Installing new bathroom suite on floorboarded room

[skysurfer]

I am about to renew our bathroom suite. Is it best to tile the floor first then install the bath etc? What is the best preparation to lay tiles on uneven floorboards with wide gaps between them? The house dates from 1840.

[kilty55]

hi how wide are these uneven gaps?? i would personally put 12mm plywood down with screws and if floor is on a slope you could also self level it then install your suite,,i wouldnt install anything till your floor is sorted m8

[dock]

skysurfer

if the floor is that poor it may well be worth removing the boards and replacing with minimum 18mm exterior grade plywood. Stiffen the floor by inserting noggins so that you can screw fix at 300mm centres.............or less. This could negate the use of an admix in the tile adhesive (need to weigh up comparative costs)get the bath in then tile fix in Keraquick a genuine S1 adhesive (flexible/deformable). grout with Ultracolor Plus (26 colours) then fit toilet and sink/ped.

best of luck however you do it but prep. is the key to a good and lasting job

dock

[skysurfer]

thanks for the advice. The widest of the gaps is 12mm

[skysurfer]

thank you very much looking forward to getting started

[cjbombero]

Personally I would board over the existing floor, taking it up on an old house might uncover more problems than you want to find! If your struggling for height you can always use NoMorePly as its fully waterproof and only 7mm thick, the board needs to be primed, glued and screwed before using a decent flexi adhesive to allow for movement.

As Dock says you need to get the bath plumbed in, sort out all your pipework, boxing in etc before starting on the walls. Once the walls are done finish by tiling the floor.

Skysurfer, if you do one thing make sure you get your settng out right, if you get it wrong it could cause you no end of problems!

Best of luck,

cjbombero

[wetdec]

I am assuming the existing floor boards are traditional 6" x 3/4" softwood.

Providing this is the case I would make sure they are acrewed down and sound. As its not a huge area a 6mm ply can be laid over the existing boards, these must be screwed or skew nailed at 150mm centres.

You talk of high spots these can be taken off with a wood chisel before the play is laid.

Once overlaid then it can be primed and your tiles fixed with a flexible adhesive (2part prefered)

Hope this helps


tiler

[CBTC]

Just to focus on the boards, if they are original, from the build then please dont junk them and of possible lift, save and lay 18 mm ply to start your floor construct. The boards can be sold as salvaged for which there is great demand in the period house sector, or used elsewhere in your place. The boards are prob wider than anything of recent times right? and will be old - slow grown - pine. Clean and oil up beautifully with some TLC.
check on www.salvo.co.uk

[cjbombero]

Good point CBTC, if the boards are decent and worth money than as you say it would be a shame to trash them.

I think you have got quite a few ideas to work with skysurfer, another option is to get another tiler out to give his/her opinion and get a quote. If you feel like a project is going to be more hassle than its worth (eg time, effort, money, the potential of getting it wrong) then maybe it would be value for money to get someone in?

cjbombero