What's the expert (aka "easy") way of removing floor tiles which have
been stuck down with glue?

The last time I did this particular job (some years ago) I ended up
having to use a paint stripper heat gun combined with a paint
stripping scraper to remove the glue, after ripping the tiles off as
far as possible, working on my hands and knees for hours on end.
However that was a wooden floor so maybe the glue bonded differently.
A horrible job!

PoP

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"PoP" wrote in message
...
What's the expert (aka "easy") way of removing floor tiles which have
been stuck down with glue?

The last time I did this particular job (some years ago) I ended up
having to use a paint stripper heat gun combined with a paint
stripping scraper to remove the glue, after ripping the tiles off as
far as possible, working on my hands and knees for hours on end.

That sound about right.

However that was a wooden floor so maybe the glue bonded differently.
A horrible job!

What kind of floor are the tiles in question adhering to?

Mary

PoP

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"Mary Fisher" wrote in message
et...

"PoP" wrote in message
...
What's the expert (aka "easy") way of removing floor tiles which have
been stuck down with glue?

The last time I did this particular job (some years ago) I ended up
having to use a paint stripper heat gun combined with a paint
stripping scraper to remove the glue, after ripping the tiles off as
far as possible, working on my hands and knees for hours on end.

That sound about right.

However that was a wooden floor so maybe the glue bonded differently.
A horrible job!

What kind of floor are the tiles in question adhering to?

Mary

PoP

Sending email to my published email address isn't
guaranteed to reach me.



More to the point what kind of floor tiles?

G

On Wed, 11 Feb 2004 22:25:17 -0000, "Wellard"
wrote:

What kind of floor are the tiles in question adhering to?

I believe it's suspended concrete - like found on so many new houses.

More to the point what kind of floor tiles?

Regular 12in square vinyl jobbies - this is a kitchen floor where the
tiles are to be replaced with cushioned flooring.

Part of me is thinking along the lines of leaving the tiles in place
and putting the cushion flooring on top. However cushion flooring
tends to be quite thick so I'm not sure if that would necessitate
trimming something off the bottom of the kitchen door.

Just considering all the angles at the moment - I don't want to start
ripping the tiles up and then wish I'd left them alone!

PoP

Sending email to my published email address isn't
guaranteed to reach me.

PoP wrote

On Wed, 11 Feb 2004 22:25:17 -0000, "Wellard"
wrote:

What kind of floor are the tiles in question adhering to?

I believe it's suspended concrete - like found on so many new houses.

More to the point what kind of floor tiles?

Regular 12in square vinyl jobbies - this is a kitchen floor where the
tiles are to be replaced with cushioned flooring.

Part of me is thinking along the lines of leaving the tiles in place
and putting the cushion flooring on top. However cushion flooring
tends to be quite thick so I'm not sure if that would necessitate
trimming something off the bottom of the kitchen door.

Just considering all the angles at the moment - I don't want to start
ripping the tiles up and then wish I'd left them alone!

PoP

Under loose cushion flooring I'd definitely leave the original vinyl tiles in
place. They'll be stuck down with horrible gooey black bitumen adhesive which
you'll never be able to get rid of completely short of relaying the screed, and
they'll probably be wall to wall, under any units. Removing them will only gain
you 3 or 4mm anyway. If bits of the vinyl tiles are missing or loose this needs
to be made good flush using Ardit or similar latex.

Peter

"PoP" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 11 Feb 2004 22:25:17 -0000, "Wellard"
wrote:

What kind of floor are the tiles in question adhering to?

I believe it's suspended concrete - like found on so many new houses.

More to the point what kind of floor tiles?

Regular 12in square vinyl jobbies - this is a kitchen floor where the
tiles are to be replaced with cushioned flooring.

Part of me is thinking along the lines of leaving the tiles in place
and putting the cushion flooring on top. However cushion flooring
tends to be quite thick so I'm not sure if that would necessitate
trimming something off the bottom of the kitchen door.

Just considering all the angles at the moment - I don't want to start
ripping the tiles up and then wish I'd left them alone!

I suspect that removing, plaing and rehanging the door would be easier than
fighting with the tiles and then preparing the floor ...

Mary

PoP

Sending email to my published email address isn't
guaranteed to reach me.

On Thu, 12 Feb 2004 00:01:18 +0000, PoP wrote:

On Wed, 11 Feb 2004 22:25:17 -0000, "Wellard"
wrote:

What kind of floor are the tiles in question adhering to?

I believe it's suspended concrete - like found on so many new houses.

More to the point what kind of floor tiles?

Regular 12in square vinyl jobbies - this is a kitchen floor where the
tiles are to be replaced with cushioned flooring.

Part of me is thinking along the lines of leaving the tiles in place
and putting the cushion flooring on top. However cushion flooring
tends to be quite thick so I'm not sure if that would necessitate
trimming something off the bottom of the kitchen door.

Just considering all the angles at the moment - I don't want to start
ripping the tiles up and then wish I'd left them alone!

In that case leave the tiles alone, you've got a level base there.
Taking them up will involve re-levelling all the floor first, big job
in comparison.
...

SJW
A.C.S. Ltd.

PoP wrote in message . ..

Part of me is thinking along the lines of leaving the tiles in place
and putting the cushion flooring on top. However cushion flooring
tends to be quite thick so I'm not sure if that would necessitate
trimming something off the bottom of the kitchen door.

not difficult to do.

Regards, NT

PoP wrote
"Wellard" wrote:

What kind of floor are the tiles in question adhering to?

I believe it's suspended concrete - like found on so many new houses.

More to the point what kind of floor tiles?

Regular 12in square vinyl jobbies - this is a kitchen floor where the
tiles are to be replaced with cushioned flooring.

This sounds ominously familiar. I'm just doing the same in my kitchen.

I'm going quarry tiles, so i'm taking the floor back to the screed.
However, i'm leaving the (old) vinyl tiles down under the units, &
tiling through under the Fridge and Washing machine.

I'm managing to get them up with a bolster chisel & club hammer, I
think they were originally put down with contact adhesive, which is
coming up nicely [1]

Cheers,

Paul.

[1] Well, if you can call brown and gloopy 'nice'

If you really want to remove the tiles there is a machine on the
market designed especially for this purpose. It's called a floor tile
remover, which is similar to a 9 inch angle grinder but fitted with a
wide reciprocating blade attachment. Your local tool hire store may
hire them out, mine does.

Trouble is, once you've removed the tiles, your left with the adhesive
to contend with. In my case it's black bitumen painted onto concrete,
save chipping it away with a hammer and bolster chissel does any one
have a good idea for removing the bitumen? Angle grinders fitted with
disks or brushes make a serious mess and the smell lingers.

On 12 Feb 2004 04:30:18 -0800, (Zymurgy)
wrote:

I'm managing to get them up with a bolster chisel & club hammer, I
think they were originally put down with contact adhesive, which is
coming up nicely [1]

The vinyl tiles are coming up with a bolster chisel and club hammer?
That's what I wanted to hear!

However I'm definitely not ruling out leaving the vinyl tiles in place
and putting cushion flooring on top. Sod it, whatever's easiest gets
my vote.

Sh*t, I must be developing into a real tradesman with those sorts of
thoughts. I'm a celebrity, get me outta here....

PoP

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guaranteed to reach me.

PoP wrote
(Zymurgy) wrote:

I'm managing to get them up with a bolster chisel & club hammer

The vinyl tiles are coming up with a bolster chisel and club hammer?
That's what I wanted to hear!

Yep, it slips in between the floor and the tile and doesn't damage the
floor if you use a wide-ish (3"-ish) & blunt chisel and hammer
sideways, not down obviously !

However I'm definitely not ruling out leaving the vinyl tiles in place
and putting cushion flooring on top. Sod it, whatever's easiest ...

:-) I needed the depth as the new tiles are pretty thick.

Sh*t, I must be developing into a real tradesman with those sorts of
thoughts. I'm a celebrity, get me outta here....

"how can I bodge this and get away with it" ;-)

Anyway, can you send me an email if your return addy isn't valid. I
have a bit of work to put your way if you have a spare few days.

Cheers,

Paul.