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NickW

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Hi all, I'm hoping someone will help me with some much needed advice....

I am renovating our 1930's property room by room and next up is the kitchen! I have laid wall and floor tiles before but never natural stone, in this case we are looking at using travertine tiles.

The existing floor is mostly timber joists and floor boards although where the previous owners had an extension build there is an area which is a solid concrete floor. i have tested the wooden floor for deflection by placing a full to the brim glass of water in the middle and walking around (even jumping) and nothing spilt. it's a galley kitchen so the floor area between units is only around 1.3m wide

I have seen numerous different solutions offered and to be honest it's all baffled me as some say one thing then another suggests something totally different! The issue i have is the tiles are around 10mm thick and we are looking to put electric UFH in (only due to the solid floor area otherwise i'd be installing a wet system but i havent got the time to gun out 15mm of concrete in order to give me enough depth to install. this again is where my head is struggling to work out the best way of unsuring i dont end up with cracked tiles. I cant afford to increase the floor level by too much otherwise i will end up with a step in to the kitchen from the hallway (currently there is a laminate floor down in the kitchen which matches the carpet level in the hallway)

how can i ensure the floor is adequate for travertine without raising the level by too much?
 

Chalker

TF
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You could lift the floorboards and replace with exterior grade plywood. Glue and screw it down.
Prime the ply and cover with 6mm insulation boards. Fix with powdered adhesives do screws with stainless "wedi" washers.
Fit underfloor heating.
Self level over the underfloor.
Tile seal and grout.

While you have the floor up, fit the best insulation you can afford and fit it well.
This will pay you back with cheaper heating costs
 
OP
N

NickW

You could lift the floorboards and replace with exterior grade plywood. Glue and screw it down.
Prime the ply and cover with 6mm insulation boards. Fix with powdered adhesives do screws with stainless "wedi" washers.
Fit underfloor heating.
Self level over the underfloor.
Tile seal and grout.

While you have the floor up, fit the best insulation you can afford and fit it well.
This will pay you back with cheaper heating costs

Thanks for your reply, just a couple of questions....

would 18mm ply be strong enough as a replacement for the floor boards?

and the 6mm insulation boards would that be something along the lines of a cement based backer board such as hardiebacker?

I plan on putting a minimum of 100mm insulation between the joists to avoid heatloss below the floor.
 

Chalker

TF
Arms
Reaction score
628
18mm will be fine, if glued and screwed. Make sure you prime the cut edges of the ply. Also install noggins ( supports) where any joins are.
Backer board will work, but I personally like yo use insulation boards. It gives a little uncoupling from the floor. So it detaches some movement from the timber to the tiles. And as it says on the tin, it also insulates.
Google 6mm insulation boards.
Deltaboard Construction Boards, Tilebacker Boards - http://www.tiletown.co.uk/en/deltaboard
 

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