Tile Over Tile: Radiant Heated Bathroom Floor
Tile over tile means exactly what it says, but in this case you’re going to sandwich a
layer of radiant electric heating mats between the old and the new tile. Tile over tile is
an easy way to avoid the mess associated with tearing up the old bathroom floor, but
requires thorough planning.
Deflection:
Before you install an electric radiant heat mat over the old bathroom tile and install
new tile over the mat, you should check the floor for deflection. This is the maximum
amount the floor can move under the anticipated load (you). Ceramic tile is hard and
will break or dislodge if the surface bends under the load. Here’s a simple test:
Stand in the middle of the bathroom floor and jump up and down. If the floor moves it
has a deflection problem and is not a good candidate for tile over tile installation until
you reinforce the sub-floor.
Avoid That Sinking Feeling:
Since you’re tiling over tile, you must plan in advance to avoid making the vanity, toilet
and tub look like they’re “sinking” into the new floor.
Fortunately, many of the new radiant heating mats are no thicker than the depth of
the mortar you would ordinarily apply for most tile installations. Combine this with a
tile thickness of ¼ inch and the maximum elevation above the old floor would be only
½ inch.
One way to keep the bathroom fixtures from looking swallowed up by the new floor is
to remove and reinstall the baseboard. Better yet, why not buy new baseboard tile to
complement the new floor?
The raised height of the new floor will also require you to adjust the length of the door
(s) and possibly install a new threshold.
Preparation:
Remove or re-attach broken tile pieces. If you remove them, wait until the floor has
been sanded and thoroughly vacuumed before you fill the spaces with mortar.
If any of the tiles have checks wider than 1/8”, you should consider a crack isolation
membrane. This membrane is a roll on product that you apply to the old tile. The
membrane allows the new floor to move independently of the old.
Next, sand the old tile so the mortar has a good bonding surface. A belt sander would
ensure a consistent bonding surface.
Please make sure you wear a face mask and safety glasses while sanding. The tiles
may have been fired with toxic lead glaze.
After sanding, vacuum the tile and wipe down with an all purpose cleaner. Pay special
attention to the areas untouched by the sander.
Installation:
Roll out the mats prefabricated to your specifications by the manufacturer. Some
electric radiant systems, like Quickmat, are self-adhesive and require no mortar to
secure them to the old tile floor.
If you’re re-tiling the only bathroom, keep a board and some scrap 2 x 4’s handy to
protect the mats when the bathroom is being used.
Throughout the installation process, use a digital ohm meter to check the resistance
of the heating mats. This will help you monitor the mats for short circuits.
Have your electrician connect the heating mats to the power source and install the
thermostat. Depending on the local electrical inspection procedures, you might have
to wait until the job is inspected before you start laying tile.
Trowel out the mortar over the mats. Some manufacturers recommend latex- modified
or epoxy-modified mortar and grout instead of water-based multi-purpose adhesives.
Mortar beds thicker than 3/8 inch should work fine for most systems; they just take
slightly longer to heat up.
Since you won’t be covering the entire floor with heating mats, make sure the mortar
applied over open areas, (under the toilet) is level with the mortar covered mats.
Don’t bang the trowel on the mat or heating wire to remove excess mortar from the
trowel. This could sever the heating wire.
At this point, you would lay the tile. If you have no experience tiling, practice on your
neighbor’s bathroom floor.
Fire It Up!
Your new radiant heated bathroom floor looks beautiful and you can’t wait to get
warm feet. Go ahead, but only for 10 minutes. Don’t put the system into full operation
until the mortar is fully cured. This can take up to four weeks. See why thorough
planning is so important?
Tile over tile means exactly what it says, but in this case you’re going to sandwich a
layer of radiant electric heating mats between the old and the new tile. Tile over tile is
an easy way to avoid the mess associated with tearing up the old bathroom floor, but
requires thorough planning.
Deflection:
Before you install an electric radiant heat mat over the old bathroom tile and install
new tile over the mat, you should check the floor for deflection. This is the maximum
amount the floor can move under the anticipated load (you). Ceramic tile is hard and
will break or dislodge if the surface bends under the load. Here’s a simple test:
Stand in the middle of the bathroom floor and jump up and down. If the floor moves it
has a deflection problem and is not a good candidate for tile over tile installation until
you reinforce the sub-floor.
Avoid That Sinking Feeling:
Since you’re tiling over tile, you must plan in advance to avoid making the vanity, toilet
and tub look like they’re “sinking” into the new floor.
Fortunately, many of the new radiant heating mats are no thicker than the depth of
the mortar you would ordinarily apply for most tile installations. Combine this with a
tile thickness of ¼ inch and the maximum elevation above the old floor would be only
½ inch.
One way to keep the bathroom fixtures from looking swallowed up by the new floor is
to remove and reinstall the baseboard. Better yet, why not buy new baseboard tile to
complement the new floor?
The raised height of the new floor will also require you to adjust the length of the door
(s) and possibly install a new threshold.
Preparation:
Remove or re-attach broken tile pieces. If you remove them, wait until the floor has
been sanded and thoroughly vacuumed before you fill the spaces with mortar.
If any of the tiles have checks wider than 1/8”, you should consider a crack isolation
membrane. This membrane is a roll on product that you apply to the old tile. The
membrane allows the new floor to move independently of the old.
Next, sand the old tile so the mortar has a good bonding surface. A belt sander would
ensure a consistent bonding surface.
Please make sure you wear a face mask and safety glasses while sanding. The tiles
may have been fired with toxic lead glaze.
After sanding, vacuum the tile and wipe down with an all purpose cleaner. Pay special
attention to the areas untouched by the sander.
Installation:
Roll out the mats prefabricated to your specifications by the manufacturer. Some
electric radiant systems, like Quickmat, are self-adhesive and require no mortar to
secure them to the old tile floor.
If you’re re-tiling the only bathroom, keep a board and some scrap 2 x 4’s handy to
protect the mats when the bathroom is being used.
Throughout the installation process, use a digital ohm meter to check the resistance
of the heating mats. This will help you monitor the mats for short circuits.
Have your electrician connect the heating mats to the power source and install the
thermostat. Depending on the local electrical inspection procedures, you might have
to wait until the job is inspected before you start laying tile.
Trowel out the mortar over the mats. Some manufacturers recommend latex- modified
or epoxy-modified mortar and grout instead of water-based multi-purpose adhesives.
Mortar beds thicker than 3/8 inch should work fine for most systems; they just take
slightly longer to heat up.
Since you won’t be covering the entire floor with heating mats, make sure the mortar
applied over open areas, (under the toilet) is level with the mortar covered mats.
Don’t bang the trowel on the mat or heating wire to remove excess mortar from the
trowel. This could sever the heating wire.
At this point, you would lay the tile. If you have no experience tiling, practice on your
neighbor’s bathroom floor.
Fire It Up!
Your new radiant heated bathroom floor looks beautiful and you can’t wait to get
warm feet. Go ahead, but only for 10 minutes. Don’t put the system into full operation
until the mortar is fully cured. This can take up to four weeks. See why thorough
planning is so important?
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