Tile Floor Subfloor Thickness

Typically made of plywood or osb and ranging in thickness from 19 32 to 1 1 8 thick the subfloor is truly structural second only to joists in this respect.

Tile floor subfloor thickness.

Regardless of the material it must be at least 1. The subfloor under the tile should be at least 1 1 8 thick with a minimum of 5 8 thick exterior grade plywood topped by 1 2 cement backer board. The subfloor must be structurally sound as well as thick and stable enough to hold the weight of the tile without moving or flexing. If you have a concrete slab floor the slab may be considered the subfloor.

Tile over wood subfloor plywood and osb are the two most common materials used for floor decking and typically they are 5 8 or 3 4 thick. Over the 3 4 in. When installing a ceramic tile floor on a concrete subfloor you don t have to worry about flexing as long as the concrete slab is at least 1 1 8 inch thick which most slabs are. A subfloor is the bottom most structural level of your floor.

Concrete expands and contracts and that type of movement can also crack the tiles and the grout. It supports your decorative floor finish whether it s carpet hardwood vinyl laminate or tile. A subfloor that is less than 1 2 inch thick will dimple or cup in the middle over time. Subflooring for a total plywood thickness of 1 1 4 in.

An extra layer of ceramic tile adds substantial thickness to the flooring layer. While some consider byrne s a approach overkill for ceramic tile a more common method is to use nominal 1 2 in. Diamond tipped blade the diamond grit bonded to the edge of these steel blades lasts up to 30 times longer and cuts twice as fast as carbide grit. Those changes in the subfloor will cause problems for the actual flooring especially for vinyl or tile.

In this scenario jim and rich install 1 2 cementious backer unit cbu resulting in at least an 1 1 8 thick subfloor. For more information download our pdf about types of subfloors. Large format tiles such as 18 by 18 inch and. A subfloor system that worked fine for a single layer of ceramic tile may not be strong enough to handle the many hundreds of extra pounds added when a second layer is added.

The subfloor is the bottom most layer and it rests on the joists. Medium 6 by 6 inch and 12 by 12 inch tiles are typically 3 8 inch thick. A smooth surface is necessary for a subfloor. Tile thickness small 1 inch mosaic tiles can be as thin as 1 8 inch.