do When the Tiles Aren’t Dislodged From the Floor?

If you don’t have a lot of success breaking up the tile, try scraping it. A floor scraper is a handy tool for this job, and many are designed to be used face up or face down, so you can alternate using the hammer and the scraper as you work across the room. 

You can also try soaking the tile in boiling water, which will soften the glue that holds the tiles together. Once the glue has loosened, you can use your floor scraper to pull the tiles up. 

How To Remove Ceramic Tile from a Concrete Subfloor? 

If your tiles were adhered to the concrete subfloor by a mixture of cement backer board and tar paper, you’ll have an easier time with this project than if they were attached with mastic. However, it will still require a lot of work to tear up the tile and rip out the backer board. 

Before you begin the removal process, be sure to wear safety goggles and gloves so that any shards don’t fly around and damage the room. You’ll also need a broom, shop vac, and trash bin to pick up any debris you create. 

How to Clean Up After Removing Tile?

Once you’ve finished removing the tiles, you need to move any leftover pieces to the trash. A shop vac is an especially good tool for this task, as it’ll clear out a lot of dirt and debris, but a broom or dustpan will also do the trick. 

After you’ve removed all of the tiles, you’ll need to clean up any leftover debris and dust. A broom or dustpan will be useful for this, as it can pick up large particles of dirt and dust. You’ll also want to cover the work area with plastic sheeting so that the dust won’t blow out into the room