Preventing Cracks In Floor Tiles

How to prevent cracked tile.

Preventing cracks in floor tiles.

As a general rule tiles larger than 12x12 inches should have mortar applied to the back of the tile as well as the floor to help ensure adequate coverage. Usually homeowners ignore small fissures and cracks in tiles until they break completely. However cracks wider than 1 8 inch will eventually transfer to the tile it notes. In the case of tile mortared directly to a subfloor even a slight movement in the floor can break the mortar s adhesive bond or open cracks in the grout lines or the tiles themselves.

Ceramic floor tiles especially larger tiles need an even distribution of mortar underneath them. This can be extremely dangerous as the cracks in floor tile may allow moisture to seep through to the underlayment. Ceramic porcelain terracotta glass and mosaic tiles add natural beauty and interest to the design of your home. However there are steps you can take mitigate tile cracking.

For a concrete subfloor the most effective thing to do is add steel reinforcing bars when the concrete slab is poured. Voids in the mortar under the tile allow the tile to flex and crack. In many cases the crack is not the result of an inferior tile. Reinforcing your floor will make for a more solid and level surface while repairing tiles with epoxy is an easy fix for single tiles that become cracked.

Chips and hairline cracks in tile floors are usually fixable. Cracked tile is usually a sign of poor preparation of the substrate. These have been tested and have the highest performance. This is known as reflective cracking and it can be easily prevented by adding a crack isolation membrane during installation.

How to prevent cracked tile floors. Generally hairline cracks in the concrete will not present an issue to the tile floor above. In far more instances the crack was caused by anomalies under or around the tile. If you want to prevent cracks in the concrete from transferring through to your tile floor the best products are a118 10 crack isolation membranes.

But the brittle nature of tiles and the constant foot traffic means that the tiles are likely to crack at some point. Identify these reasons for the tile crack as a first step to prevent the tile floor from cracking. Reasons for cracked tile floor. How to prevent tile cracks.

Take these precautions to prevent tile cracking in the future. Cracked tiles on floors and walls is a problem because it can be difficult to track down the source of the crack. If you have recently invested in newly tiled floors it is normal to worry if the tiles you have purchased do not meet standards.