Hello!!
I'm in the process of tidying up our basement.
I have torn out a carpet and underneath it were tiles in some plastic-like material about 30x30 that were glued with something I believe is tar. What do I need to do to lay tiles? Lay on top of the black substance that looks like tar, or does it need to be removed first so the clean concrete floor of the basement is exposed?
Tips on work order, materials, etc. are welcome.
I'm in the process of tidying up our basement.
I have torn out a carpet and underneath it were tiles in some plastic-like material about 30x30 that were glued with something I believe is tar. What do I need to do to lay tiles? Lay on top of the black substance that looks like tar, or does it need to be removed first so the clean concrete floor of the basement is exposed?
Tips on work order, materials, etc. are welcome.
I would tear everything out, check that the bare concrete is level, so you can live with any minor slopes, otherwise, level it with self-leveling compound or similar.
Then primer, adhesive, tiles, and grout. The manufacturer probably has good instructions for this. Don't forget gloves when grouting.
The bare concrete so you don't build in anything that could cause mold/problems later. The grout lines will also "breathe" moisture.
Your big problem later will be that you get cold floors since these tiles will be cold. Installing a thin electric heating underneath will probably be a relatively expensive heat source, especially if you have hydronic heating with some type of heat pump. Running hydronic heating is a completely different thing, search for basement projects.
If you can live with wearing slippers or aren't very sensitive to cold, you'll have a good basement floor that's easy to keep clean.
Then primer, adhesive, tiles, and grout. The manufacturer probably has good instructions for this. Don't forget gloves when grouting.
The bare concrete so you don't build in anything that could cause mold/problems later. The grout lines will also "breathe" moisture.
Your big problem later will be that you get cold floors since these tiles will be cold. Installing a thin electric heating underneath will probably be a relatively expensive heat source, especially if you have hydronic heating with some type of heat pump. Running hydronic heating is a completely different thing, search for basement projects.
If you can live with wearing slippers or aren't very sensitive to cold, you'll have a good basement floor that's easy to keep clean.